Thesis advisor: Dennis Shirley / The ability to express meaning in prose is a foundational skill in our society. Given the importance of being a competent writer, concern with the quality of writing instruction is a recurring theme among American educators (Cutler & Graham, 2008; Gilbert & Graham, 2010; National Commission on Writing, 2003, 2004, 2006). Research shows that teachers are unprepared to teach writing (Gilbert & Graham, 2010) and devote limited amounts of time to it (Cutler & Graham, 2008; Gilbert & Graham, 2010). In addition, national assessment data indicates that most students are not proficient writers (Salahu-Din, Persky & Miller, 2008). An embedded case study design (Yin, 2009), using mixed methodology (Greene & Caracelli, 2003a, 2003b; Hesse-Biber, 2010), was employed to determine whether a school-university partnership enacted systemic functional linguistics theory guided writing intervention changed fourth and fifth grade teachers' writing instruction over the course of three years in an urban elementary school. The study further investigated changes to 41 fourth and 27 fifth graders' writing performance during the third year of the invention. Examination of the relationship between students' performance in writing and the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test in English language arts was conducted. The study also explored how teachers articulated their experiences with the partnership. Findings showed the content of teachers' instruction changed involving the use of metalanguage and the teaching of genre, language, and tenor. Similarly, instructional strategies evolved regarding negotiating field and deconstruction of text. Findings also indicated a significant improvement in writing performance for all students, and bilingual students had more growth over time than monolingual peers. Also, a moderate positive relationship existed between writing performance and MCAS performance, which suggests understanding of genre may support reading comprehension. Overall, teachers positively experienced the partnership and found value in the professional development. Implications of these study findings will benefit teacher education, administrators and policymakers, and allow for improved school-university partnerships. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2012. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Thesis advisor: Robert J. Starratt / This qualitative case study examined the effect the first year of an elementary mathematics induction program had on the mathematics content knowledge, pedagogical repertoire, confidence, classroom practice, and student achievement for six new elementary teachers in a suburban school district. The study also examined which components of this job-embedded professional development program influenced the teachers' practice the most. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with the six volunteer teachers, questionnaires, journals, and student assessment results. The major findings from the study showed that: (1) teachers' perception of their instructional practice, particularly their ability to question student thinking, math content knowledge, and confidence to teach mathematics improved as a result of the program; and, (2) teachers benefited the most from the opportunity to regularly observe their mentor teach a mathematics lesson, followed by the opportunity to discuss mathematics and related pedagogical issues with their cohort and mentor. Implications from the findings include the benefit of instituting content-focused, job-embedded professional development during a new teacher's first year in a district that provides regular opportunities for new teachers to observe a skilled veteran teacher teach mathematics lessons and to have peer discussions regarding the teaching of mathematics. Limitations of the study included the role of the Assistant Superintendent as researcher and developer of the program and the small sample size. Recommendations for future study include following: the effect on teaching practice after the second year in the math mentoring program; the effect of the program on mentors; the effect of mathematics self-efficacy on mathematics teaching self-efficacy and student achievement. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Education and Higher Education.

