Além do “fill in the blanks”: a música e o ensino de língua inglesa na perspectiva do letramento crítico

Abstract

The aim of the present study is to analyse and to reflect about the formation of critical citizens by teaching English in the light of Critical Literacy, using songs as starting point.The theoretical contributions were based in the conception of language from Bakhtin/Volochínov (2006), in Applied Linguistics (PENNYCOOK, 2006; RAJAGOPALAN,2006), in the proposals of Parâmetros Curriculares Nacionais para o Ensino Médio (BRASIL,2002), in the Orientações Curriculares para o Ensino Médio (BRASIL, 2006), in songs used to teach English (MURPHEY, 2015) and in the studies of Critical Literacy (CERVETTI, PARDALES & DAMICO, 2010; JANKS 2010; JORDÃO, 2015).Methodologically, the research, within qualitative paradigm, is a case study (LEFFA,2006), (YIN, 1993,1994). Nine participants of this research were students of a second year high-school class from the chemistry integrated course of the Instituto Federal de Alagoas, campus Maceió. The data collection instruments, used between March and June 2015, were questionnaires, audio recordings, student’s productions, diaries, lesson plans and social networks posts (Facebook and Whatsapp). The analysis focused the development of three themes worked from the content of the songs: liberty, beauty standards and love.The results revealed that: (1) the English language worked under the dialogical perspective helped the participants to reflect and think again about the proposed themes; (2) the creation of spaces for the students to negotiate their visions was promoted; (3) the discourses of the participants were built thought the dialogues with the others during the discussions in class, which confirms the importance for the teacher to conceive the language as dialogical (BAKHTIN/VOLOCHÌNOV 2006); (4) the participants were able to recognize some voices that that runs through the discourses in our society in relation to the discussed themes; (5) the songs were very important to raise the interest of the participants in relation to the themes; (6) the participants demonstrated the ability of developing the structure and language skills of the English language working in the Critical Literacy perspective.