The purpose of having inclusive education is to value children with special needs so they can participate equally in all educational activities alongside their peers without special needs. There should not be any discrimination, segregation or isolation of these children with special needs from being educated rather they must be given an equal opportunity to participate alongside children without special needs. This study seeks to investigate primary school teachers' views and experiences in implementing the Inclusive Education Policy in regular schools. The study was conducted in five districts of the Enga Province of Papua New Guinea. Six primary schools were selected and involved 77 teachers who responded to questionnaire items, while 12 teachers within the group were chosen to be involved in interviews. Data for the study were gathered and analysed from the questionnaires, and the interview transcripts. The findings from the study revealed that most teachers supported the notion of Inclusive Education Policy and would like to implement it. However, they indicated that there needed to be a change in attitudes of teachers, peers, boards of management, and parents/caregivers to provide assistance for children with special needs. Most teachers felt that there needs to be more awareness of the principle and the importance of inclusion. Teachers' limited knowledge of teaching children with special needs was also highlighted. In this study teachers admitted they needed more training in the field of educating children with special education in order to accommodate and teach children with special needs. This shows that teachers' colleges and universities need to have trained lecturers to develop more courses in special education. Teachers expressed concern that school inspectors do not know enough about the inclusive education concept and need to be trained as well so collaboratively they could implement the policy. Government support is needed to effectively implement the inclusive education policy. This includes training of specialists to support teachers, funds for teaching and learning resources and facilities in schools. The cultural implications and geographical issues have also had some impact on the implementation of the Inclusive Education Policy, while the issue of children with HIV and AIDS was raised that teachers needed to be prepared in order to accommodate and teach those infected children. All these issues highlighted are very important and it is hoped that the outcome of the findings will provide the Department of Education with new strategies to improve and strengthen their commitment to implement Inclusive Education Policy.

With the advent of neoliberal globalization in the 1980s, international student mobility (ISM) has become a significant social and educational phenomenon. Given the increasing magnitude of international student flows from developing countries to the developed or major member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), this research explores major OECD policy positions on international students, related priorities in higher education, and the influence of the GATT, the WTO and the GATS on higher education in these countries. Chinese graduate student perspectives are also drawn upon to understand Chinese student migrations to Canada in pursuit of higher education. The research considers ISM as a social and educational phenomenon of student migration across borders for higher education. Given the focus on exploration, meanings and understandings, an interpretive approach and qualitative case study strategy have been utilized to examine relative policy positions and to understand the experiences of Chinese graduate students who study at the University of Alberta (U of A) with the view to contribute towards qualitative studies of ISM. / Theoretical, Cultural and International Studies in Education

Discretion is commonly analyzed as the scope for choice set by formal superiors. This study aims at developing an alternative theory of discretion which also takes into account the assumptions of the actors in implementing positions. The theory is constructed with the purpose of being an empirical tool for analyzing discretion on a nation-wide basis and in a central-local government context. It concerns two main questions: to what extent does discretion vary and how can this variation be explained? The theory section concludes with a number of empirically testable hypotheses. The concept of discretion is defined as the scope for choice available to actors, in formally subordinate positions, vis-à-vis their superiors. It is seen as a special case of autonomy, as it is attributed to subordinates and primarily concerns one dimension of autonomy, namely freedom of action. In the second half of the study, the theory is applied empirically to the discretion available to Swedish local government Education Committees. A questionnaire study of all Education Committee Chairpersons and Chief Education Officers and in-depth interviews of a selected sample of these have been undertaken. The empirical study clearly indicates that there is variation in discretion. In spite of the uniformity of the system of governing local education, it is found that the limits for discretion are set differently by different Education Committee representatives. The variation follows a pattern which has been, at least partly, reconstructed. Variables which appear as important in explaining variation include: the extent to which the control system is regarded as efficient; the size and population density of the local authority; and individual traits such as length of experience and gender. However, our analysis also shows that these explanations are more valid in certain contexts than in others, which points the way for further research. / digitalisering@umu

No description available.