A carreira surgiu como forma de estruturar a trajetória dos funcionários no interior das empresas através da sistematização prévia de um caminho a ser percorrido composto de cargos e funções, sendo, em termos práticos, uma ferramenta administrativa para a gestão de pessoas, e, em termos teóricos, uma concepção a ser estudada por pesquisadores e teóricos nas universidades. Tradicionalmente, a literatura assinala uma dicotomia entre os modelos teóricos e as práticas do mercado de trabalho, que parecem constituir campos distintos e não interrelacionados. Os principais estudos contemporâneos apontam que carreira deixou de ser apenas um plano sistematizado e uniforme nas empresas, a chamada carreira organizacional, e se ampliou, alcançando o mundo do trabalho como um todo, o que gerou outros modelos como a carreira proteana, sem fronteiras, multidirecional, caleidoscópio, portfolio e arco-íris, com características mais heterogêneas e mais determinadas pelos trabalhadores do que pelas empresas. A partir das considerações teóricas feitas sobre carreira, a proposta deste estudo foi construir um paralelo entre as teorias e práticas do mercado de trabalho através da análise do discurso produzido pela publicação anual Guia Você S/A Exame As melhores empresas para você trabalhar, importante veículo de comunicação nacional, que tem como objetivo informar o público sobre as melhores práticas de gestão de pessoas nas empresas. Para tal tarefa, realizou-se o levantamento e a compreensão de como o termo carreira foi empregado ao longo dos 14 anos da publicação (1997-2010), quais concepções foram abordadas, quais práticas foram apresentadas e quais relações podiam ser estabelecidas entre o conteúdo apresentado pela revista e a literatura, buscando pontos de convergência e divergência. Os resultados mostraram que, ao contrário do que apontava a literatura especializada, ainda há traços da carreira organizacional nas práticas relatadas pela publicação. Apenas a partir da edição de 2006 foi assinalada a necessidade de incluir todos aqueles que trabalham na empresa (funcionários, prestadores de serviços e temporários) como objetos de programas de gestão da carreira, o que pareceu indicar uma concepção da carreira sem fronteiras que pode ser construída dentro e fora das empresas, com vínculos temporários, transitórios ou permanentes. Ao longo das edições é possível identificar práticas relacionadas principalmente a carreira de Proteu e multidirecional, e predomínio da metáfora da jornada. Em termos de gestão prática da carreira, ao contrário do que apontava parte da literatura especializada de que agora a carreira seria de responsabilidade da pessoa, ainda há uma concepção de que a empresa deve fornecer as bases deste processo, no qual o funcionário pode participar através da oferta de oportunidades de carreira como recrutamento interno, programas de aprendizagem contínua e avaliações de desempenho. Esta visão é congruente com alguns modelos da literatura especializada, como uma tentativa de gestão compartilhada, em que o funcionário possa gerenciar sua carreira e a empresa gerenciar as oportunidades de desenvolvimento (carreira multidirecional). Como conclusão, tem-se que a dicotomia entre os modelos teóricos e as práticas do mercado de trabalho permanece, mas se inicia um processo lento de mudança e aproximação entre conceito e prática / The career concept was developed as a way to structure the course of employees and workers inside the companies through the systematization of a previously assigned path comprised by defined functions and roles. In practical terms, an administrative tool for managing people, and, in theoretical terms, a conception to be studied by researchers and theorists in universities. Traditionally, literature points out a dichotomy between theoretical models and practices in the labor market, which seem to be distinct and not related. The main contemporary studies indicate that career is no longer a systematic and uniform plan in the corporations, the so called organizational career has expanded, reaching the whole world of labor, and resulting in other career models, such as Protean, boundaryless, multidirectional, kaleidoscope, portfolio, and rainbow, those are more heterogeneous and driven by the workers rather than the companies. Starting from theoretical considerations about career, the purpose of this study was to build a comparison between the labor market theories and practices through the analysis of the articles published at Guia Você S/A Exame As melhores empresas para você trabalhar, a well-respected annual Brazilian publication that aims to inform the general public regarding people management best practices inside the organizations. This study was based on an extensive survey and analysis on how the term career was used over the last 14 years (1997-2010) of the referred publication, what conceptions were addressed, which practices were introduced and which relations could be established between the content presented by the magazine and literature, seeking points of convergence and divergence. The results showed opposite trends compared to what was pointed by the literature. There are still traces of organizational career practices reported by the publication. Only from the Edition of the year 2006, it was marked the necessity to include all those who work in the company (employees, contractors and temporary) as objects of career management programmes, which seemed to indicate a boundaryless career conception that can be built inside and outside the companies, with temporary or permanent bond. Along the editions it is possible to identify practices related mainly to the Protean and multidirectional career models, and the predominance of the Journey metaphor. In terms of practical career management, on the opposite side of what was pointed by part of the specialized literature, regarding that career is now under the individuals responsibility, there is still a conception that even though the employee will contribute, the company must provide the foundation of this process, by offering career opportunities such as internal recruitment, continuous learning programs and performance reviews. This vision is aligned with some specialized literature models, such an attempt of shared management, in which the employee could manage his career and the company would manage the development opportunities (multidirectional career). As a final conclusion, it is noticed that the dichotomy between theoretical models and practices in the labor market remains, however a slow process of change and alignment between concept and practice has been started

