Foster care drift is the extended stay in foster care without attaining family reunification or permanency with another placement. When foster care youth experience foster care drift, they face the possibility of aging out of the foster care system. Interventions and policies have been implemented to aid family service workers during the process of permanency planning; however, a great number of foster care youth remain in care. This study explored the perceptions of social work professionals regarding foster care drift regarding issues and challenges that social workers engaged in foster care placement face regarding foster care drift. The ecological system theory provided the foundation for understanding the connection of social workers and the external systems surrounding them. An action research design was used to carry out this study. A focus group with family service workers in the southeastern region of the United States was conducted. Seven participants discussed foster care drift and developed possible solutions. Key findings from the study show 3 main themes: ineffective communication, unproductive parent education classes, and unhelpful allocation of agency funding. Possible solutions to decrease foster care drift include improving communication among workers and other agencies, improving parent education courses to include an independent living skills component, and allocating monetary resources to develop programs specific for foster care youth and their families. The findings of this study might effect social change by supporting a shift in focus of foster care services from out-of-home interventions to preventative services to promote family stability.

Title 1) A grounded theory exploration of social workers’ permanency planning for looked after children in Scotland 2) Experience of childhood maltreatment and reflective function of parents: A systematic review of observational research findings Aims 1) Permanency planning refers to meeting the needs of a ‘looked after’ child by legally securing a permanent family. Delays in securing permanency are associated with adverse outcomes for children. Social workers are integral to this process and yet there is a paucity of research considering how workers make sense of this professional role. The current study aimed to develop an explanatory theory of social workers’ sense making in planning for permanency to identify issues and facilitate a discussion around the experiences and needs of this group. 2) The paper considers childhood experiences of maltreatment in relation to adult reflective function in parenting, a variable implicated in infant attachment security. A systematic review aimed to explore the current research literature examining the association between the experience of maltreatment in childhood and later reflective function in parenting. Methods 1) A qualitative grounded theory methodology (GTM) was used to analyse interviews with eight social workers who had a current permanency role (six female). 2) Following the development of a grounded theory via integration of the data with the theory of mentalization, a relevant systematic review was conducted. The current research literature was explored in relation to adults’ experiences of maltreatment in childhood and reflective function in parenting. 2 Results 1) Although participants described delays in relation to systemic pressures, as analysis of interviews unfolded theoretical sampling explored their experiences of losing and maintaining ‘focus’ on the child in permanency planning. The findings generated a theory positing that workers seek to keep a child’s ‘mentalized’ experience at the fore (to hold his ‘mind in mind’) and plan responsively to make permanency recommendations while negotiating the challenges of person-centred working within a multi-agency system. Workers were found to describe holding ‘mentalized’ interpretations of a child’s past, current, and future experiences during the processes integral to planning for permanency (assessment, early decisions, information gathering, interpretation, integration, and interaction with the wider system). Holding the child’s mind in mind also contributed to the ‘strength of evidence’ for permanency planning, and was, at the same time, vulnerable to the destabilizing effects of the emotional demands and system stressors perceived within the permanency role. Permanency planning and integration of evidence to make recommendations for permanency was responsive to the complexities of interpersonal working, hypothetical futures for the child, and to the potential impact of planning actions for future decision makers. 2) A systematic search of the literature identified seven datasets (of which nine papers) presenting analyses relating to measurement of childhood maltreatment and parents’ reflective function. Conclusions 1) The study theorised a psychological process related to holding ‘focus’ on the child in permanency and concluded with recommendations for permanency practice based on this preliminary model. These included prioritising a culture of professional empathy, training in and availability of protected reflective clinical supervision, post-adoption support for birth parents, and training in working with complex interpersonal behaviour to better facilitate effective permanency planning and improve outcomes for looked after children. 2) Although the identified studies indicated a lack of significant association between the factors, critical evaluation of conceptual, methodological and population issues indicated that the small number of reviewed studies were limited in their capacity to address the review question. After further data reduction according to study quality and separation of analyses according to conceptualisation of mentalization there remained two datasets reporting on CM and adult RF, and three reporting analyses of CM and parenting RF. Conceptual differences regarding mentalization and RF are considered in relation to emerging areas of research in this field.