Pelos meandros da autonomia

: diário de bordo de um gestor

Abstract

This report describes, under the lens of autonomy, the life story of a teacher since college time until the 20th year as a state school principal who has just celebrated a 2nd state educational autonomy contract.
In my address I will compare the advances and retreats of school administration and autonomy with the winding and turning course of a river, which also provokes advances and retreats.
I will start from questioning the school autonomy according to the policies of centralization, decentralization and deconcentration of the educational system by resorting to the life stages of a river in order to understand and explain my professional career and development.
I associate the “river source” with the learning and growth period since college and the first steps in teaching until the invitation to become a school principal. Next, “the estuary” comes as a management process of a state school during 20 years, in which I experienced different regulations – boards of management association, leadership, internal and external assessment, self assessment and intermediate leadership.
Finally, in “the delta”, I will describe – as if in a log book – the processes and events leading to the settlement of the first autonomy contract, later extended twice, and the settlement of the second contract, here analyzed in its contents and regression in the autonomy granted.

Date of Award	2014
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Joaquim Machado (Supervisor)