Esta pesquisa investiga o desenvolvimento profissional de professores da Educação de Jovens e Adultos (EJA) que participaram do curso Estudo do Meio na Rede Municipal de Guarulhos/SP. O Estudo do Meio é uma metodologia interdisciplinar de análise do contexto e da realidade de um meio, com o objetivo de investigar seus problemas e suas implicações na vida de uma comunidade. Como proposta de formação, visa aproximar a escola do seu entorno, refletindo sobre questões sociais, ambientais, históricas, entre outras, como também contribuir para a superação da fragmentação curricular em direção à interdisciplinaridade no trabalho com o conhecimento (Cf. PONTUSCHKA, 2007; PONTUSCHKA; LOPES, 2009). Como delimitação temporal, analisamos a 7ª edição do referido curso, ocorrida no segundo semestre de 2008 com educadores da EJA, tendo como objetivo geral analisar o desenvolvimento profissional dos professores no tocante às contribuições do curso para a ressignificação do trabalho docente; e objetivos específicos: 1) compreender a relação do curso Estudo do Meio com o Programa de Formação Permanente do Município de Guarulhos e quais foram as motivações político-institucionais para seu desenvolvimento; 2) analisar como parte dos professores participantes do curso elaboram sua experiência formativa a partir de sua participação; e 3) verificar quais desdobramentos os professores apontam em relação à sua prática pedagógica como contribuição do curso. A pesquisa tem como método o materialismo histórico-dialético (MARX, 1999, 2008, 2013; KOSIK, 1969) e possui como categorias a priori desenvolvimento profissional, trabalho docente e formação continuada de professores, sendo Nóvoa (1995, 2000, 2009), Garcia (2003, 2009), Almeida (1999) e Contreras (2012) os autores centrais escolhidos para o embasamento teórico do estudo. As técnicas utilizadas são: 1) análise de documentos referentes ao curso Estudo do Meio na Rede Municipal de Educação; e 2) entrevistas semiestruturadas com três professores da EJA participantes da edição do segundo semestre de 2008, como também com uma profissional da Secretaria de Educação, Cultura, Esporte e Lazer de Guarulhos (SECEL). A análise do material, à luz do referencial teórico e das categorias de análise, aponta para a fecundidade do curso Estudo do Meio, mas também sugere a necessidade de um olhar para as dinâmicas intraescolares por meio das quais a proposta ganha sentido no cotidiano da escola e na totalidade do trabalho docente, levantando-se a questão de pensar o desenvolvimento profissional não só em termos individuais/pessoais, mas também em seu caráter coletivo e organizacional. Além disso, considera-se fecundo conceber a formação continuada dos professores conforme a noção de lugar de fala docente, consubstanciado em um espaço de manifestação discursiva pelos professores acerca das condições concretas do trabalho que realizam nas escolas. / This research investigates the professional development of Youth and Adult Education teachers who participated of the course Environmental Study at the Education System from Guarulhos, in São Paulo. The Environmental Study is an interdisciplinary methodology of analysis of a context and reality of an environment with aim to investigate its problems and implications in one community. As a proposal of teachers formation, aims to get close of its surroundings, thinking about social, environmental, historical issues, among others, as well to contribute to the superation of curricular fragmentation addressing to an interdisciplinarity in the work with the knowledge (PONTUSCHKA, 2007; PONTUSCHKA; LOPES, 2009). As a temporal delimitation, we analyze the 7th edition of the course mentioned, occurred in the 2º semester of 2008 with Youth and Adult Education teachers, having as general objective to analyze the teachers professional development relating to the course contributions to the resignification of docent work; and specific objectives: 1) understand the relation between the course Environmental Study and the Guarulhos Teachers Continuing Formation Program, and which were the political and institutional motivations of its development; 2) analyze how part of the course participant teachers elaborate their formative experience from their participation; 3) verify which deployments teacher punctuate relating to their pedagogical practice as course contribution. The research has as method the historical-dialectical materialism (MARX, 1999, 2008, 2013; KOSIK, 1969) and a priori categories professional development, docent work, and teacher continuing formation, having Nóvoa (1995, 2000, 2009), Garcia (2003. 2009), Almeida (1999) and Contreras (2012) as central authors for the theoretical basis of the study. The techniques used are: 1) documental analysis about the course Environmental Study in the Education System from Guarulhos; and 2) semi-structured interview with three course participant teachers in the course in 2º semester 2008, as well a technical professional acting at the Guarulhos Education, Culture, Sport and Leisure Department. The analysis of the collected material, based on the theoretical referential and the categories of the study, drives to the fecundity of the course Environmental Study, but also suggests the need to look at to the intraschool dynamics by which the proposal get sense in the daily functioning of the school and in the totality of docent work, raising the question of thinking professional development not only in the individual terms, but also in collective and organizational ones. In addition, we consider fruitful to conceive teachers continuing formation according to the notion of docent place of speech, consubstantiated in a discursive space of manifestation by teachers about their concrete conditions of work in schools.