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T13:44:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MARCOS VINICIOS RABELO PROCOPIO.pdf: 2565052 bytes, checksum: 28d41a89feb201236a4777de11b6efde (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-08-28 / The university failure has become a problem of world order, especially in courses such as Physics. Facing this reality, after an exhaustive search in databases of theses and dissertations and journals of the past two decades, we find a paucity of studies that seek to understand more fully the factors that can influence the performance of this academic. In this context, this research aimed to clarify the relationship between the prevailing social, cultural and academic conditions between the reprobate and academic failure in the higher physics courses at universities in Brazil and Portugal. To this end, we seek as a research field two public universities located in the central region of two Portuguese-speaking countries with nearby cultures: Brazil and Portugal. The research methodology consisted of two studies, the first was called primary that led to the creation of a data collection instrument, called QACSCA (Questionnaire Assessment of social, cultural and academic conditions) and the second titled principal that has a sample of 118 students of physics at the Federal University of Goiás and 97 at the University of Aveiro. The method used for data analysis triangulation was sequenced, and the preliminary study conducted a qualitative analysis and quantitative main study and still looked like Bourdieu, Charlot Vygotsky and theoretical support for discussion of results. So that the discussion of the collected data was performed with the support of four categories of analysis "Subject", "Subject and Society", "Relationship to know" and "Zone proximal student" which emerged from the discussions related to the conduct subject in interaction with certain groups, the tensions and conflicts in the field where cultural capital is distributed, desire and knowledge in order to enrich the human heritage and mediation between capital that the student has to enter the university and the he can acquire during their university studies. The data showed that 78.6% of the sample are students who have had 2-7 failures during the course, which leads them to extrapolate up to two years the period of four years of training. It was evident that the disciplines of Mathematics & Physics, together confirmed its high failure rate reaching 53.3% of the total sample, 31.6% and 23.7% identified as grounds of abandonment, rejection or locking disciplines, respectively, learning difficulties, transportation, relationships and the negative performance in different subjects, little time for studies and prior to his entry into the physics course unsatisfactory training. Discussions explained the complexity of the problem linked to the theoretical support failure used in order to raise the habitus, the field and the area of academic development that presents during his journey in physics courses. / O fracasso universitário se tornou um problema de ordem mundial, sobretudo em cursos como o de Física. Frente a esta realidade, após uma exaustiva pesquisa nos bancos de teses e dissertações e nos periódicos das duas últimas décadas, verificamos uma escassez de estudos que buscam compreender mais a fundo os fatores que podem influenciar no desempenho desse acadêmico. Neste contexto, objetivamos nesta investigação explicitar as relações existentes entre as condições sociais, culturais e acadêmicas preponderantes entre os acadêmicos reprovados e o fracasso nos cursos superiores de Física das universidades do Brasil e de Portugal. Para tal, buscamos como campo de pesquisa duas universidades públicas localizadas na região central de dois países de língua portuguesa com culturas próximas: Brasil e Portugal. A metodologia da investigação foi composta por dois estudos, o primeiro foi chamado de preliminar que propiciou a criação de um instrumento de coleta de dados, denominado de QACSCA (Questionário de Avaliação das condições sociais, culturais e acadêmicas) e o segundo intitulado de principal que conta com uma amostra de 118 acadêmicos do curso de Física da Universidade Federal de Goiás e 97 da Universidade de Aveiro. O método utilizado para a análise dos dados foi a triangulação sequenciada, sendo que no estudo preliminar realizou-se a análise qualitativa e no estudo principal a quantitativa e ainda buscou-se como suporte teórico Bourdieu, Charlot e Vygotsky para discussão dos resultados. De forma que a discussão sobre os dados coletados foi realizada com o apoio de quatro categorias de análise Sujeito , Sujeito e Sociedade , Relação com o saber e Zona proximal do aluno das quais surgiram discussões relacionadas às condutas do sujeito em interação com determinados grupos, as tensões e os conflitos existentes no campo onde o capital cultural é distribuído, o desejo e o saber de forma a enriquecer o patrimônio humano e a mediação entre o capital que o aluno apresenta ao entrar na universidade e o que ele pode adquirir durante o seu percurso universitário. Os dados demonstraram que 78,6% da amostra são de alunos que tiveram de 2 a 7 reprovações no decorrer do curso, o que os leva a extrapolar em até dois anos o período de 4 anos de formação. Evidenciou-se que as disciplinas de Cálculo e Física, juntas confirmaram seu alto índice de reprovação chegando a 53,3% do total da amostra, 31,6% e 23,7% apontaram como motivo de abandono, reprovação ou trancamento das disciplinas, respectivamente, as dificuldades de aprendizagem, de transporte, de relacionamento e o desempenho negativo nas disciplinas, pouco tempo para estudos e uma formação insatisfatória anterior à sua entrada no curso de Física. As discussões explicitaram a complexidade do problema do fracasso atrelada ao suporte teórico utilizado de forma a levantar o habitus, o campo e a zona de desenvolvimento que o acadêmico apresenta durante seu percurso nos cursos de Física.

