Identidade das crianças negras na educação infantil: planejamento pedagógico e ambiente escolar antirracista

Abstract

This study investigates how the school—through curriculum, teaching materials, and spatial organization—contributes to the formation of a positive racial identity in Early Childhood Education. The research, qualitative and documentary in nature, was carried out in a municipal school in Cabedelo (PB), based on the analysis of two pedagogical planning documents referring to four Early Childhood classes and of other materials, such as children’s literature books and toys, with the objective of identifying the presence of the racial theme in everyday school life. The theoretical framework brings the historical context of Early Childhood Education in Brazil, the importance of play for identity formation, the need for Black representativeness in this process, and the impacts of structural racism in the school. The study dialogues with authors such as Nilma Lino Gomes, Kabengele Munanga, and Frantz Fanon, who discuss structural racism and its social consequences—including in education—alongside representativeness and educational legislation (Law No. 10.639/2003). The results indicate that, although the pedagogical planning includes practices that seek to value diversity in Infantil V, they are not sufficient, since Black identity is still scarcely contemplated, appearing in a fragmented, punctual, and restricted manner. In Infantil VI, diversity appears even less, chiefly linked to Indigenous culture, evidencing the absence of reference to Black identity. This absence and lack of continuity underscore the need for teacher training and intentional actions to guarantee the construction of positive identity self-esteem among Black children.