Letramento matemático: compreensão de professores dos anos finais do ensino fundamental

Abstract

This dissertation aims to describe and analyze the understanding of Mathematical Literacy among Math teachers working in the final years of Elementary School, highlighting some statements made by them when they come into contact with this theme. The research question was expressed as: In what ways do Mathematics teachers demonstrate their understanding of Mathematical Literacy in the final years of Elementary School? The research, of a qualitative nature, involved the application of online questionnaires built using Google Forms, with the analysis of the materiality inspired by Content Analysis (Bardin, 1977). Seven Math teachers from two schools in the municipality of Alagoinhas, Bahia, Brazil, participated in the study. The research was supported by theories from the field of Mathematics Education and studies on Mathematical Literacy (Soares, 2009; Kleiman, 1995; 2006). Furthermore, the research examined Mathematics teaching, considering its historicity, based on the concept of Mathematical Literacy described in national and international documents, such as the National Common Curricular Base (BNCC) and the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). The analyses show that the understanding of Mathematical Literacy among teachers of the final years of Elementary School is close to the understanding expressed in the BNCC (2017), which defines Mathematical Literacy as the use of competencies and skills to reason, represent, communicate, and argue mathematically, in order to promote the establishment of conjectures, formulation, and problem-solving in a variety of contexts, using mathematical concepts, procedures, facts, and tools. In addition to this meaning, the teachers recognize gaps in their own training, assuming an investigative and interested stance on Mathematical Literacy. They also indicate how important it is for Math teaching to also adopt this approach, through activities that involve reading and writing.