Formação para a docência no ensino superior: contribuições de um processo formativo envolvendo estagiárias(os) de docência do programa de pós-graduação em química da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora

Abstract

The training for higher education teaching is the legal responsibility of stricto sensu postgraduate programs. However, there are no national guidelines defining how such training should take place. It is worth noting that the Teaching Internship, implemented by Capes, is one of the few actions intentionally directed toward teacher preparation, even though its conceptions and practices vary significantly across programs and institutions. Several authors have criticized this reality, highlighting a postgraduate scenario with an emphasis on research, to the detriment of the didactic-pedagogical preparation necessary for professional practice in Higher Education. This study sought to understand how a training process focused on reflection about teaching in Higher Education, involving postgraduate teaching interns, can contribute to a more critical and reflective teacher education. A qualitative approach was adopted, based on ethno-research-training, and two training processes were developed through synchronous meetings that included reflective activities grounded in different theoretical frameworks. Data were constructed from meeting recordings, written productions, documents prepared by participants, and interview responses. The analysis revealed that the training processes fostered the problematization of conceptions about teaching in Higher Education and broadened graduate students’ understanding of the complex nature of teaching, which requires pedagogical grounding, continuous reflection, and collaboration. These reflections contributed to the recognition of teaching as a practice that demands ongoing professional development. The exchange of experiences emerged as a key element for breaking isolation and promoting the socialization of experiential knowledge, strengthening the construction of teaching identity. The results indicate training processes of this nature can constitute relevant training spaces in graduate programs, whose institutionalization in stricto sensu programs could contribute to the consolidation of teacher training policies aimed at Higher Education.