Iniciada em 2008, a ampliação do acesso ao ensino superior por meio de cotas realizado na Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) ocorre concomitantemente ao desenvolvimento de ações de políticas de permanência. Este trabalho discute as ações de ensino de língua e letramento integrantes das iniciativas pedagógicas da política de permanência para os universitários indígenas: o Curso de Inglês para Estudantes Indígenas e, especialmente, o Curso de Leitura e Escrita na Universidade para Estudantes Indígenas. O objetivo deste trabalho é discutir a abordagem pedagógica e teórica fundamentada no campo dos Estudos de Letramento Acadêmico (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) dessas ações de permanência, de modo a oferecer subsídios para a construção e o desenvolvimento de ações de permanência que visam a fomentar a diplomação de estudantes de grupos minoritários, principalmente de estudantes indígenas, nas universidades públicas brasileiras, em processo de adequação à Lei de Cotas nacional (nº 12.711/2012). Esses subsídios se contrapõem ao discurso deficitário em relação às práticas letradas de estudantes minoritários e à prática historicamente constituída de socialização acadêmica embasada na suposta transparência das expectativas institucionais em relação à escrita e numa compreensão do letramento como habilidades cognitivas adquiridas pelos sujeitos e transferíveis para quaisquer contextos. A abordagem de letramento acadêmico adotada aqui orienta-se para a diversidade das práticas letradas e para o dialogismo (BAKHTIN, 2003), fomentando-os nos espaços pedagógicos da ciência em favor da legitimação de novas vozes nas universidades e entende letramento como múltiplas práticas sociais que envolvem a escrita em discursos inscritos ideologicamente, situados histórica e socialmente. O estudo apresenta um panorama, no plano nacional, da formação dos programas de ações afirmativas e da participação política dos povos indígenas na construção da demanda para si por ensino superior e descreve as ações de acesso e de permanência da UFRGS, no âmbito das quais são oferecidos os cursos de leitura e escrita acadêmica focalizados. Possibilidades e demandas para o desenvolvimento das políticas afirmativas no ensino superior brasileiro são fornecidas pela discussão teórica na área do letramento acadêmico e das ações afirmativas, contemplando perspectivas de intelectuais indígenas e não indígenas. / The expansion of access to higher education through quotas initiated at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in 2008, in the same year a public policy of permanence actions was developed. The aim of this study is to analyze the literacy and language actions which are part of the educational initiatives of this policy aimed at indigenous students: the English Course for Indigenous Students and the Academic Reading and Writing Course at the University for Indigenous Students. The theoretical and pedagogical basis for the courses, namely the Academic Literacy Studies (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) (ACLITS), is presented, and its implications for the development of permanence actions aimed at assisting minority students in their undergraduate courses, mainly those actions targeting Indigenous students. Indigenous students have recently had access to Brazilian public universities, which are currently adjusting their admission systems to the national Quota Act (No. 12.711/2012). The contributions of ACLITS oppose language deficit approaches concerning minority students’ literacy practices and historically held practices of academic socialization, which are grounded in supposedly transparent institutional expectations and in a perspective of literacy as cognitive skills acquired by individuals and transferable to any contexts. The academic literacy approach adopted here is oriented towards the diversity of literacy practices and dialogism (BAKHTIN, 2003), which should be fostered in pedagogical spaces for building science and to legitimate new voices in the academy. Literacy is defined as multiple social practices that involve writing in ideologically inscribed discourses, and which are situated socially and historically. The study presents an overview of the development of affirmative action programs in Brazil and of the political participation of Indigenous peoples in organizing their demands for higher education. Moreover, the access and permanence actions developed at UFRGS are described in order to contextualize the academic reading and writing courses offered to Indigenous students. Possibilities and demands for the development of affirmative action policies in higher education in Brazil are discussed based on the current theoretical debates on academic literacy and affirmative actions held by indigenous and non-indigenous researchers.