<p>Theoretically, the role of higher education in national development has become clearer than before, while empirically the evidence is overwhelming. Elsewhere in the world, countries that have made tremendous strides in both social and economic development invested heavily and strategically in higher education. In Malawi, the role of higher education in national development has always been recognised by development policies since independence in 1964 <span style="mso-bidi-font-style:italic">However, with the exception of the first 15 years of independence, Malawi&rsquo / s development path has registered abysmal results both on the social and the economic fronts despite undergoing significant socio-economic and political reforms. Malawi remains one of the most underdeveloped countries whether judged by Gross National Product (GNP) per capita, the UNDP&rsquo / s Human Development Index (HDI) or the Human Poverty Index (HPI). One of the factors that is considered as having contributed to low levels of development is the performance of education systems (primary, secondary and higher education) (World Bank, 2009).</span>It is against this background that this study sought to examine how Malawi&rsquo / s higher education institutions (HEIs) have responded to their roles as prescribed by the national development policies with a focus on the period between 2000 and 2010. Four questions guided the study: i) what specific roles do national development policies define for HEIs to ensure that higher education contributes to national development? ii) To what extent are these roles performed by HEIs in Malawi? iii) What factors determine the performance of HEIs in their expected roles? iv) What pattern of response to their (HEIs&rsquo / ) expected roles can be identified? Theoretically and analytically, the study was informed by the two perspectives of the open systems theory, namely the resource-dependency approach and neo-institutional approach. These two approaches contend that actions by organisations are limited and influenced by various pressures and demands emanating from their internal and external environments and that organisations often respond accordingly in order to survive. Methodologically, the study employed a mixed-method design (of qualitative and quantitative) with a dominant usage of qualitative methods. A multiple case study approach was used in which data were collected through unstructured interviews, semi-structured interviews and documentary review. For qualitative data, the analysis was done using a text method while quantitative data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel to provide simple descriptive analysis through charts, tables and graphs.<span style="mso-fareast-font-family:TimesNewRoman"> Overall, the study found that Malawi development policies expect HEIs to enhance access, equity, relevance, efficiency and quality of higher education as a way of ensuring that higher education contributes to the national development project. However, the study identified several patterns of response by HEIs (towards these expected roles) that tentatively explain the sub-optimal contribution of higher education in national development. These patterns of response include: inclination towards responding to the politically sensitive crises in the higher education system (for public HEIs) and profit-compatible roles (for private HEI) / use of sub-standard resources and methods antithetical to genuine teaching and learning / duplication by private HEIs of the &ldquo / soft&rdquo / roles being undertaken by public HEI / the abandonment of some of the HEIs&rsquo / original ideals and founding pledges, which are compatible with national development roles / and substitution of long-term coherent academic planning by short-term survival strategies. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size:18.0pt / mso-fareast-font-family:TimesNewRoman / mso-bidi-font-family:Arial / color:black / mso-fareast-language:EN-US / mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">The study presents a number of implications, lessons and recommendations in the area of higher education and development. These include: the need for the government to recognise the importance and impact of intra-sectoral linkages in the entire education system on the performance of HEIs / the need to enforce the effective participation of private and public HEIs in national developmental project by establishing a proper regulatory framework / the need to enhance regional and internal collaboration among universities if they are to effectively respond to national roles / the need to reduce marginalisation of HEIs by maximising efforts that create linkages with the productive sector / the need to devise a robust public financing mechanism that broadly deals with issues of equity, relevance, quality and access of higher education / and the need to match education investment priorities and sequencing with development policies</span></p> <p>&nbsp / </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify">&nbsp / </p> <p>&nbsp / </p>

