Isabel Menezes

Resumo O papel das escolas públicas na educação ambiental (EA) tem sido reforçado nas últimas décadas, reclamando uma ênfase em pedagogias da ação que propiciem o contacto direto dos alunos com a natureza e os problemas ambientais, ultrapassem uma distinção entre produtores e consumidores do conhecimento sobre o ambiente e estimulem o trabalho colaborativo feito com e pelas comunidades. A escola pública, em democracia, tem especial responsabilidade como espaço nuclear de abordagem crítica de problemas sociais e políticos contemporâneos e como espaço de participação ativa dos alunos enquanto cidadãos. No que diz respeito à EA em particular, torna-se fundamental reconhecer a sua natureza política, em especial dada a urgência e gravidade dos problemas ambientais com que hoje nos confrontamos. Neste artigo, apresenta-se uma estratégia de intervenção educativa inspirada em metodologias participatórias, a estratégia WaterCircle (WC), e os resultados dos dois primeiros anos de implementação no contexto de uma escola pública do ensino médio em Portugal. O projeto parte da discussão de problemas ambientais concretos relacionados com a água e da investigação realizada para lhes dar resposta, envolvendo os alunos num processo de pesquisa e reflexão colaborativa e coletiva de forma a fazerem um conjunto de propostas a discutir com diferentes atores da comunidade, nomeadamente líderes políticos e comunitários. Palavras chave : Investigação Participatória; Educação Ambiental; Construção coletiva do conhecimento; Escola Pública. Abstract The role of the public schools on Environmental Education (EE) has been reinforced during the last decades, reclaiming an emphasis on action pedagogies that foster direct contact between students, nature and environmental problems, surpass a distinction between environmental knowledge producers and consumers and encourage the collaborative work done with and by the communities. Public schools, in democracies, have particular responsibilities as nuclear spaces for the critical approach of social and political contemporary problems and as spaces for the active participation of students as citizens. Regarding EE in particular, it becomes fundamental to recognize its political nature, especially given the urgency and the seriousness of the environmental problems to which we are currently dealing with. In this paper, the WaterCircle (WC) strategy is presented, a school intervention inspired by participatory methodologies, together with some results from the first two years of implementation in the context of a public school in Portugal. The project is based on the discussion of concrete environmental problems related with water and the scientific research carried out to overcome them, engaging the students in a process of collective and collaborative research and reflection in order to establish a set of proposals to be discussed with different actors in the community, namely political and community leaders.

This article presents a case study on the political thought and citizenship conceptions of children and adolescents. Considering children and adolescents as reflexive citizens and partners in community development processes, it is our purpose to understand the development of political thought, and particularly how children conceive the exercise of citizenship and participation. Participants were 97 children of a primary and middle secondary (basic) school, aged 5 to 14 years, organized into age groups of 12 children each. Focus group discussions were used as participatory research methodology which involves children as active collaborators, a method that appears to be a good alternative to the traditional individual interviews used in previous research. Results point to the existence of a developmental process of political thought that begins before the start of formal schooling, and a parallel evolution of the conception of social organization and the concepts of citizenship and participation.

The transition from the 20th to the 21st century has been the stage of contradictory messages
regarding youth citizenship. There is a powerful public and academic rhetoric on youth political disengagement
and apathy and, concurrently, an assumption that young people are not knowledgeable,
competent and responsible enough to be active citizens, and therefore some kind of
‘education’ should be provided to them. Over this landscape, citizenship education in schools has
been the object of fluctuations in European educational policy, from a relative absence to becoming
the central transversal goal of education, and back again. This paper contrasts educational policies
with the vision of school practice by significant actors (in this case, NGOs working in the field of citizenship
education), departing from a cross-European analysis to focus on the specific experience of
Portugal and England. On the whole, results suggest that the political disinvestment might be reinforcing
the ‘NGOisation’ of citizenship education, a phenomena that has both advantages and risks.
If ‘all that comes in threes is perfect’ then education policies must provide a coherent framework
that would guide schools and NGOs in collaboratively fostering opportunities to practice citizenship
and learn democracy in and out of schools.

... depois a notas breves sobre liderança de Virgínia Ferreira, Teresa Vasconcelos, Maria do Céu da Cunha Rego e Maria José Magalhães ... acto retoma os testemunhos a partir das experiências de intervenção contadas por Ine van Emmerick, Liliana Lopes, Sónia Doutel e Vânia ...