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-10T17:30:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Merce Muller.pdf: 3741907 bytes, checksum: 276d3c9db2ce046554ccd50d42c5dbb6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-04-08 / This research aimed as the main purpose analyses the perspectives of the rural young women who studies at Fronteira Sul Federal University(UFFS) -campus Realeza-PR, in relation to their permanency in the countryside. We have as a hypothesis that the entry into University is due to the pursuit of finding a professional qualification in order to remain in the countryside. This study was made with young rural students who studies in the graduation courses offered at campus Realeza-PR. To develop the analyses, we worked with these young rural women whose identified themselves as rural women, and entered in the University during the period from 2010 to 2013, with age between 15 and 29 years old. We used as methodological proceeding, the qualitative and quantitative parameters to get information, applying surveys and interviews to the young women. To understand the reality faced by the young women interviewed, it was necessary to study the aspects about rural youth approaching, in studies of the problems faced in the farming which influences on the future plans of these rural young women. Moreover, the aspects of the patriarchy family and conflicts of generations which are present on the farming, contribute to deciding the permanence. Studies have shown that lack of autonomy to the implantation of changes in the family production unit, the economic troubles faced by farmers and the professional qualification can contribute to the future projects aimed by the young rural women, besides, they have several objectives from professional qualification, and aspects related to their familiar production unit influences their professional projects. / A pesquisa teve como objetivo principal analisar as perspectivas das jovens rurais que estudam na Universidade Federal da Fronteira Sul (UFFS) Campus Realeza PR, em relação à permanência no espaço rural. Tendo como hipótese que o ingresso no ensino superior é pela busca de qualificação profissional, com o intuito de permanecer no espaço rural. O estudo foi realizado com jovens rurais que estudam nos cursos de graduação ofertados no Campus Realeza-PR. Para desenvolver a análise, trabalhamos com as jovens rurais que se identificaram como tal, ingressaram no período de 2010 a2013, e na faixa etária de 15 a29 anos. Utilizamos como procedimentos metodológicos, para a produção das informações, métodos qualitativos e quantitativos, com aplicação de questionários e entrevistas às jovens rurais. Para compreensão da realidade vivida pelas pesquisadas, foi necessário estudar aspectos sobre a juventude rural, com abordagens em estudos realizados, problemas enfrentados na agricultura e que influenciam nos projetos futuros das jovens rurais. Além disso, aspectos do patriarcado e conflitos de geração, que estão presentes na agricultura e contribuem sobre a decisão de permanência. Estudos têm demonstrado que a falta de autonomia para implantação de mudanças na unidade produtiva familiar, as dificuldades econômicas enfrentadas pelos agricultores e a formação profissional podem contribuir para que as jovens rurais projetem seu futuro profissional fora do espaço rural, sem contar, que as jovens rurais possuem objetivos os mais variados a partir da formação profissional, e que aspectos relacionados às famílias nas unidades produtivas influenciam na construção dos seus projetos profissionais.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-12T14:42:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Merce Muller.pdf: 3741907 bytes, checksum: 276d3c9db2ce046554ccd50d42c5dbb6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-04-08 / This research aimed as the main purpose analyses the perspectives of the rural young women who studies at Fronteira Sul Federal University(UFFS) -campus Realeza-PR, in relation to their permanency in the countryside. We have as a hypothesis that the entry into University is due to the pursuit of finding a professional qualification in order to remain in the countryside. This study was made with young rural students who studies in the graduation courses offered at campus Realeza-PR. To develop the analyses, we worked with these young rural women whose identified themselves as rural women, and entered in the University during the period from 2010 to 2013, with age between 15 and 29 years old. We used as methodological proceeding, the qualitative and quantitative parameters to get information, applying surveys and interviews to the young women. To understand the reality faced by the young women interviewed, it was necessary to study the aspects about rural youth approaching, in studies of the problems faced in the farming which influences on the future plans of these rural young women. Moreover, the aspects of the patriarchy family and conflicts of generations which are present on the farming, contribute to deciding the permanence. Studies have shown that lack of autonomy to the implantation of changes in the family production unit, the