Desenvolvimento profissional: grupo colaborativo como estratégia no processo formativo de professores que atuam em turmas multiano em escolas do campo

Abstract

This thesis investigates teacher professional development through a collaborative group as a formative strategy for teachers working in multigrade classrooms in the rural area of Belterra, Pará, Brazil. In this regard, the thesis aimed to understand the professional development process of teachers working in multigrade classrooms in rural education, developed within the context of a collaborative group. I argue that the establishment and development of a collaborative group with teachers from multigrade classrooms in the rural area of Belterra-PA enhances teacher professional development. Through a collaborative approach, the group reveals itself as a formative space that drives the re-signification of pedagogical practices. The thesis demonstrates that this formative model stimulates the confrontation of the challenges of teaching in Amazonian contexts. Teachers, by sharing knowledge and expanding debates on teaching practice, produce significant and profound understandings within multigrade territories. The research adopts a qualitative approach, based on narrative inquiry and Discursive Textual Analysis (DTA). The empirical field was Escola Polo Santa Terezinha, located in the Tapajós National Forest (Flona do Tapajós), involving six teachers working in multigrade classrooms, who participated in a collaborative group composed of eleven formative sessions conducted between 2023 and 2024. The analytical corpus was built from the formative sessions, participant observation, and narrative interviews. The analysis was carried out in three stages: unitarization, categorization, and metatext production. This investigation is grounded in the contributions of Marcelo Garcia (2009), who problematizes teacher professional development; Fiorentini (2012), who discusses collaborative groups; Tardif (2002), with his work on teaching knowledge and formative processes; and Hage (2012), who brings elements regarding the organization of multigrade classrooms. The methodology of Discursive Textual Analysis (DTA) follows Moraes and Galiazzi (2016). The main findings of the thesis show that the collaborative group served as a powerful environment for teacher professional development, promoting critical reflection, re-signification of actions, and the strengthening of teaching identity in contexts of geographic and institutional isolation. There was an emergence of knowledge produced through the articulation of discourse and educational practice. The formative sessions provided a space for sensitive listening, practice-based study, sharing of experiences, and collective production of pedagogical solutions. Moreover, the collaborative group established itself as a space for resistance and innovation, indicating possible paths for the professional development of teachers in multigrade classrooms in rural areas — territories historically neglected by public policies. Although progress has been made, the research also revealed weaknesses such as the lack of specific public policies for teacher education in multigrade contexts and limited institutional involvement in collaborative actions. Similarly, difficulties were observed in academic reading, consistency of meetings, and institutional engagement. The sustainability of the proposal is influenced by the recognition of collaborative groups as a formative strategy; the lack of external funding also limited the initiative.