Formação de grêmios estudantis em escolas municipais: desafios e possibilidades

Abstract

This work presents the extension project “Formation of student associations in Bauru municipal schools” carried out through a partnership between the Department of Psychology at São Paulo State University "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" (UNESP), Bauru- SP, and the Municipal Secretary of Education of Bauru-SP (SME). The project was carried out with elementary students in sixteen schools of the municipal system. The aim of this project was to equip students with ways to actively exercise their citizenship and construct democratic and participative school management through the implementation of student associations. The text delineates the theoretical support that sustains the project (PARO, 2000; VYGOTSKI, 1995; MARTINS, 2011); its organizational structure; methodological assumptions; steps that delimit the project’s annual course; and the description of the intervention process carried out in two schools in 2015. The results obtained point to the diversity of possibilities and challenges faced in different institutional contexts regarding the resistance of institutions to open spaces of expression and active participation to students; involvement of teachers with the project proposal; the requirement of a strong organization and dedication of extension agents in the planning and coordination of activities; and the commitment of schools in the steps constituting the democratic legitimacy of the election and functions of the student associations. It is concluded that the project is an important advancement for the municipal education system according to the evaluation of their own professionals. It is further considered important for the university extension, since it signs the commitment to democratic and quality public education, as well as being configured in an important space of learning for students in the field of school psychology.