economic troubles faced by farmers and the professional qualification can contribute to the future projects aimed by the young rural women, besides, they have several objectives from professional qualification, and aspects related to their familiar production unit influences their professional projects. / A pesquisa teve como objetivo principal analisar as perspectivas das jovens rurais que estudam na Universidade Federal da Fronteira Sul (UFFS) Campus Realeza PR, em relação à permanência no espaço rural. Tendo como hipótese que o ingresso no ensino superior é pela busca de qualificação profissional, com o intuito de permanecer no espaço rural. O estudo foi realizado com jovens rurais que estudam nos cursos de graduação ofertados no Campus Realeza-PR. Para desenvolver a análise, trabalhamos com as jovens rurais que se identificaram como tal, ingressaram no período de 2010 a2013, e na faixa etária de 15 a29 anos. Utilizamos como procedimentos metodológicos, para a produção das informações, métodos qualitativos e quantitativos, com aplicação de questionários e entrevistas às jovens rurais. Para compreensão da realidade vivida pelas pesquisadas, foi necessário estudar aspectos sobre a juventude rural, com abordagens em estudos realizados, problemas enfrentados na agricultura e que influenciam nos projetos futuros das jovens rurais. Além disso, aspectos do patriarcado e conflitos de geração, que estão presentes na agricultura e contribuem sobre a decisão de permanência. Estudos têm demonstrado que a falta de autonomia para implantação de mudanças na unidade produtiva familiar, as dificuldades econômicas enfrentadas pelos agricultores e a formação profissional podem contribuir para que as jovens rurais projetem seu futuro profissional fora do espaço rural, sem contar, que as jovens rurais possuem objetivos os mais variados a partir da formação profissional, e que aspectos relacionados às famílias nas unidades produtivas influenciam na construção dos seus projetos profissionais.

Adoption-focused psychoeducation is deemed essential in maintaining the permanency of traumatized children within a new family unit. However, adoptive parents of traumatized children struggle to find training to address their unique concerns. Guided by the lens of psychodynamic theory, the purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges faced by adoptive families of traumatized children. Special focus was placed on the social and emotional relationships of the adoptive parents of traumatized children, to identify the realistic expectations towards attachment from the families' perspectives. Fifteen families were randomly selected to participate in this study from a group of 30 parents who adopted traumatized children in Arizona. A phenomenological approach was utilized to gather information from face-to-face and telephone interviews. The data analysis utilized the horizontalization approach which highlighted significant statements that were classified into codes. Thematic categories were drawn and summarized. Textual descriptions evolved from the thematic groups acknowledging their experiences and how these lived experiences guided their decision to adopt a traumatized child. Verification techniques, data mining, journaling, clustering, brainstorming, and peer reviews were used to ensure the quality of data. Emergent themes emphasized the need for adoption-focused training specific to traumatized children. Further research on this phenomenon should determine the significance of specialized psychoeducational training versus general foster care training, before and after adoption. Positive social change may result in tailoring existing training programs to meet the needs of families who adopt traumatized children.

This dissertation describes a study that investigated the perceptions of foster parents and kinship caregivers (grandparents caring for their grandchildren) around contact issues between children in their care and their birth parents in Canterbury, New Zealand. The study employed a qualitative approach for data collection and analysis. The qualitative method of data collection for the study comprised of three focus groups, two with foster parents and one with grandparents. The focus groups were conducted using a modified Nominal Group Technique (NGT) where two questions posed to the participants sought to understand their views about behaviours they noticed in children in their care before and after contact with birth parents. In addition, a further question was asked to gain an understanding around their feelings on contact with birth parents. Findings of the study indicated that foster parents largely described children’s behaviour before and after contact to be distressing and stressful for them, with few positive benefits. Furthermore, foster parents mainly stated strong, negative feelings around contact with biological parents. In the discussion, implications of these results are discussed for foster children, foster parents and social welfare practices.