Orientador: Joyce Mary Adam de Paula e Silva / Banca: Dirce Djanira Pacheco Zan / Banca: Maria José Viana Marinho de Mattos / Banca: Francisco Rogério de Oliveira Bonatto / Banca: Maria Aparecida Segatto Muranaka / Resumo: Esta pesquisa estuda o Projeto: "Escola Viva, Comunidade Ativa" (EVCA), implementado em Minas Gerais, desde 2003, cujo objetivo é conter a violência nas escolas. A vulnerabilidade das atitudes docentes frente a tais manifestações instigou-nos a investigar como o Projeto contempla na formação continuada dos professores, o enfrentamento deste desafio. Primeiramente descrevemos o caminho metodológico percorrido, a fim de deixar claro ao leitor as opções que fizemos e a estruturação que demos ao trabalho. Por se tratar de pesquisa de cunho qualitativa bibliográfica e documental, traz uma análise dos textos elaborados pelos órgãos oficiais: MEC, SEE/MG e escolas selecionadas, em Poços de Caldas. Seguindo, expõe o fundamento teórico da pesquisa, estudando os conceitos e discursos definidos pela modernidade sobre a violência, sua diversidade em relação à teoria social, a interpretação da violência simbólica, e como compreender as teorias pedagógicas em sua relação. Após, traz a análise dos documentos oficiais do MEC, buscando saber qual tem sido a visibilidade da violência escolar nas políticas de formação continuada, a partir da década de 1990. Para isso iniciou-se pela LDB 9394/96; o Plano Decenal de Educação para Todos (1993- 2003); o PNE (2001); o PDE (2007) e ainda os PCNs (1997), com aprofundamento nos Temas Transversais e Ética. Na sequência, analisa o EVCA abordando sua estruturação, subprojetos, resultados esperados e alguns indicadores de avaliação; por último, os PDPIs das escolas selecionadas. Após o estudo é possível afirmar que essas políticas intencionam contribuir para a qualidade do atendimento ao aluno, enfatizando a competência e a autonomia dos professores na gestão de suas práticas pedagógicas. No entanto, ainda defendem um caráter de complementação, que se traduz na priorização da melhoria da qualidade de aprendizagem... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: This research studies the project "Escola Viva Comunidade Ativa", executed in Minas Gerais, since 2003, whose objective is to contain the violence on schools. The vulnerability of professor's attitudes in front of these manifestations instigated us to investigate how does the Project face this challenge on the continued teacher‟s formation. Firstly, we describe the methodological road we roamed to stabilize the reader about the options that we did and the structure of this labour task. This is a bibliographic and documental research which brings an analysis of official texts of MEC, SEE/MG and selected schools in Poços de Caldas. Secondly, expose the theoretical bases of the research, studying the ideas and the discourses about violence, maydays, its diversity in relation with the social theory, the interpretation of symbolic violence, and how to comprehend the pedagogical theories on it relation. After that, brings the analysis of official documents of MEC, searching for to know wich is the visibility of scholar violence on the continued policies, since the 90‟s. For this, started at LDB 9394/96, the "Plano Decenal de Educação para Todos" (1993-2003), the PDE (2007) and the PCNs (1997), witch a deeper investigation on transversals themes and ethics. On sequence, analyse the EVCA and its structure, subprojects, expective results and some valuation indications at last, the PDPIs of the selected schools. After the study it‟s possible to affirm that these policies hair the intention to contribute for the quality of the attendment to the student, emphasizing the competence and the autonomy of the professors on their pedagogical practices. Nevertheless, it still defends a character of complementation translated on the improvement of the quality of reading/ writing and mathematic. The quality of teaching continued to be entailed to the principle of efficiency and efficacy... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Esta pesquisa que se insere na linha Infância, Juventude e Educação do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro/RJ buscou analisar como as coordenadoras/diretoras das 23 creches públicas de Juiz de Fora/MG compreendem o recente processo de transição da gestão das creches vinculadas à assistência social através da Associação Municipal de Apoio Comunitário (Amac) para a Secretaria de Educação, quando confrontadas com as perspectivas anunciadas na política oficial. Alguns objetivos específicos orientaram este estudo: (1) analisar a política oficial de inserção das creches ao sistema de ensino no município em questão; (2) Compreender como as coordenadoras/diretoras de creches percebem e vivenciam a implementação das políticas de inserção das creches ao sistema de ensino; (3) Identificar os principais embates e desafios que surgiram no contexto da prática após a implementação da transição e como as coordenadoras/diretoras lidam com eles. Como referencial para análise da política em foco, adotou-se a abordagem do ciclo de políticas (policy cycle approach) formulada por Stephen Ball e seus colaboradores. Segundo essa matriz as políticas educacionais são tratadas como textos, discursos e práticas produzidos em três contextos articulados entre si: o contexto de influência, o contexto da produção de texto e o contexto da prática. O contexto de influência foi acessado a partir de pesquisas bibliográficas. O contexto da produção de texto ganhou visibilidade pela via da análise documental. Os dados do contexto da prática, foco principal desta pesquisa, foram produzidos em três sessões reflexivas realizadas entre 2008 e 2013 com as coordenadoras/diretoras das 23 creches públicas de Juiz de Fora/MG. As análises apontaram que o processo de transição das creches tem sido produzido em meio a discursos e textos sujeitos a influências e inter-relações com as políticas locais, nacionais e globais. Mostrou também que a ausência de representantes do contexto da prática na elaboração inicial da