Literacy teacher education and portuguese language pedagogy: discoursive agency in Magda Soares work

Abstract

The conceptual framework of letramento (sociocultural literacy practices) emerged in Brazilian academic discourse during the 1990s. In this context, Magda Soares’ research and studies have gained notoriety for consolidating discursive strands, for reworking conceptions and concepts relating to basic literacy and functional literacy, as well as for promoting training actions for education professionals. With this in mind, this text aims to reflect on Magda Soares’ perceptions about the training of literacy teachers and the teaching of the Portuguese language, within the scope of teaching action. To this end, it takes the theoretical and methodological perspective of Jean Bronckart’s Sociodiscursive Interactionism, which guides the reflexive analysis of the concept of language, basic literacy and functional literacy, in order to give visibility to the discourses produced around the theme, in view of the repercussions of these concepts both in teacher training and in the context of reading and writing practices, specifically in literacy. The research is based on Mikhail Bakhtin and Valentin Volochinov’s enunciative-discursive approach to language and Jean Bronckart’s concept of acting in discourses. Based on the theme of meaning, three perceptions were identified that guided the speeches: the school and the social context, the delimitation of the concept of functional literacy and the discussion about the literacy teacher. These perceptions are guided by responsive action, in which acting through discourse becomes the central axis in Magda Soares’ academic production.