Abstract
|
This paper presents part of a study on teaching developed with university teachers in the Federal University of RN (UFRN). Research in higher education is an instigating subject. Papers by Leite (1998), Cunha (2001), Morosini (2001),
INEP (2004), Zabalza (2004), Teichler (2007), Bettencourt-Pires (2007), Garcia Ruiz (2008) and Brütten (2008) explain under different approaches, the relevant issue. It is well known that teachers play a relevant role in the
social and institutional field. However, empirical studies on the thinking of higher education teachers are scarce, even though they are a part of a very intensive intellectual field that is diverse and sometimes unquestioned. When
accessing the interview’s data, previous findings were considered, in order to develop a complementary approach concerning pedagogical preparation for teaching at the university, personal attributes and expectations required for
teaching higher education and strategies used with students. On this study 18 teachers from different courses were interviewed, corresponding to 1% of the total faculty of the institution. Research is carried out as a qualitative
approach and interpersonal perspective, to situate ourselves in an epistemology
perspective of teaching with humanistic and introspective view. Findings allow
us to highlight some critical issues that permeate higher education and are
present in the experiences of teachers. These issues can easily be generalized
to other institutions. The demand for intellectual productivity and generation
of knowledge is not always accompanied by an authentic creation of knowledge.
An exacerbated bureaucratization linked to the actions of all academic
bodies, the neglect of relevant procedures for the training of students and the
construction and / or strengthening of teacher identity, among other things
from academic experience, are the genesis of a climate of embarrassment
and awkward situation among teachers.
|