The PhD Defence in Educational Sciences of candidate   Ana Luísa da Costa., will take place at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the University of Porto (FPCEUP) on 13 April  2023, at 10Am. The thesis, The professional is political: professional activism in educational, social and community intervention was developed under the supervision of Isabel Menezes, Full Professor  FPCEUP and Henrique Vaz  Assistant Professor, FPCEUP both members CIIE.

 

The session is open to the public.

Evaluation Pannel

Chair: Tiago Neves Associate Professor, FPCEUP

Members:

Licínio Lima, Professor at the Institute of Education of the University of Minho.
Fátima Freitas, Professor at the University of Paraná, Brazil.
Idalina de Jesus, Professor at York St John University, England.
Isabel Menezes, Professor at FPCEUP - supervisor.
Joaquim Coimbra, Associate Professor at FPCEUP
Alexandra de Sá, Assistant Professor at FPCEUP

ABSTRACT:

The educational, social and, community intervention that questions and confronts social injustice experienced by people in situations of vulnerability, materializes in professional activism, a professional exercise, role, or profile that constructs and affirms the place of the political in the work context. This object of study, and the research that implements it, are theoretically based on critical approaches that advocate that professional knowledge should be placed at the service of intervention, as a promoter of awareness and social change, allowing for a perspective of the work context as a political place, but also as an educational place where doing politics provides a richness and complexity of learning and an opportunity to produce knowledge. The literature and research on the topic have highlighted several gaps, namely the need to better understand and characterize the involvement with professional activism, in diverse work contexts, and to explore the pedagogical potential that activist involvement implies, namely in the professional context, giving it its due prominence in the field of adult education. Hoping to contribute to this field, this research was structured in a mixed methodology that integrates three studies, implemented sequentially. Based on the sharing of the professionals who participated in the research, a portrait of the defining meanings of professional activism is presented, as well as a (fluid) typological organization of the practices that characterize it. Personal and psychological, social, and contextual elements were identified, which constitute incentives and/or obstacles to engaging with professional activism in these various types. Finally, the research findings also allow confronting the potential of learning this activism through experience vs. training, identifying the concrete knowledge that is learned in this practice, and demonstrating the potential of this professional practice as a place for the construction of professional activist knowledge and identity.