ANÁLISE INTERPRETATIVA DE PERCEPÇÕES SOBRE O USO DA LESSON STUDY NA FORMAÇÃO INICIAL E CONTÍNUA DE PROFESSORES DE INGLÊS NA AMAZÔNIA

Abstract

Studies involving Lesson Study have revealed positive results on a worldwide scale the initial and continuous teacher professional development. Mostly developed in the area of mathematics, there are few studies investigating the benefits of this methodology of professional development in other areas, such as language teaching. However, two recent surveys addressed the impacts of the use of Lesson Study by English teachers in training and in service in the Amazon region. The purpose of this study was to analyze the perceptions of two researchers and other participants in their experiences in conducting these two studies. Specifically, this study aimed to: a) identify possible contextual factors that may have affected their studies either positively or negatively; b) register the perceptions of the participants of the two studies during the training workshops on Lesson Study; and c) analyze their perceptions during the implementation of Lesson Study cycles. The theoretical basis of this study was built on the results of a literature review on Lesson Study and it includes concepts, cultural impacts and solutions to gaps in teacher education. The data come from: a) notes of the researcher’s speeches at their theses defenses; b) notes of the researcher’s lecture at the Primeiro Seminário de Pesquisa de Aula and c) administration and transcripts of semi-structured interviews with the two researchers and the other participants (The questions for the interview were based on their master's theses: Lesson Study in initial teacher education: an experience with English as a Foreign Language undergraduate students at the Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará - UFOPA (SCHWADE, 2018) and Lesson Study: an experience with three English teachers from the public school network of Santarém-PA (OLIVEIRA, 2018)) and an interpretative analysis of the two theses. The interviews were analyzed using thematic content analysis (GUEST; MACQUENN; NAMEY, 2012). The results of the interviews with the participants revealed six themes included in four categories convergent with the specific objectives of this research, the first being positive contextual factors, which yielded the theme belief in the future of the Lesson Study in Brazil; the second category, negative contextual factors, yielded the themes consequences of lack of attendance by the participants and absence of an investigative posture; the category perceptions of the participants in the training workshops, from which emerged the theme misunderstandings of the knowledgeable others; and the last category, perception of the participants during the execution of the research, which yielded the themes cultural impact and indifferent behavior of the managers. On the other hand, the results of the interviews with the other participants revealed five themes, being, in the first category, positive contextual factors, the theme methodology mastering by the participants. The second category, negative contextual factors, yielded the themes belief in the future of the Lesson Study in Brazil and teaching stagnation. The category perceptions of the participants in the training workshops yielded the theme researchers commitment and the category perceptions of the participants during the execution of the research yielded the theme teaching evolution.