política gerou apreensão e insegurança nos profissionais das creches. A produção da política foi marcada por conflitos entre as coordenadoras/diretoras e a Secretaria de Educação, e dificuldades advindas do modelo fragmentado de gestão da rede de creches em duas instâncias (Amac e Secretaria de Educação). A redução desses conflitos demandou negociações e adaptações de ambos os lados. A formação continuada no contexto das creches emergiu como uma contribuição para o avanço das práticas educativas. No entanto, a necessidade do poder público rever a carreira e as condições de trabalho dos profissionais dessas instituições foi ressaltada como uma questão fundamental para a construção de um atendimento com qualidade / The objective of this study, which is included in the Childhood, Adolescence and Education segment of the Post-Graduation Program in Education of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro/RJ, is to analyze how coordinators/principals at 23 public day care centers in the city of Juiz de Fora, state of MG, understand the recent transition process in the management of day care centers linked to social assistance through the Municipal Association of Community Support (Amac) for the Department of Education, when faced with the prospects announced in the official policy. Some specific objectives guided this study as follows: (1) Reviewing the official policy for inclusion of daycare centers in the city education system; (2) Understanding how day care center coordinators/principals perceive and experience the implementation of policies to include daycare in the educational system; (3) Identifying key struggles and challenges that have arisen in the context of practice after implementing the transition and how coordinators/principals cope with them. As a reference in analyzing this policy, we adopted the policy cycle approach as formulated by Stephen Ball and colleagues. According to this approach, educational policies are treated as texts, discourses and practices which are produced in three contexts that are integrated with each other: the context of influence; the text production context; and the context of practice. The context of influence was accessed from literature investigation. The text production context gained visibility by means of document analysis. Data for the context of practice the main focus of this research were produced in three reflective sessions held between 2008 and 2013 with coordinators/principals at 23 public day care centers in Juiz de Fora/MG. Analyses showed that the day care center transition process has been taking place amid discourses and texts that are subject to influences and interrelations with local, national and global policies. It also showed that the absence of practical context representatives in the initial drafting of the policy generated apprehension and insecurity for day care center professionals. The drafting of the policy was marked by conflicts between coordinators/principals and the Department of Education, as well as difficulties arising from the fragmented model of managing the day care network in two instances (Amac and Department of Education). Mitigating these conflicts demanded negotiations and adjustments on both sides. Continued education in the context of day care has emerged as a contribution to the advancement of educational practice. However, the need for the government to review the career and working conditions for professionals in these institutions was emphasized as a key issue to build a quality service

Submitted by Márcio Maia (marciokjmaia@gmail.com) on 2016-08-25T22:38:08Z No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 6263450 bytes, checksum: a0219c99fdddb21af23eb7505ef76c74 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-25T22:38:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 6263450 bytes, checksum: a0219c99fdddb21af23eb7505ef76c74 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-11-30 / This study aimed to analyze the teachers’ discourse (conceptions and experiences) on the movement of curriculum planning and how these teachers articulated their views and experiences to the discussions of Educational Policy for Elementary Education. The research was conducted with ten teachers acting in elementary school (1st to 5th grade) in a municipal public school in Cabedelo, Paraiba. The study adopted a qualitative research methodology, using ethnography as guideline and articulating it to the methodology of the Critical Discourse Analysis, as argues Norman Fairclough. To collect the discourses were used as tools: observations (in classrooms, in pedagogical meetings and collective spaces), questionnaire, semi-structured interviews and audio recordings. Even recognizing that the subject was not new, interest in this research arose because it’s recurrence among researchers in the field, being problematized in most cases in relation to the poor quality of public education, despite recent technical and scientific innovations occurred and occurring within the curriculum policies. The results point to an ambivalence as to what is the curriculum planning within the school and to the fact that not only are the teachers solely responsible for the changes that need to take place in the educational system, although they are the most charged for these transformations. This study wants to contribute to the ongoing debate that is taking shape in the Brazilian educational policy configured by the possibility to construct a more egalitarian public school and accessible to all. / O presente estudo propôs-se a analisar os discursos (concepções e vivências) de professoras sobre o movimento do planejamento curricular e como articulavam essas concepções e vivências as discussões das Políticas Educacionais do Ensino Fundamental. