Interweavings of didactics in the pedagogy: projections in universities of northeastern Brazil

Abstract

Since the 1990s, the field of Didactics has undergone a process of epistemological reconfiguration, consolidating critical perspectives in the theoretical-methodological construction of teaching, conceived as a complex and multi-referential object. This movement has produced significant contributions to didactic research and intervention, expanding the understanding of the knowledge required for teaching as a social practice, committed to critical, reflective, contextualized, and equitable learning. In this context, Didactics reaffirms itself as a foundational pedagogical discipline in initial teacher education programs. Nevertheless, its role within these programs is tensioned by curricular policies that ascribe multiple, and at times misaligned, meanings to it, diverging from progressive conceptions of Pedagogy and teacher training, This study aimed to analyze which and how didactic knowledge is incorporated into the curricula of 14 undergraduate Pedagogy programs offered by federal universities in Northeastern Brazil. The results indicated that the field is present in all programs, albeit with differing configurations: content dispersion across syllabi; absence of focus on its epistemological nature and investigative dimension; presence of classical topics related to the organization of teaching, but limited incorporation of emerging issues in Basic Education; and reliance on conventional teaching and learning procedures with few updated references. On the other hand, findings suggest that Didactic courses tend to align with critical Pedagogy perspectives, providing heuristic resources for future educators to understand the challenges of teaching, particularly in public schools, as a mediation of critical and emancipatory learning, thus contributing to the strengthening of the Right to Education.