The understanding that the English language can be a facilitator and mediator of intercultural
encounters, has promoted discussions about less traditional and more critical attitudes and
pedagogical practices that emphasize the importance of appreciating the culture of the other
and one’s own. The textbooks approved by the federal government and made available to the
country's public schools by the National Textbook Program (PNLD) are in line with this
perception. This work observes, from an intercultural perspective, the relation between
English teachers in some primary schools in Palmas-TO and the didactic material made
available by PNLD / 2014. It also investigates how this relation reflects on the participants
teaching practices. The literature used in this dissertation is founded on authors such as Baker
(2009), Byram (2006, 2001), Cogo and Dewey (2012), Estermann (2010), Jenkins (2007),
Kumaravadivelu (2003), Liddicoat and Scarino (2008), Rajagopalan (2010), Risager (2006),
Seidlhofer (2005) and Siqueira (2008, 2010, 2012, 2013), to name a few. This research can be
characterized as qualitative, of ethnographic and interpretative nature, having as research
instruments an individual questionnaire, notes of class observation and a semi-structured nondirective interview with the participants. Regarding the results obtained, it is possible to
observe that, despite the teachers' awareness of the importance of establishing opportunities
for intercultural exchanges in their practices and their instrumental spaces, rarely were the
moments when they became consolidated in the sense of enabling attitudes and behaviors free
of cultural prejudices and stereotypes. The gap between theory and practice in the teaching of
English was strongly highlighted, indicating that the establishing of a more conscious attitude
about the political and social relevance of language teaching should require time and
dedication in the sense of deconstructing an institutional model still based on traditional and
hegemonic teaching practices. However, the participants showed awareness of the
independent and liberating character of the language from an intercultural perspective.
|
