SOCIOLINGUISTIC PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES OF TEACHERS FROM NORTHERN MATO GROSSO REGARDING THE CONTINUING EDUCATION PROCESS: WITH EMPHASIS ON RURAL SCHOOLS
Educational Sociolinguistics. Perceptions. Sociolinguistic Attitudes. Continuing Education. Rural Schools.
Continuous formation plays an essencial role in teachers' professional trajectory, especially regarding the constant social, cultural, and educational transformations that impact daily school life. More than an institutional demand, it falls into being a right and a necessity, allowing teachers to critically reflect on their practice, update ones' knowledge and respond with sensibility and competence to the demands of the several contexts in which they work. In rural schools, in particular, where realities are marked by specific challenges and a large linguistic and cultural diversity, continuous education becomes an indispensable tool for building more inclusive and contextualized pedagogical practices, while also being more committed with the valuation of local knowledge. This dissertation analyzes the sociolinguistic perceptions and attitudes of 12 teachers (four from each school unit) working in three rural schools located in northern Mato Grosso state. Focusing on the continuous education process promoted by the Regional Education Directorate, Matupá branch, the study, which is based on the principles of Educational Sociolinguistics, was developed with teachers from Leonisio Lemos Melo, Senador Jonas Pinheiro e Irany Jaime Farina state schools. Based on a a qualitative and interpretive approach, it aimed to comprehend the way teachers interpret and incorporate knowledge acquired intraining initiatives, particularly regarding linguistic diversity. The results reveal advancements in the valuation of continuous education as an instrument of professional improvement, however, they also pinpoint significant limitations, such as the lack of discussions regarding linguistic variation, the persistence of normative concepts, and the precariousness of teaching. In this sense, the importance of understanding continuous education stands out, not only as a single moment of training, but rather as a permanent process, capable of sustaining the development of the teacher's professional identity. The analyses highlight the necessity for public policies that promote a contextualized, critical training, committed to the sociocultural and linguistic reality of the rural territories.