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida com dez professoras do 1º ao 5º ano de uma mesma escola da Secretaria de Educação da Cidade de Cabedelo/PB. Em nossa metodologia adotamos a pesquisa qualitativa, usando o caminho teórico etnográfico que foi articulado à metodologia da análise crítica do discurso, conforme a argumentação do autor Norman Fairclough. Optamos pelas observações: em salas de aula, nas reuniões pedagógicas e nos espaços coletivos. Ainda fizemos aplicação de questionário, entrevista semiestruturada, e gravações em áudio. Tivemos a clareza de que este estudo não era algo novo, mas assumimos o interesse por se tratar de uma questão recorrente entre os pesquisadores da área, problematizada, na maioria das vezes, vinculada a má qualidade do ensino público diante das inovações técnico científicas, recentes, que ocorreram e ocorrem no âmbito das políticas curriculares. Os resultados da pesquisa apontaram que há uma postura contraditória do que seja o planejamento curricular dentro da escola e que não são apenas os professores os únicos responsáveis pelas mudanças que precisam ocorrer no sistema educacional, embora sejam eles os mais cobrados por essas transformações. Com esse estudo tivemos o desejo de contribuir com o contínuo debate que vem se delineando na política educacional brasileira e se configurando como possibilidade de composição de uma escola pública mais igualitária e acessível a todos.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-07T15:08:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 1495423 bytes, checksum: e38ed680d16314f7b95a276523b544f7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-09-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This master s thesis is the result of a research carried out in the city of Joao Pessoa, focusing the Escola Nota Dez award. Throughout the argumentation, issues related to changes in society resulting from economic restructuring and educational public policies mobilized by the educational reform of the 1990 support the debate about large-scale assessments. Taking this bias as a reference, the policy of large-scale evaluation will be examined, it s implementation, consolidation and spread in Brazilian dominion. Subsequently, the evaluation policy promoted by the city of Joao Pessoa will be examined, analyzed as the reverberation of the national evaluation policies legitimized bay legal mechanisms as a resource to improve educational quality and as a result of influence enabled by international multilateral organizations. The study object in the political initiative for evaluation/awards accomplished by the Escola Nota Dez award. Three research instruments for data collection were used: interview, observation and analysis of normative and instructional documents. Offered by analyzing the results confirm that the policy assessment is a reverberation of municipal policies, the structure of indicators and a monitoring tool are mechanisms for supervision and control of educational processes that seeking to achieve educational quality through changes in management and curriculum school and not about school learning, a factor which we believe is vital to achieve educational quality. Finally, we consider the initiative as a process that needs to be democratized, giving room for teacher participation and others educational professionals in their planning and development, valuing the collective knowledge and creating a culture that derives from the struggle for public schools, the quality of education and learning. / Esta dissertação é fruto da pesquisa desenvolvida no município de João Pessoa tendo como foco de investigação o Prêmio Escola Nota Dez, objeto desta pesquisa. Permeando a discussão, temas relacionados às transformações societárias decorrentes da reestruturação econômica e culturais e das políticas públicas educacionais movidas pela reforma educacional da década de 1990 respaldarão o debate acerca do uso das avaliações. Por esse viés analisaremos a política de avaliação em larga escala, sua implementação, consolidação e propagação em território brasileiro. Sequencialmente trabalhamos com a análise da política de avaliação promovida pela Secretaria Municipal de Educação de João Pessoa, cuja materialização se dá no Prêmio Escola Nota Dez. Estruturalmente a pesquisa no seu aspecto epistemológico e metodológico está embasada na Teoria Crítica; nos aspectos procedimentais três instrumentos de coleta de dados foram utilizados: a entrevista, a observação e a análise de documentos. Os resultados da análise confirmam que a política de avaliação municipal é uma reverberação das políticas nacionais, sua estrutura de indicadores e instrumento de acompanhamento são mecanismos de supervisão e controle dos processos educacionais que buscam atingir a qualidade educacional através da modificação da gestão e do currículo escolar para uma concepção gerencialista. Como o foco não é a aprendizagem escolar julgamos que alcance da qualidade educacional fica mais distante de se efetivar. Por fim, considera-se a iniciativa como um processo que precisa ser democratizado, dando abertura para a participação dos professores e de outros profissionais da educação no seu planejamento e desenvolvimento, valorizando os saberes coletivos e criando uma cultura que derive da luta pela escola pública, pela qualidade educacional e pela aprendizagem.