O papel da leitura literária na formação crítica de adolescentes em medidas socioeducativas: a literatura como instrumento de liberdade em João Pessoa - PB

Abstract

This study, situated within the fields of Pedagogy and Social Education, focusesonthe role of literary reading in the critical formation of adolescents servingsocio-educational measures in João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil. The main objectiveistoanalyze the role of literary reading in the development of critical consciousnessamong these adolescents. The specific objectives are: to analyzehowtheexperience of literary reading fosters reflections on freedomand self-knowledge; todescribe the historical trajectory of the Brazilian socio-educational system, fromthe1927 Code of Minors to the Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA) and theNational Socio-Educational Service System (SINASE); to understand the implementationofsocio-educational measures in João Pessoa based on institutional and documentarydata, identifying key structural challenges and the potential of reading practices; andfinally, to analyze how reading can contribute to processes of reflection, there-signification of life trajectories, and the construction of critical consciousnesswithinthe context of socio-educational measures, using census data to understandthetarget population. This bibliographical and documentary research is groundedinauthors such as Antonio Candido, Paulo Freire, and Michèle Petit. Its mainsourcesinclude the National Census of Reading Practices (CNJ, 2023), reportsfromFUNDAC-PB, and institutional documents. The research problemis: howcanliteraryreading act as an instrument of freedom and critical formation for adolescentsundersocio-educational measures in João Pessoa? The results indicate ascenarioofcontrasts within the Paraíba system. Although there are no non-literateadolescentsand the percentage of units with libraries (71%) is above the national average,significant structural challenges persist: 29% of units lack any readingspace; theaverage number of books per adolescent (14.1) is below the national average(18.1);only 6% of units have librarians; and, notably, 60% of units in Paraíbaimposerestrictions on collection development — the highest percentage in theNortheastregion. Meanwhile, adolescents predominantly request comic books (39%) andnovels (23%), and their testimonies reveal that reading acts as a space for "personal growth" and an "escape valve." It is concluded that, although there arepromisinginitiatives and recognition of reading's potential by both professionals andyouths, therealization of this right still faces structural challenges, such as the lack of adequatespaces, collection restrictions, and a shortage of qualified mediation. Theselimitations hinder its transformative potential and reveal a gap betweenthehumanizing potential of literature and the concrete conditions of its provisioninsocio-educational units in Paraíba.