O objeto deste trabalho é o programa de formação continuada Letra e Vida, oferecido pela Secretaria Estadual de Educação de São Paulo a professores alfabetizadores da rede entre 2003 e 2006. Os objetivos da pesquisa foram avaliar os impactos do Programa nos resultados de desempenho dos alunos de 1ª série mensurados por meio do Sistema de Avaliação do Rendimento Escolar do estado de São Paulo (Saresp), considerada a aferição de 2007, e também seus possíveis efeitos sobre concepções e práticas de alfabetização dos professores que dele participaram. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo, aplicou-se o método misto, que integra abordagens quantitativa e qualitativa. Assim, realizaram-se entrevistas em três escolas, com coordenadores, diretores e professores de 1ª a 4ª série que tivessem participado do Programa, com prioridade dos professores do Ciclo 1. Os dados provenientes do Questionário para os Professores de 1ª e 2ª série do Ensino Fundamental e os resultados dos alunos na prova de 1ª série, ambos instrumentos do Saresp 2007, foram reorganizados e reinterpretados para as análises baseadas em técnicas de árvores de decisão e de regressão linear múltipla e para a comparação entre grupos de escolas com diferentes proporções de professores que participaram do Programa. Concluiu-se que o Letra e Vida influenciou o discurso dos docentes, sobretudo em sua concepção de alfabetização, embora nem sempre se tenham percebido, nas visitas às escolas, evidências da transposição desse discurso para a prática da sala de aula. No que tange aos impactos do Programa sobre o desempenho dos alunos, pode- -se afirmar que, em alguns contextos e em conjunto com outras características estudadas, o Letra e Vida se destacou na explicação dos resultados dos alunos, mas, sozinho, não teve impactos significativos. / This dissertation focuses on the continued literacy teacher education program called Letra e Vida, offered by the Sao Paulo state Department of Education during the period of 2003 to 2006. The research objectives were to assess the impact of the Program in the first grade students performance and also its possible effects on concepts and practices of teaching literacy from teachers who participated in it. To achieve these goals the São Paulo Education Achievement Assessment System (Saresp) was used, considering the evaluation of 2007 and a mixed method study was developed to integrate qualitative and quantitative approaches complementarily. Thus, interviews in three schools were conducted with coordinators, principals and 1st to 4th grade teachers with priority given to teachers of 1st and 2nd grades who attended the program. The data from the questionnaire for teachers of 1st and 2nd grades, and the results of students in the 1st grade, both collected by SARESP 2007, were reorganized and reinterpreted to be used in statistical analysis using multiple linear regression, decision trees and comparison between groups of schools with different proportions of teachers who participated in the Program. It was possible to conclude that the effects of the program in teachers discourse were considerable, although evidence of implementation of such discourse was not always possible to observe during visits to schools. With regard to the impact of the Program on student performance, it is clear that in some contexts the Letra e Vida in conjunction with other variables were able to offer some explanation to the student outcomes, but its effects are not significant when standing alone.