A educação para a saúde tem sido amplamente explorada, reconhecendo-se a sua importância no desenvolvimento integral dos indivíduos e no bem-estar coletivo (Precioso, 2004). Tradicionalmente, a escola é um dos contextos que privilegia a operacionalização da educação para a saúde, embora neste artigo se questionem as condições que assegura para o efeito. Este artigo explora diferentes perspetivas sobre discursos e práticas de educação para a saúde. Foi levado a cabo um estudo empírico com crianças com doença crónica, designadamente com diabetes mellitus, as suas mães e profissionais de educação. Para além da escola, propõe-se uma reflexão sobre o contributo de espaços alternativos na consolidação da educação para a saúde.

In the last decade, youth entered the agenda of public policies in Brazil, recognizing not only the problems that affect young people, but also the need for a proactive perspective that views youngsters as playing a central role in the design and implementation of policy. This is a tendency that is also noticeable in other countries, and there is clearly a “vogue of youth participation” (Bessant 2004, 401) in public policy across the world. Research in the field tends to show that these experiences can be effective in promoting young people’s civic and political knowledge, attitudes and competences and therefore can become a strategy of non-formal citizenship education. However, there are critiques that participation in these initiatives risks pamphleteering and tokenism. The goal of this paper is to enter this debate by considering the Brazilian experience in the State of Acre. It explores how opportunities for participation that youth public policies appear to stimulate are, in fa...

In the last decades, Citizenship Education (CE) has been at the forefront of both educational policies and international research regarding curriculum design and impact on pupils' knowledge, values and skills. However, not only what citizenship "is" is diversely conceived by different democratic traditions (Eisenstadt, 2000; Heater, 1999) but, obviously, CE also involves organisations beyond the walls of schools. This paper confronts educational policies with the views of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in 20 European countries. Results suggest that the vision of CE as a priority in educational policy documents is questioned by NGOs that consider schools are too focused on formal democracy and overemphasize respect for rules, values and responsibilities, rather than promoting critical, informed and active citizens. Especially in countries with an authoritarian past, NGOs consider that models of conformism and submission are still dominant, and emphasize the role ...

Neste artigo assumimos uma conceção ampla da psicologia política que reconhece o seu pluralismo disciplinar, teórico e metodológico. Os contributos analisados provêm de diversas áreas das ciências sociais, ora porque assumem a interface entre a psicologia e a política, ora porque reconhecem o papel do poder, da participação e da opressão nos processos de produção de marginalização, empoderamento e transformação social. As investigações são apresentadas em torno de quatro temas principais: (i) ideologia, valores e atitudes; (ii) cultura cívica, capital social e comportamento eleitoral; (iii) o poder como produtor de realidades sociais e espaços de marginalidade, e (iv) participação cívica e política, empoderamento e transformação social. Apesar de a institucionalização e disseminação da Psicologia Política em Portugal ser ainda moderada, são várias as investigações que enfatizam a saliência da relação entre a psicologia e a política, incluindo os fatores que predizem e medeiam o impa...

1 Estudante de doutoramento, apoiada pela Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/BD/41485/2007), na Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto 2 Professora Catedrática na Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto 3 Professora Associada com Agregação na Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto Os resultados de um estudo recente sobre a qualidade de vida de pessoas fisicamente incapacitadas sugerem uma forte consciência crítica quanto à experiência da discriminação em diversos contextos. Nesta comunicação exploraremos a forma como participantes envolvidos em associações de defesa dos direitos de pessoas fisicamente incapacitadas perspectivam estas experiências e a necessidade de mudanças sociais e políticas neste domínio. Palavras-chave: incapacidade física, discriminação, perspectiva sociopolítica, empoderamento.

Resumo Desde a década de 50, o desenvolvimento político de crianças e jovens tem vindo a ser alvo de vários estudos, no pressuposto de que as estruturas cognitivas e afectivas inerentes aos comportamentos e atitudes políticas dos adultos emergem na infância ou adolescência (Easton & Hess, 1962; Berti, 2005). Esta comunicação pretende retomar esses estudos e discutir o papel de dois microssistemas de referência na vida de crianças e jovens, a família e a escola, na promoção do desenvolvimento político. A família, presente ao longo do ciclo vital, que assume como tarefa fundamental a socialização dos seus membros (Relvas, 1996), tem relevante influência no desenvolvimento da consciência política e exercício da cidadania (Azevedo, 2009; Menezes et al., 2005). A escola, ao longo da educação básica, constitui, na sociedade portuguesa, a única resposta acessível a todos os cidadãos. Por outro lado, a manutenção de uma sociedade democrática impõem uma atitude de intervenção contínua e sist...

