Teaching Practice Determinants: A State Public School Teacher Reports

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The need for the teacher to think independently, to organize their knowledge and be able to conduct their work has much to do with the training he needs and the pedagogical stance to adopt, since it is the principal agent of his own making teaching (BRAZIL, 2006, p. 46).

In this sense, according to Develay and Astolfi (1995) "The teacher profession is first and foremost a decision making profession in a complex systems where many interacting variables of which the teacher is a part" (p. 122).

However, sometimes the awareness and skills of education professionals established in their initial training on the job doesn’t materialize in the classroom by factors external to the teacher, but somehow, there is their influence in practice. These influences in teaching can be a limiting factor of the social function chemistry teaching, reducing it to an education with a focus on transmission and storage of content, in terms Trevisan and Martins (2006) argue that the practices of the chemistry teachers "mostly prioritize the reproduction of knowledge, copying, storing, accentuating the dichotomy between theory and practice this teaching" (p. 2).

Thus in order to verify what are the factors that influence and constraint the teaching practice, we investigated the conceptions of a Chemistry teacher at a public school in state from Araguari- MG- through semi-structured interview and descriptive, by which we noted as her actions are in the classroom, as well as factors that discourage a practice concerned with students' meaningful learning.

The teacher interviewed has been teaching for eighteen years, however, only seven acts as a degree in chemistry and at the end of her graduation she was approved in the tender for effective teachers of state schools and has since worked in the public schools reference[1] of the city Araguari-MG. To preserve the identity of the research subject, the fictitious name attribute is Cleide, the teacher who participated in this research.

Methodology

This research data collection was conducted in the first half of 2011 and the methodological tools used were: semi-structured autobiographical and documentary analysis with emphasis on the memorial.

At first was explained to the teacher the purpose of this investigation and requested that talk freely about her professional life, approaching from the entry into the degree course in chemistry, her formation, her incorporation as an education professional and about her current performance, thus making the descriptive memorial.

The use of this instrument aims to understand the concepts, images and beliefs that educators carry of their experiences throughout the professional life and see what the influences of these for acting teacher are. The analysis of this memorial has also provided a re-elaboration of the interview in order to fill the gaps left unanswered and / or questions raised.

The interviews were semi structured type, i.e., a script was prepared and used as a guideline and it was autobiographical and therefore makes a tale of redemption for the teacher life in relation to the training process and the beginning of teaching to her constitution as a professional .

This research is characterized as a qualitative research case study. According to (Pizzo, 2004) qualitative researches seek to understand the meanings of the everyday events educational have for those who participate in it and are characterized by following a more comprehensive view of the facts and interpretation. According to Ludke and Andre (1986), the qualitative research approach involves obtaining data for analysis discussed by the interaction between the researcher and the study context, emphasizing more the process that results and is concerned to portray the perspectives of interviewees.

The case study comes as a research methodology in the 1960s and 1970s, and according to Andrew (2005a), is chosen when there is interest in knowing what is happening in a specific situation, "(...) we seek to know, in depth, the particular "(p. 24). It is a particularity and complexity study of a single case, which allows us to know and focus on the process and is characterized by the type of knowledge that is obtained not only for the specific method.

Therefore, this study is characterized by the search for a particular case, the factors that influence and constrain the pedagogical practices of teaching a chemical professor from state public education, qualitative and has therefore more interested in the process that the end result itself.

A teacher, a practice: teaching perspectives

A good teaching practice can provide a list of teaching and learning more effective, since, according to Almeida, Santos and Silva (2010)

[...] Good is not the teacher who teaches many things, but one whose learning takes place effectively in learning. This achievement is also learning the necessary scientific knowledge useful to our everyday life, or rather by the necessary "know-how of the teacher" whose practice is able to bring the knowledge of library science textbooks for the student's daily life [...] (Almeida, Santos and Silva, 2010, p. 2).

In this sense, it is important to worry about the practice of chemistry teachers in high school, because it is from these that may occur or not the discipline demystification, students taste and interests in chemistry. For the actions which teachers provide student learning, this professional should have an initial and continuing training that provides practical and reflections of their actions for continuous improvement. However, apart from good training and a commitment to the profession, other factors may influence the teachers’ actions.

Among the factors that can influence and constrain the practice, teacher will discuss the initial training and continuous chemical content as an abstract and complex, the structural conditions of the institution, resources and materials used the focus in the selection processes for entry into higher education institutions and financial and social devaluation of the teacher.

The initial training of future teachers is an important factor for the undergraduates know the social function of teaching chemistry and learn methodologies and innovative teaching strategies to address the contents of different ways in order to attract students' attention thus providing a meaningful learning.

You have to think teacher training (initial and continuing) as moments of a continuous process of building a qualified teaching practice and affirmation