This mixed-method study examined factors that influence the retention of P-12 teachers in a southern metropolitan city. Although people are transitioning into P-12 education from nontradition pathways; teacher retention remains a critical concern. The retention of highly qualified teachers, academic achievement, employee morale and the expense of teacher recruitment are a few reasons to identify factors that support the retention of P-12 teachers. The following variables were examined in the research as possible retention factors associated with teacher retention: administrative support, classroom management, financial compensation, mentorship opportunities, principal’s leadership style, professional development opportunities and school culture. Five schools were selected to participate in this study’s data collection process. These schools were selected because they achieved at least an 80% teacher retention rate for the last three school years (2016 - 2017, 2017 – 2018, and 2018 - 2019. Survey data were received from 62 teachers. Fifty-six teachers completed the survey and six teachers declined completion of the survey. A Focus group was conducted with five fine arts teachers. The survey participants revealed three independent variables (administrative support, principal’s leadership style and school culture) most influential to teacher retention. The majority of the focus group participants reiterated that classroom management was the most influential independent variable. However, the participants spoke in great detail and duration about the significance of administrative support/principal’s leadership style. Perhaps, a different finding would have been obtained if the researcher had gather information from former employees who had departed the school district as opposed to current employees.

A variety of computing devices are available in today’s classrooms, but they have not guaranteed the effective integration of technology. Nationally, teachers have ample devices, applications, productivity software, and digital audio and video tools. Despite all this, the literature suggests these tools are not employed to enhance student learning according to best practices. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe and understand perceptions of a technology integration professional development (TIPD) experience of elementary teachers at a suburban, independent school. The TIPD was an ongoing, 40-minute class led by a technology specialist, taking place in teachers’ classrooms, engaging teachers and their students in a 1:1 Chromebook environment. Data collected were through classroom observations, teacher written reflections, school documents, and face-to-face interviews. The results of multiple cycles of coding wrought findings in regard to teachers’ perceptions of effective technology integration, technology class as professional development (PD), and technology class as enabling effective technology integration. The findings showed teachers perceived technology integration to be effective if it benefited the skills or productivity of themselves or their students and if it directly related to their curriculum. Teachers required the support of their colleagues, technology specialist, IT department, as well as traditional and alternative forms of PD to overcome internal and external barriers to integration. Five of the seven teachers explicitly conveyed the technology class to be effective TIPD and all seven learned about a technology tool or resource, technical knowledge or skills, or ideas for integration during the technology classes. Findings also showed the technology class enabled reflection, which led to ideas for integration; the class enabled integration when the content was related to or the tools were useful for their subject area; the class provided the collaboration necessary for integration to occur. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The current study is focussed on teachers' beliefs in inclusion and dyslexia and how these are linked to their professional practice when working with dyslexic learners in their primary classrooms in two cultural contexts; in Cyprus and in North West England. The study is guided by the theoretical framework of Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) which was used as the descriptive and analytical tool to explore teachers' personal interpretations and inclusive practice. A qualitative research design is used and includes semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and follow-up discussions with ten teachers in total, five Greek-Cypriot and five British teachers. The findings indicate that the teachers presented both similarities and differences on the way the concepts of inclusion and dyslexia are perceived and understood. For example, teachers interpret 'inclusion' as a shared objective to work collectively towards, making reference to shared values such as 'human rights' and 'equal participation'. One difference identified in some of the Cypriot teachers was that that they appeared more critical about teaching disabled students (e.g. students with more complex needs) in relation to their counterparts. In terms of dyslexia, most of the Cypriot and British teachers conceptualised it as a disorder with a biological basis but, at the same time, they refer to the mediating role played by the environment in contributing further to students' difficulties with literacy. Teachers who engage in practices in their classrooms in order to be more inclusive were identified as those who propose innovation in their activities. On the other hand, there are teachers who seem less inclusive, by creating learning opportunities which are not sufficiently made available for everyone and can allow dyslexic students to access the curriculum. The study enriches the international literature on teachers' beliefs and how they are can influence teachers' professional practice. Cultural Historical Activity Theory, contributed into understanding the factors that can influence teachers' practice for inclusion and their between interactive relationship in an activity system. This is an important area of investigation since changing teachers' beliefs about students' ability can reflect changes in their professional practice.