Notwithstanding its relevance as a context for youth participation, research is lacking regarding how the scout organisational and educational settings contribute to development of civic and political competences. Using a mixed methods approach, combining document analysis, interviews with scout leaders and a pilot study with a non-probability sample of 199 scout youth, this paper presents results from the analysis of the organisational and educational framework of the Portuguese Catholic Scout Association. We found a hierarchical organisation, which institutes itself as a kind of micro society based on principles of representative democracy. Somewhat paradoxically, non-adult scouts are excluded from having direct involvement in the highest levels of the organisational decision-making processes. This is in some ways consonant with the educational approach where youth are seen as citizens-in-making, on their way to becoming good citizens, ready for service and volunteering – a portra...

Portugal, located in the South-western Europe, is characterised by a Mediterranean climate with hot and dry summer. According to data from Portuguese IM (Instituto de Meteorologia) during the last decade, summer temperatures tend to be higher, and several heat waves have occurred, with temperatures above 40 ºC. During summer, days with high temperatures and heat waves are becoming more and more common in Portugal. The past four summers have been among the hottest ever registered. These frequently high temperatures can cause problems in intensive animal production. In most cases, the livestock buildings are not prepared for animal production under high temperatures and most of them do not have environmental control equipments adequate to control indoor environment under such conditions. From a geographical point of view, and examining climatic data, we find two regions (Alentejo and Trás-os-Montes) where high temperatures are more usual and summer tend to be hot. In these two regions...

In this paper we analyse views, levels and experiences of participation of young people of Brazilian origin living in Portugal. Using data collected through focus groups discussions (N=29) we present youth views and meanings about participation, knowledge about their political rights and main sources of influence. Additionally, using results from the survey (N= 357) we report types and levels of civic and political participation. In addition, we explore levels of political interest, political attentiveness and perceived effectiveness of participation. The results are discussed through a broad conception of civic and political participation and contrasting the results from the focus groups and the survey. Based on the results, we conclude that participation of young Brazilian is a complex issue that includes cognitive dimensions and varies according age, gender and cultural capital.

O presente artigo visa contribuir para a análise da educação para a cidadania em Portugal. Organizada em torno dos contextos/períodos sociopolíticos mais marcantes na evolução da educação para a cidadania no currículo escolar português, a análise sugere a existência de uma postura de conformismo apolítico face à forte influência macropolítica europeia, que não tem dado espaço a uma reflexão mais crítica e independente. No essencial, a análise salienta dois aspetos que têm dificultado a afirmação da educação para a cidadania no campo da educação: i) a utilidade instrumental que lhe tem sido atribuída; e ii) a interpretação desajustada a que tem sido sujeita, ao considerar-se que a sua aprendizagem se pode reduzir aos contextos delimitados e estruturados das disciplinas. A partir daqui, o artigo propõe alguns princípios orientadores para a implementação da educação para a cidadania no currículo escolar português.

The issue of the Journal of Social Sciences Education (JSSE) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Portuguese Carnation Revolution but expands beyond the Portuguese case as it welcomes papers dealing with the relationship between memory, oppression, democratisation and political change in Latin America. JSSE is a true open access journal. You can explore this new volume at http://www.jsse.org/index.php/jsse/issue/view/144

ABSTRACT Youth civic and political participation (CPP) has been a central concern of research and public policy. This situation has been motivated by growing signs of the disaffection of younger generations, at least regarding conventional forms of participation. Recent theoretical debates stress how forms of CPP are evolving; nevertheless it is obviously important to integrate young people's views in the discussion, particularly taking into account groups at risk of exclusion, such as immigrants. This paper intends to contribute to this discussion by considering the meanings that young people attribute to their civic and political experiences, using data collected with focus groups (N = 94) that address the factors that facilitate and/or inhibit the participation of young people from immigrant (Brazilian and Angolan) and non-immigrant (Portuguese) backgrounds. Data will be analysed according to three main dimensions: (1) participants' sources of knowledge, information and influence; (2) participants' views on civic and political engagement: relevance, resources, personal experiences, trustworthiness and efficacy; and (3) participants' perceptions of excluded groups and proposals to promote inclusion. Results show that the experiences and levels of participation of young people of Brazilian and Angolan origin are influenced by their immigrant background. In addition, they indicate a strong tendency of young people to emphasise constraints over opportunities. They feel like incomplete or in-the-making citizens, and state their claim for rights and opportunities to be heard and to be civic and politically engaged.