NEW SCHOOL MOVEMENT IN SANTA CATARINA: A LOOK AT ARITHMETIC TEACHING THROUGH SCHOOL REPORTS (1930 - 1940)

Abstract

This article aims to characterize the singularities of the arithmetic teaching methodology in the context of the Escola Nova in Santa Catarina. To achieve this, it analyzes a set of school reports established by Circular No. 1, dated January 2, 1941, written by Elpídio Barbosa in Florianópolis. This circular established rules for writing and evaluating reports prepared by teachers of school groups and isolated schools, as well as by their management. In the analyzed documents, the teachers describe their practices and base their perceptions on theoretical frameworks. As a theoretical-methodological approach, this study is grounded in the concepts of strategies and tactics by Certeau (1998). In this context, strategies represent government impositions, while tactics reflect the teachers' responses to these demands. The analysis of the reports reveals the recurrence of tactics adopted by the teaching staff, such as the repetitive use of the same works and excerpts in different documents, as well as the sometimes contradictory use of terms that suggest a convergence of school practices with the principles of the Escola Nova Movement. The results indicate that, even in the face of regulatory determinations, the teachers employed adaptation tactics, thus revealing that, on one hand, the school documents and reports suggest a partial acceptance of the reforms, but on the other hand, they reveal implicit resistance to them, especially concerning the structure and methods required.