Uma série de pesquisas faz referência ao estudo do desenvolvimento dos conhecimentos necessários ao professor, englobando o conhecimento sobre o conteúdo, o conhecimento sobre a prática e o conhecimento sobre as diversas teorias de ensino e como fazer a relação teoria/prática. Com similar relevância, a discussão entre formação inicial e continuada vem sendo abordada no sentido de propor currículos de formação que possam contribuir cada vez mais para a formação de profissionais reflexivos. O conceito de Conhecimento Pedagógico do Conteúdo (PCK), inicialmente proposto por Shulman, está relacionado a um conjunto de saberes que vão além do conhecimento técnico do conteúdo, incluindo as formas de representações sobre o conteúdo e sua seleção, as exemplificações e analogias, as metodologias didáticas que podem ou não favorecer o aprendizado significativo deste ou daquele conteúdo. Esse conceito tem sido ampliado, desde o entendimento de Van Driel como conhecimento referido a um tópico particular do ensino juntamente com o conhecimento da experiência de como ensinar este tópico até o de Kind em que aponta o PCK como o conhecimento que os professores utilizam durante o processo de ensino. Neste trabalho investigamos o desenvolvimento do PCK de professores formados no curso de licenciatura em Química do Instituto de Química da Universidade de São Paulo e que hoje atuam como professores de química no ensino médio e superior. Nossos dados envolvem as atividades escritas, as gravações das aulas ministradas e as reflexões de três licenciandos que cursaram a disciplina Instrumentação para o Ensino da Química I, além de entrevistas e gravações em áudio de aulas de Química desses professores em seus contextos reais de sala de aula após um período que variou de três a cinco anos depois de formados. Utilizamos os instrumentos CoRe (Representação de Conteúdo) e PaP-eRs (Repertórios de experiência Profissional e Pedagógica) para documentar a prática desses professores e assim, reconhecer seu PCK. Para as análises utilizamos o Modelo de Raciocínio Pedagógico e Ação de Shulman e os tipos de conhecimento do modelo de Morine-Dershimer e Kent. Utilizamos também a ferramenta de análise de discurso proposta por Mortimer e Scott para identificar padrões de interação. Nesses professores, o desenvolvimento do PCK foi promovido durante a formação inicial através de experiência de planejamento e intervenção em sala de aula e atividades que buscaram estimular a reflexão sobre a ação. Os dados após três anos de experiência profissional revelam um incremento no PCK desses professores resultante da experiência em sala de aula e do processo reflexivo. A partir das análises realizadas, algumas implicações são fornecidas para a formação de professores de química. Apontamos para a necessidade de cuidar desse momento especial na trajetória dos professores - os anos iniciais de experiência profissional. Salientamos a necessidade de atuar nesse início de carreira, com grupos colaborativos, com intuito de contribuir mais diretamente para o desenvolvimento do PCK. / The literature refers to the study of the development of teacher knowledge, encompassing content knowledge, practical knowledge and the knowledge about different teaching-learning theories and how to deal with the theory/practice relationship. With similar relevance, the discussion about pre-service and in-service teacher education has been approached in order to propose teacher education curricula that can increasingly contribute to the reflective practitioners. The Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), initially proposed by Shulman, is related to a set of knowledge that go beyond the content knowledge and include the content representation and their selection, the examples and analogies, the methodologies that may or not facilitate the meaningful learning of this or that content. This concept has been amplified, since then. Van Driel understands PCK as the knowledge related to a particular subject matter as well as the knowledge from practice in how to teach this topic. Moreover Kind´s conception points out the PCK as the knowledge teachers use during the teaching process. In this work we investigated the PCK development of trained teachers, graduated the course from Chemistry Institute of University of São Paulo and now work as teachers of chemistry both in high school or university. Our data involve written activities, the recordings of the classes and the reflections that three undergraduates taking the Methodology for Chemistry Teaching course (QFL 2505), as well as interviews and audio recordings of Chemistry lessons from these teachers in their real contexts of their classroom after a period of three to five years of graduation. We used the instruments CoRe (Content Representation) and PaP-eRs (Pedagogical and Professional experience Relatories) to document the pedagogical practice and then, recognize the teacher\'s PCK. We relate some aspects in the teacher discourse to the Model of Pedagogical Reasoning and Action from Shulman and to the teacher knowledge components from Morine-Dershimer and Kent. We also used the discourse analysis tool from Mortimer and Scott to identify teaching approaches and interaction patterns. In the investigated teachers, the development of PCK was promoted during pre-service teacher education through the experience of planning and intervention on classroom and reflection-on-action activities. Data after three years of professional experience reveal an improvement on this teacher PCK resulting from the classroom experience and the reflective process. From the analysis, some implications are pointed out for chemistry teacher education. We emphasize the special moment during teacher\'s professional development - the initial years of professional experience. We point out the importance of work with collaborative groups during the initial phase of teaching in order to contribute more directly to the development of teachers PCK.

