“Teaching activities need to be as valued as those linked to research”, said Yvonne Steinert, professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the Canadian university MCGill, in a conference given on Thursday (4) in the morning, in the GGBS auditorium. The event was promoted by the Dean of Undergraduate Studies (PRG) with the theme "Professional Development of Teachers for Undergraduate Qualification and Career Guidance".
With a relaxed dynamic, the teacher proposed discussions that engaged the public. Docents and students from faculties of Physical Education (FEF), Mechanical Engineering (FEM), Education (FE), Dentistry (FOP) and the institutes of Biology (IB), Philosophy and Human Sciences (IFCH) and Physics (IFGW) were present in the debate. The dean, Marcelo Knobel, the general coordinator of Unicamp, Teresa Dib Zambom Atvars, and the dean of Undergraduate Studies, Eliana Amaral, also participated in the event.
Steinert mapped out the various possibilities for individual, institutional and collective action to promote teacher development. “During our training we learn issues related to our profession, but we do not learn how to teach and lead,” he said. She also pointed out the importance of comprehensive teacher training, not restricted to pedagogical issues, which includes the management of bureaucratic problems, for example.
The speaker commented on the role of informal learning in the career. According to her, the literature is focused almost exclusively on formal training spaces, while most teachers state that informal learning activities are more relevant to their training. The audience confirmed that professional practice, student feedback and discussions with the community are very decisive. “It is necessary to analyze these informal experiences more closely and give them names so that they are valued institutionally”.
Dean Marcelo Knobel highlighted the need to promote the continuous development of teaching activities. According to him, the university must be responsive to the different demands of students and their professional choices, whether they are focused on academia or not.
The event was part of a series of meetings that will be held by PRG with the aim of supporting the teaching staff. According to Eliana Amaral, her management intends to advance both the quality of undergraduate courses and provide the greatest possible support to the teaching staff.
For professor Mara Patrícia Traina Chacon-Mikahil, advisor at PRG, bringing the knowledge developed in research activities into the classroom is one of the main challenges for teachers.
Some practices developed at Unicamp were cited by teachers as being of fundamental importance for teacher training. Among them, the Teaching Internship Program (PED) stands out, in which postgraduate students closely monitor the activity of a teacher, assisting and even teaching classes in their discipline.
More - Professor Yvonne Steinert will participate in a series of events at the Unicamp Faculty of Medical Sciences until May 12th. Among the meetings, Steinert will contribute to working groups and the III International Teaching Career Seminar, which will take place next Tuesday (9).
