TEACHING IN HIGHER EDUCATION: CONCEPTIONS ABOUT KNOWLEDGE FROM TEACHERS´ PERSPECTIVE IN THE PEDAGOGY COURSE AT ISCED-UON

Abstract

The main objective of this work was to investigate which conceptions the teachers of the Pedagogy course at ISCED-UON build in term of “knowledge”. Supported by the Historical-Cultural Psychology framework in which the constitution of the human being is conceived through social relations and contact with culture, it is important to know what knowledge teachers base themselves on what they build their conceptions about the term “knowledge”. This situation directly interferes with their activity, aimed at training trainers. Supported by the qualitative research framework, four semi-structured interviews were carried out with teachers of the Pedagogy course. With the material in hand, an initial analysis was carried out seeking to understand the conceptions inherent in the speeches of each one, which allowed us to make some considerations about such conceptions, through the use of the speech analysis technique. From the interviews with the teachers related to the knowledge category, it was possible to define the following subcategories: Culture; Knowledge; Information and Experience. We noticed from the speeches that educators highlight some aspects chosen as important to understand knowledge, presenting their conceptions, offering elements to think about which – and how this process occurs – that sustain their actions. This work has relevance by allowing to know educators' conceptions, seeking improvements in educational processes and allows the elaboration of future interventions through educational mediation focused on educational practices.