Ensino de português a crianças migrantes na educação básica: experiências e desafios de professores do ensino fundamental I

Abstract

The intensification of migratory flows to Brazil in recent years has produced significant impacts on the educational system, especially with regard to the linguistic inclusion of foreign students in public schools. In this context, teaching Portuguese to migrants emerges as a demand linked to linguistic and social inclusion, requiring teachers to work in multicultural and, often, bilingual environments, in which linguistic heterogeneity becomes part of everyday school life. In light of this scenario, this study aims to discuss the challenges of the linguistic inclusion of migrant and refugee students in Basic Education, based on the experiences of four teachers of the 4th and 5th years of Elementary School I, working in public schools in the Southwest region of Paraná, with a focus on Portuguese language teaching and on work with pronunciation and oral skills. The research is grounded in the theoretical assumptions of Maher (2007), who advocates an intercultural and critical approach to language teaching; Lôpo Ramos (2021, 2023), who understands Additional Language (AL) as a space for respecting diversity and eliminating stereotypes; and Alves (2012), who highlights the importance of phonological awareness in the development of oral competence. In addition, it draws on Derwing and Munro (2015), whose studies on intelligibility and comprehensibility support the need for pedagogical practices aimed at effective communication rather than accent correction. Methodologically, this is a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive study, conducted through a semi-structured set of questions, administered online and, in some cases, in person, mediated by the researcher. The study involved six public schools in the municipalities of Pato Branco and São João, with the participation of four teachers of the 4th and 5th years of Elementary School I who worked with migrant students. The results indicate that the main challenges faced by teachers are related to the lack of specific training for working with students in migration contexts, communication barriers, especially when there is no knowledge of the students’ Mother Tongue (MT), and the scarcity of teaching materials aimed at this public. It is also observed that work with oral skills and pronunciation largely occurs largely in an intuitive manner, being incorporated into regular Portuguese language practices, without specific theoretical-methodological support, which reveals gaps in teacher education and in institutional organization to meet this emerging demand.