As perspectivas pedagógicas da formação e da atuação de professoras da Escola Dominical da Igreja Evangélica Luterana do Brasil (1970-2000)

Abstract

The general objective of this research is to understand the perspectives on the training and performance of female teachers in the IELB (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil) in the period between the decades of 1970-2000. It becomes clear that this training was directed toward women, providing them with a space of visibility within both the church and society of that time. The research is set in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, specifically in the southern region, a context marked by the presence of Pomeranian descendants and Lutheran practitioners a group that historically built its own community-based school organization. Around the 1970s, many parochial schools ceased their activities, and from then on, the Church began to organize a new strategy to keep children close to religious teachings, thereby strengthening the practice of Sunday School. The concepts that underpin the thesis are: the role of women in the Church, the process of pedagogical and religious training, and the consequent formation of a religious field and a Lutheran habitus that established a conduct regulating the role of women and the consequent education of the faithful involved in Sunday School. Oral history interviews were conducted with nine people to learn about the training context of Sunday School teachers. In addition, a documentary analysis was carried out on materials produced by the IELB and by the teachers and trainers themselves. Due to the administrative structure of the Church, teacher training courses were designed, and teaching materials were produced and made available to both students and teachers. Women assumed this position in the IELB because Sunday School aimed to establish a link between the church and the children’s community, while also serving as a missionary action with the goal of attracting and retaining members. Although the IELB had a theological orientation to be followed, teachers were also concerned with their pedagogical practice, making their classes playful and engaging. For this purpose, they borrowed elements from the school culture of regular schools and drew on pedagogical influences circulating in Brazil at the time. The IELB did not openly follow a specific pedagogical trend, but when teachers designed lessons, created pedagogical artifacts, and adopted playful and reflective practices with their students, they transformed Sunday School into not only a religious but also a pedagogical moment. It was through the work of women in Sunday School that pedagogical ideas entered the Church.