Iniciada em 2008, a ampliação do acesso ao ensino superior por meio de cotas realizado na Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) ocorre concomitantemente ao desenvolvimento de ações de políticas de permanência. Este trabalho discute as ações de ensino de língua e letramento integrantes das iniciativas pedagógicas da política de permanência para os universitários indígenas: o Curso de Inglês para Estudantes Indígenas e, especialmente, o Curso de Leitura e Escrita na Universidade para Estudantes Indígenas. O objetivo deste trabalho é discutir a abordagem pedagógica e teórica fundamentada no campo dos Estudos de Letramento Acadêmico (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) dessas ações de permanência, de modo a oferecer subsídios para a construção e o desenvolvimento de ações de permanência que visam a fomentar a diplomação de estudantes de grupos minoritários, principalmente de estudantes indígenas, nas universidades públicas brasileiras, em processo de adequação à Lei de Cotas nacional (nº 12.711/2012). Esses subsídios se contrapõem ao discurso deficitário em relação às práticas letradas de estudantes minoritários e à prática historicamente constituída de socialização acadêmica embasada na suposta transparência das expectativas institucionais em relação à escrita e numa compreensão do letramento como habilidades cognitivas adquiridas pelos sujeitos e transferíveis para quaisquer contextos. A abordagem de letramento acadêmico adotada aqui orienta-se para a diversidade das práticas letradas e para o dialogismo (BAKHTIN, 2003), fomentando-os nos espaços pedagógicos da ciência em favor da legitimação de novas vozes nas universidades e entende letramento como múltiplas práticas sociais que envolvem a escrita em discursos inscritos ideologicamente, situados histórica e socialmente. O estudo apresenta um panorama, no plano nacional, da formação dos programas de ações afirmativas e da participação política dos povos indígenas na construção da demanda para si por ensino superior e descreve as ações de acesso e de permanência da UFRGS, no âmbito das quais são oferecidos os cursos de leitura e escrita acadêmica focalizados. Possibilidades e demandas para o desenvolvimento das políticas afirmativas no ensino superior brasileiro são fornecidas pela discussão teórica na área do letramento acadêmico e das ações afirmativas, contemplando perspectivas de intelectuais indígenas e não indígenas. / The expansion of access to higher education through quotas initiated at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in 2008, in the same year a public policy of permanence actions was developed. The aim of this study is to analyze the literacy and language actions which are part of the educational initiatives of this policy aimed at indigenous students: the English Course for Indigenous Students and the Academic Reading and Writing Course at the University for Indigenous Students. The theoretical and pedagogical basis for the courses, namely the Academic Literacy Studies (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) (ACLITS), is presented, and its implications for the development of permanence actions aimed at assisting minority students in their undergraduate courses, mainly those actions targeting Indigenous students. Indigenous students have recently had access to Brazilian public universities, which are currently adjusting their admission systems to the national Quota Act (No. 12.711/2012). The contributions of ACLITS oppose language deficit approaches concerning minority students’ literacy practices and historically held practices of academic socialization, which are grounded in supposedly transparent institutional expectations and in a perspective of literacy as cognitive skills acquired by individuals and transferable to any contexts. The academic literacy approach adopted here is oriented towards the diversity of literacy practices and dialogism (BAKHTIN, 2003), which should be fostered in pedagogical spaces for building science and to legitimate new voices in the academy. Literacy is defined as multiple social practices that involve writing in ideologically inscribed discourses, and which are situated socially and historically. The study presents an overview of the development of affirmative action programs in Brazil and of the political participation of Indigenous peoples in organizing their demands for higher education. Moreover, the access and permanence actions developed at UFRGS are described in order to contextualize the academic reading and writing courses offered to Indigenous students. Possibilities and demands for the development of affirmative action policies in higher education in Brazil are discussed based on the current theoretical debates on academic literacy and affirmative actions held by indigenous and non-indigenous researchers.

