CURRÍCULO ESCOLAR EM MATO GROSSO DO SUL: UMA ANÁLISE SOB A PERSPECTIVA HISTÓRICO-CRÍTICA E DA TEORIA HISTÓRICO-CULTURAL

Abstract

This research examined the school curriculum of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, questioning how it implies the development of theoretical thinking among students in the early years of Elementary Education. The study was guided by the perspectives of Historical-Cultural Theory (HCT) and Historical-Critical Pedagogy (HCP), with the Portuguese Language — specifically reading and writing in the literacy process — taken as an example of curriculum materialization, rather than as the central disciplinary focus. The general objective was to analyze the relationship between curriculum content and the formation of students’ theoretical thinking. The specific objectives were: a) to identify and separate the units of meaning that make up the curriculum; b) to describe those directly related to the development of theoretical thinking; c) to verify whether such contents are consistent with children’s learning needs; and d) to understand how the Portuguese Language contents contribute — or not — to the process of theoretical thinking formation. The methodological path was grounded in Historical-Dialectical Materialism and used the Cores of Meaning technique as a qualitative tool for analyzing contradictions and meanings expressed in the curriculum. The documentary and bibliographic research involved the analysis of the BNCC (National Common Core Curriculum) and the Curriculum of Reference of Mato Grosso do Sul, articulated with the theoretical contributions of Duarte (2016a); Gama & Duarte (2017); Davydov (1988); Leontiev (1978, 2021); Malanchen (2014, 2016); Martins (2013a, 2013b); Pasqualini (2009, 2018); Ramos & Oliveira (2020); Saviani (2013, 2016); Vygotsky (1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2001); Lopes & Macedo (2011); and Luria (1987, 1988), which provided the basis for the proposed analysis. Findings indicate that, although the state curriculum claims to promote integral education, its organization centered on fragmented skills and competencies restricts the appropriation of historically elaborated knowledge and, consequently, the development of theoretical thinking. In the case of Portuguese Language, the emphasis on mechanical learning of reading and writing reduces the potential of language as a mediating tool for the development of higher psychological functions. It is therefore concluded that a critical review of the curriculum is necessary in order to overcome fragmentation and promote pedagogical practices that integrate content and form, linking social practice to scientific knowledge and enabling human development in its entirety.

Keywords: school curriculum; Mato Grosso do Sul; Historical-Cultural Theory; Historical-Critical Pedagogy; theoretical thinking.