Eu, Tu, Nós: a escuta de crianças em duas pré-escolas públicas do município de Nova Friburgo/ RJ

Abstract

This research aims to reflect on children and their childhoods within the context of two public preschools located in Nova Friburgo, a municipality in the mountainous region of the state of Rio de Janeiro. With the objective of understanding how these children perceive themselves in these spaces, construct their relationships, and react to what is imposed upon them, the concepts of alterity, childhood(s), and listening (Larrosa, 2010; Freire, 2016; Abramowicz, 2010; Silva, 2024) were employed in an interdisciplinary perspective anchored in the theoretical frameworks of childhood studies (Rosemberg, 1996; Qvortrup, 2010; Corsaro, 2011; Pereira, 2015; Kramer, 1993; Barbosa, 2000; Castro, 2008), a plural scientific field that helps us to understand the connection of this conceptual triad. The methodological approach was designed in dialogue with the theoretical framework and inspired by the assumptions of ethnographic research (Fonseca, 1999; Graue; Walsh, 2003; Peirano, 2014). Thus, the methodological procedures included fieldwork, participant observation, photographic documentation, document analysis, and a "walk activity," characterized as a work proposal where children are invited to present the school based on their own perspectives and interests. The macro and micro contexts in which the children are situated were analyzed—in this case, the city of Nova Friburgo and the two preschools they attend—with the aim of understanding the circumstances in which they are embedded and how these affect the child's perception of themselves within the preschool environment. This analysis pointed to relevant issues such as pedagogical plurality in the public education system and the importance of the contribution of children's episteme in research conducted with children. Based on the referenced studies and the applied methodology, it was possible to capture important impressions about the children's perception of themselves as subjects of the research and of the preschool environment. Thus, three categories of analysis emerged: the first deals with the child's interpretation of the research and their place as a participant in this process; the second deals with the gaps constructed by the children in their daily preschool life; and the third addresses the school as a place of mutual learning where interdependence and shifts point to a relationship in which children and adults teach and learn. The research findings highlight the children's interest in understanding the meaning given to the research; they emphasized their role as social subjects, interlocutors in the cultural context in which they are inserted, and producers of their own cultures. The data also showed that children transgress rules and possess knowledge that is interwoven in a relationship of mutual learning with adults and their peers, reaffirming their otherness and their potential for agency.