Iniciada em 2008, a ampliação do acesso ao ensino superior por meio de cotas realizado na Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) ocorre concomitantemente ao desenvolvimento de ações de políticas de permanência. Este trabalho discute as ações de ensino de língua e letramento integrantes das iniciativas pedagógicas da política de permanência para os universitários indígenas: o Curso de Inglês para Estudantes Indígenas e, especialmente, o Curso de Leitura e Escrita na Universidade para Estudantes Indígenas. O objetivo deste trabalho é discutir a abordagem pedagógica e teórica fundamentada no campo dos Estudos de Letramento Acadêmico (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) dessas ações de permanência, de modo a oferecer subsídios para a construção e o desenvolvimento de ações de permanência que visam a fomentar a diplomação de estudantes de grupos minoritários, principalmente de estudantes indígenas, nas universidades públicas brasileiras, em processo de adequação à Lei de Cotas nacional (nº 12.711/2012). Esses subsídios se contrapõem ao discurso deficitário em relação às práticas letradas de estudantes minoritários e à prática historicamente constituída de socialização acadêmica embasada na suposta transparência das expectativas institucionais em relação à escrita e numa compreensão do letramento como habilidades cognitivas adquiridas pelos sujeitos e transferíveis para quaisquer contextos. A abordagem de letramento acadêmico adotada aqui orienta-se para a diversidade das práticas letradas e para o dialogismo (BAKHTIN, 2003), fomentando-os nos espaços pedagógicos da ciência em favor da legitimação de novas vozes nas universidades e entende letramento como múltiplas práticas sociais que envolvem a escrita em discursos inscritos ideologicamente, situados histórica e socialmente. O estudo apresenta um panorama, no plano nacional, da formação dos programas de ações afirmativas e da participação política dos povos indígenas na construção da demanda para si por ensino superior e descreve as ações de acesso e de permanência da UFRGS, no âmbito das quais são oferecidos os cursos de leitura e escrita acadêmica focalizados. Possibilidades e demandas para o desenvolvimento das políticas afirmativas no ensino superior brasileiro são fornecidas pela discussão teórica na área do letramento acadêmico e das ações afirmativas, contemplando perspectivas de intelectuais indígenas e não indígenas. / The expansion of access to higher education through quotas initiated at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in 2008, in the same year a public policy of permanence actions was developed. The aim of this study is to analyze the literacy and language actions which are part of the educational initiatives of this policy aimed at indigenous students: the English Course for Indigenous Students and the Academic Reading and Writing Course at the University for Indigenous Students. The theoretical and pedagogical basis for the courses, namely the Academic Literacy Studies (LEA; STREET, 1998, 2006; LILLIS, 2001; LEA, 2004) (ACLITS), is presented, and its implications for the development of permanence actions aimed at assisting minority students in their undergraduate courses, mainly those actions targeting Indigenous students. Indigenous students have recently had access to Brazilian public universities, which are currently adjusting their admission systems to the national Quota Act (No. 12.711/2012). The contributions of ACLITS oppose language deficit approaches concerning minority students’ literacy practices and historically held practices of academic socialization, which are grounded in supposedly transparent institutional expectations and in a perspective of literacy as cognitive skills acquired by individuals and transferable to any contexts. The academic literacy approach adopted here is oriented towards the diversity of literacy practices and dialogism (BAKHTIN, 2003), which should be fostered in pedagogical spaces for building science and to legitimate new voices in the academy. Literacy is defined as multiple social practices that involve writing in ideologically inscribed discourses, and which are situated socially and historically. The study presents an overview of the development of affirmative action programs in Brazil and of the political participation of Indigenous peoples in organizing their demands for higher education. Moreover, the access and permanence actions developed at UFRGS are described in order to contextualize the academic reading and writing courses offered to Indigenous students. Possibilities and demands for the development of affirmative action policies in higher education in Brazil are discussed based on the current theoretical debates on academic literacy and affirmative actions held by indigenous and non-indigenous researchers.