Esta pesquisa, de cunho qualitativo, se propõe a investigar a seguinte questão de pesquisa: Como a participação do professor de química em um grupo colaborativo contribui para o aprofundamento de suas reflexões sobre o ensino de Química, tendo em vista uma análise crítica do atual currículo e de seu desenvolvimento em sala de aula? Como a inserção do professor nesse grupo contribui para a melhoria de sua prática docente? Os objetivos da pesquisa foram: a) Analisar como os professores avaliam as estratégias de ensino sugeridas nos cadernos de apoio ao professor e as suas próprias para o desenvolvimento do conteúdo. b) Identificar as relações entre a incorporação do currículo na prática pedagógica e aspectos da estrutura e abordagem dos conceitos. c) Identificar possíveis obstáculos postos pelo trabalho colaborativo que podem influenciar tomadas de decisão individuais e coletivas sobre a prática docente. d) Identificar as percepções dos professores sobre seu desenvolvimento profissional com a participação no grupo. Para que os objetivos fossem alcançados, o grupo formado por dez professores de química da rede pública de São Paulo passou a se reunir, desenvolvendo os encontros tendo como base a troca de experiências, o estudo do atual currículo paulista de química e reflexões e discussões acerca do ensino de química. Foram 10 encontros nos quais os dados foram coletados através da gravação de vídeo de todos os encontros, entrevistas semi-estruturadas, atividades realizadas pelos participantes do grupo e questionários aplicados. Os dados foram transcritos e a análise desses dados está baseada na análise de conteúdo, onde categorias emergentes foram estabelecidas. Os resultados mostraram que os professores participantes, possuem dificuldades quanto à compreensão e utilização do atual currículo de química do Estado de São Paulo em suas práticas pedagógicas. Também ficou evidenciado que o grupo colaborativo atuou na reestruturação do pensamento docente em relação ao ensino de química e ao currículo de química vigente, bem como contribuiu para a ressignificação das práticas pedagógicas, favorecendo o desenvolvimento profissional. / This research has a qualitative approach and aims to investigate the following research question: How the participation of a chemistry teacher in a collaborative group contributes for deeper reflections about chemistry learning process, owing to a critical analysis of the curriculum and their development in classroom? How the teacher involvement in this group contributes to the improvement of their teaching practice? The aims of this research are: a) Analyze how the teachers assess the learning strategies suggested in teacher´s support notes and their own for the development of the content. b) Identify the relations between curriculum incorporation in the pedagogic practice and structure aspects and approach of concepts. c) Identify possible barriers set by the collaborative work that can induce individual decisions and collective about teaching practice. d) Identify the teacher´s perceptions about their professional development with the group´s participation. To achieve the goals, the group formed by ten chemistry teachers of Sao Paulo public schools has been reunited, developing the meetings through the experience exchange, study of the current chemistry curriculum and reflections and discussions about chemistry learning. Ten meetings were performed in which the data were collected by recorded videos of the meetings, semi-structured interviews, activities that were realized by the participants of the group and were applied questionnaires. The data were transcripts and the analysis of these data was based in the content analysis, were the categories were established. The results showed that the teachers have difficulties as to the comprehension and application of the current chemistry curriculum of Sao Paulo State in their pedagogic practices. The collaborative group also acted in the restructuring of the teacher´s thought regarding to the chemistry learning and current chemistry curriculum, as well as it contribute to the resignification of the pedagogic practices favoring the professional development.