Formação de pedagogos em serviço a distância: representações de professores/aprendentes do curso de pedagogia a distância da UFPB Virtual

Abstract

This thesis deals with in service teachers training held in distance education modality, which takes place through the partnership agreement signed between the Federal University of Paraiba (UFPB) and the Open University system of Brazil (UAB). This investigation aims to identify the contributions of teacher education policy expressed by UFPB in the opinion of public school teachers who were taking the degree in pedagogy, in service, at UFPB Virtual, with specialization in early childhood education. The interest in this issue became even more emphasized when it was considered the teacher training process guided by the use of information technologies and communication, in the form of semi-attending education that requires of the individuals specific skills for handling the study tools available on the e-learning platform Moodle, counting for this with internet use and interaction in virtual learning environments (VLE), thus building a profile of autonomy differentiated from that which is found in classroom education. It was about learning the challenges and solutions found by teachers/learners from the distance pedagogy course in order to check contributions of this training to improve their professional practice at school. Thus, it was selected as theoretical-methodological framework the Social Representations Theory (SRT) of Serge Moscovici and content analysis of Bardin (1977) as there was a concern to relate them with the knowledge and practice of teachers, highlighting their ways of thinking and acting front of this modality of education and ICT use on in service training. The research sample consisted of 13 teachers/learners distributed in six centres of presence support from the distance education in Paraíba, and the instruments used to capture their social representations were questionnaire and interview applied as offline activity, through e-mail (asynchronous communication and interaction). In order to organize a database on the pedagogy course at the research participant centres (Cabaceiras, Campina Grande, Coremas, João Pessoa, Mari and Pombal), it was conducted the data collection through e-mail among coordinators and presence tutors of such centres, regarding the number of vacancies, admission, enrolment and evasion among the coordinators and tutors face of such centres. Therefore, the research results validated the argument that teacher training policy expressed by UFPB has contributed to foster the education professional qualification as it has caused concerns in their academic and professional attitudes, highlighting that changing thoughts and attitudes is not easy, because it tinkers with standards previously established by institutional organizations and society.