FORMAÇÃO EM LÍNGUA INGLESA A PARTIR DOS LETRAMENTOS CRÍTICOS E DA PERSPECTIVA DECOLONIAL EM CONTEXTO DE INSTITUTO FEDERAL

Abstract

Starting from the question: “What tensions arise, and how do they influence meaning-making in English language classes taught to technical high school students from a critical-decolonial perspective?”, the main goal of this thesis is to analyze the tensions and possibilities of a pedagogical practice grounded in Critical Literacies and a decolonial perspective in English language teaching at a Federal Institute. More specifically, it aims to: (1) discuss the tensions and resistances that emerged in the research context, problematizing the challenges of fostering students’ agency in the face of colonial structures of power, knowledge, and being; and (2) critically reflect on the research data and on my own teaching practice, constructing (self-)critical narratives about my praxiologies. The research was conducted between September and December 2023, across eleven weekly lessons, and was theoretically based on the perspectives of critical literacies (Janks, 2014, 2016; Menezes de Souza, 2011; Monte Mór, 2015, 2019) and decoloniality (Maldonado-Torres, 2007; Quijano, 2000; Walsh, 2009, 2013, 2018). The adopted methodology was qualitative (Denzin, 2006), autoethnographic (Pardo, 2019), and reflexive (self)critique (Takaki, 2019), considering both students’ participation and the researcher’s role in the process. The analyses show that the tensions resulting from adopting a critical-decolonial pedagogy significantly affected students’ forms of participation, revealing movements of resistance and possibilities of reexistence within the school space. Regarding teaching practice, the reflections highlight the importance of attentive and sensitive listening, the need to review transmissive conceptions still present in education, and the value of reflective practices in everyday classroom life It is concluded that this thesis contributes to the debate on decolonial pedagogical practices in language education not only within the context of Federal Institutes, but also to the understanding of the role of affectivity, listening, and incompleteness as central formative dimensions in critical educational processes.