Em direção a uma didática inovadora e inclusiva : estudo de caso das práticas pedagógicas no projeto educar na diversidade

Abstract

This study focuses on inovative teaching practices that foster participation of pupils in the classroom activities and break down with the traditional ´shalk and blackboard´ teaching methods. It poses the following research question: how teacher pedagogy (teaching practices) has changed towards innovation as a result of the Educating for Diversity Project? This Ministry of Education -Secretariat of Special Education Project has been implemented between 2005 and 2008, and aimed at preparing teachers to use inclusive teaching methodology, oriented by five principles, that is, (1) active learning; (2) negotiations of goals; (3) demonstration, practice and feedback; (4) mutual support and (5) continuous assessment. This study aims at identifying those elements that are part of an innovative and inclusive didactic and that can offer the grounds for the building up of a valuable pedagogy to combat exclusion of pupils at risk of being pushed towards the margins of schooling. This is a Case Study qualitative research, whose unity of study is ´teaching practice changes in mainstream classrooms.´ This methodology is appropriate to the research question and the objective of this research insofar as it is suitable for investigations in which the researcher has no control upon occurrences in the field (naturalistic inquiry), and it aims answering to questionings such as how and why a particular phenomena (unity of study) happens. Collection, organization and analysis of the data adopts the ´grounded theory´ of Strauss and Corbin (2008) because it helps to withdraw meanings from the field. After a careful data analysis four dimensions of innovative and inclusive teaching practices had been found, that is, (1) Classroom Functioning; (2) Teachers- Pupils Interaction; (3) Motivating Didactic and (4) Technical Team Support. The study reveals that changes occur in the teachers´ pedagogy and teaching practice towards promoting innovation in the classroom, which are more inclusive insofar as it encourages interaction amongst pupils and participation. Despite this finding, these are incipient changes because the working conditions do not allow the necessary time to planning and implementing more teaching innovation, according to teachers. In this sense, the Educating for Diversity Project has potential to foster teaching practices changes, but the teacher training model cannot dispense with a more thorough approach of the school and teacher context.