O trabalho colaborativo como agente transformador das práticas educativas em contexto de sala de aula

: o caso do Piloto PAFC

Abstract

This study follows the implementation of the Project for Autonomy and Curricular Flexibility (PAFC), a project developed as a pedagogical experiment, whose direction of Agrupamento de Escolas de Pinheiro expressed interest and decided to implement in the school year 2017/2018. The organizational dynamics of this project provides changes to the traditional school model and is based on a strong collaborative aspect between teachers. Knowing that collaborative work has been assuming a central role in the development of teachers' professional cultures, we intend to study whether the implementation of the Autonomy and Curricular Flexibility Project has changed the dynamics of work among the teachers involved, in which direction they operated, how they were reflected in the teaching work and verify how, from the teachers' perspective, the involvement in this collaborative work contributed to their personal and professional development. The theoretical framework of reference focuses on a literature review on Collaborative Work, Professional Development, the Autonomy and Curricular Flexibility Project and Professional Cultures. The development of the study is based on an essentially qualitative research paradigm, since it focuses on the description, interpretation and analysis of aspects of the professional practice of teachers involved in the Project for Autonomy and Curricular Flexibility/Autonomy and Curricular Flexibility, in the school years 2017/2018, 2018/2019, 2019/2020, 2020/2021. For its realisation, archival research, interview (individual and using the Focus Group technique) and free observation were selected as data collection techniques. Based on the data obtained and analysed, it seems possible to state that the PAFC Pilot has placed the teachers of the AEP in an immersive environment of collaborative work. In general, both the principal and the teachers state that there have been changes in the way teachers work, among peers and with students, with noticeable effects on teachers' professional development. There is, however, a need to affirm and continue collaborative work, because there are acts, but it is not a habit capable of transforming into professional collaborative work.

Date of Award	26 Jul 2022
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Cristina Palmeirão (Supervisor)