Olhares para a formação dos cursos de pedagogia das IES privadas de Juiz de Fora/MG: desdobramentos para o lugar da docência na creche

Abstract

This paper aim is, primarily, to analyze the curricular structure of the Pedagogy presential courses of the private Higher Education Institutions in Juiz de Fora, taking as focus the specificities required by the teaching work with babies and very young children within the nursery context. The recognition of the Pedagogy course as a locus for preschool teacher training, from the establishment of the National Curriculum Guidelines of the Pedagogy Course (BRASIL, 2006b), allowed me to reflect and inquire: how does teacher training take place in Pedagogy classroom courses of private institutions in Juiz de Fora regarding the acting in Early Childhood Education, specifically in nursery? This qualitative research, looking from a historical-cultural perspective, had the following methodological procedures: 1. analysis of Pedagogy courses curricular documents of the private schools in Juiz de Fora; 2. Semi-structured interviews with the teachers responsible for the subjects/modules that discuss Early Childhood Education and with the coordinators of the Pedagogy courses; 3. focus group with the participation of former students from these courses who work, or used to, as teachers in the affiliated nursery centers of the city of Juiz de Fora; 4. questionnaire to contextualize focus group participants. As a procedure for organizing, analyzing and interpreting the speeches of the focus group participants, we used the Nuclei of Meanings proposed by W. M. J. Aguiar (2006). Early childhood education has moved towards recognition in various spheres of society, gaining visibility in the context of public policies and academic productions. However, it is possible to observe, through the literature review of this research, a lack of studies on nursery teacher training in Pedagogy courses and consequently, the weaknesses in the formative and teaching process of these professionals responsible for the education and care of babies and very young children. We noticed such situations in the curriculum designs of the Pedagogy courses investigated, and through the voices of the research participants, combined with other aspects that emphasize the devaluation of teachers and the non-recognition of the relevance of this field. Given the complexity of this context, we hope that this study can contribute to (re)thinking the current curricula of Pedagogy courses, moving towards the conquest of the right to knowledge and specific skills of this educational stage, as well as to seek recognition and the appreciation of the teaching profession in our country.