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Esta pesquisa que se insere na linha Infância, Juventude e Educação do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro/RJ buscou analisar como as coordenadoras/diretoras das 23 creches públicas de Juiz de Fora/MG compreendem o recente processo de transição da gestão das creches vinculadas à assistência social através da Associação Municipal de Apoio Comunitário (Amac) para a Secretaria de Educação, quando confrontadas com as perspectivas anunciadas na política oficial. Alguns objetivos específicos orientaram este estudo: (1) analisar a política oficial de inserção das creches ao sistema de ensino no município em questão; (2) Compreender como as coordenadoras/diretoras de creches percebem e vivenciam a implementação das políticas de inserção das creches ao sistema de ensino; (3) Identificar os principais embates e desafios que surgiram no contexto da prática após a implementação da transição e como as coordenadoras/diretoras lidam com eles. Como referencial para análise da política em foco, adotou-se a abordagem do ciclo de políticas (policy cycle approach) formulada por Stephen Ball e seus colaboradores. Segundo essa matriz as políticas educacionais são tratadas como textos, discursos e práticas produzidos em três contextos articulados entre si: o contexto de influência, o contexto da produção de texto e o contexto da prática. O contexto de influência foi acessado a partir de pesquisas bibliográficas. O contexto da produção de texto ganhou visibilidade pela via da análise documental. Os dados do contexto da prática, foco principal desta pesquisa, foram produzidos em três sessões reflexivas realizadas entre 2008 e 2013 com as coordenadoras/diretoras das 23 creches públicas de Juiz de Fora/MG. As análises apontaram que o processo de transição das creches tem sido produzido em meio a discursos e textos sujeitos a influências e inter-relações com as políticas locais, nacionais e globais. Mostrou também que a ausência de representantes do contexto da prática na elaboração inicial da política gerou apreensão e insegurança nos profissionais das creches. A produção da política foi marcada por conflitos entre as coordenadoras/diretoras e a Secretaria de Educação, e dificuldades advindas do modelo fragmentado de gestão da rede de creches em duas instâncias (Amac e Secretaria de Educação). A redução desses conflitos demandou negociações e adaptações de ambos os lados. A formação continuada no contexto das creches emergiu como uma contribuição para o avanço das práticas educativas. No entanto, a necessidade do poder público rever a carreira e as condições de trabalho dos profissionais dessas instituições foi ressaltada como uma questão fundamental para a construção de um atendimento com qualidade / The objective of this study, which is included in the Childhood, Adolescence and Education segment of the Post-Graduation Program in Education of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro/RJ, is to analyze how coordinators/principals at 23 public day care centers in the city of Juiz de Fora, state of MG, understand the recent transition process in the management of day care centers linked to social assistance through the Municipal Association of Community Support (Amac) for the Department of Education, when faced with the prospects announced in the official policy. Some specific objectives guided this study as follows: (1) Reviewing the official policy for inclusion of daycare centers in the city education system; (2) Understanding how day care center coordinators/principals perceive and experience the implementation of policies to include daycare in the educational system; (3) Identifying key struggles and challenges that have arisen in the context of practice after implementing the transition and how coordinators/principals cope with them. As a reference in analyzing this policy, we adopted the policy cycle approach as formulated by Stephen Ball and colleagues. According to this approach, educational policies are treated as texts, discourses and practices which are produced in three contexts that are integrated with each other: the context of influence; the text production context; and the context of practice. The context of influence was accessed from literature investigation. The text production context gained visibility by means of document analysis. Data for the context of practice the main focus of this research were produced in three reflective sessions held between 2008 and 2013 with coordinators/principals at 23 public day care centers in Juiz de Fora/MG. Analyses showed that the day care center transition process has been taking place amid discourses and texts that are subject to influences and interrelations with local, national and global policies. It also showed that the absence of practical context representatives in the initial drafting of the policy generated apprehension and insecurity for day care center professionals. The drafting of the policy was marked by conflicts between coordinators/principals and the Department of Education, as well as difficulties arising from the fragmented model of managing the day care network in two instances (Amac and Department of Education). Mitigating these conflicts demanded negotiations and adjustments on both sides. Continued education in the context of day care has emerged as a contribution to the advancement of educational practice. However, the need for the government to review the career and working conditions for professionals in these institutions was emphasized as a key issue to build a quality service