Disciplinas eletivas e saberes docentes: desafios e possibilidades para o Ensino de História

Abstract

This dissertation analyzes the Elective Curricular Units (ECU), focusing on how they are being developed and what role they play in History teaching within the framework of the New High School Reform in Brazil. The study aims to examine the proposal of electives as a curricular component of the reform, investigate their implications for History education, and discuss how teachers’ professional knowledge becomes a pedagogical reference in the selection of content and teaching strategies. In addition, this study aims to develop an educational product focused on the teaching of History in elective disciplines, designed to address the demands identified among teachers and to provide didactic support for the planning and implementation of these curricular units. The research was carried out through documental analysis of the elective course catalogs published by the Ceará State Department of Education (SEDUC) and through a structured questionnaire applied to forty public school teachers, thirty-one of whom were licensed in History. The findings reveal structural limitations of the curricular policy, such as the imbalance in workload between electives and subjects of the General Basic Education (GBE) and the fragility of support materials. On the other hand, the results also highlight creative practices that reframe electives as spaces for critical learning, especially when linked to History teaching. As a practical outcome, the dissertation presents an e-book entitled “Formation of the Brazilian People: proposals and resources for teaching in elective disciplines”, organized into twenty lessons. The material was designed as a didactic resource, responding to teachers’ expressed demand for greater support in planning and implementing activities. Thus, this research contributes not only to the academic debate but also to strengthening pedagogical practice in History education.