Conteúdos teóricos ou práticos? A Libras na perspectiva dialógico-avaliativa de professores de Química em formação

Abstract

This article aims to problematize the evaluative stances of nine Chemistry pre-service teachers concerning the theoretical and practical contents studied in the discipline LIBRAS (Brazilian Sign Language) from 2017 to 2021 at the Federal Institute of Goias/Inhumas/Brazil. Grounded on the foundational concepts of the Bakhtin Circle, it is also discussed the possible implications of these viewpoints to the student-teachers’ academic education and professional career. This research is characterized as a case study involving the analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data. As for the theoretical framework, this investigation is based on Bakhtin/Volóchinov (2004), Volóchinov (2021), Fiorin (2020), Brait; Melo (2010), as well as authors that discuss the context of Brazilian Sign Language as a school subject, such as Campos; Santos (2013), Paiva, Faria and Chaveiro (2018). The findings point out that the participants value the subject in question positively, for they understand its importance for their professional and personal lives. Although the Chemistry pre-service teachers emphasize their desire for more practice and less theory, they do recognize the relevance of both to their teaching profile. Based on their evaluative stances, we believe it is necessary to review the discipline of LIBRAS in a way that its theoretical and practical contents are conceived as dialogical practices, which prioritize the interdependence of their elements and highlight both the language comprehension and its use as a sociocultural and ideological practice in communicative contexts.