Jogos interclasses como espaço de protagonismo estudantil numa escola de tempo integral do município de Fortaleza

Abstract

This dissertation, developed within the scope of the Professional Master’s Program in Physical Education in the National Network (ProEF/UFC), investigated how student protagonism is manifested in the Interclass Games of a full-time public school located in the city of Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil. The study is based on the understanding that Interclass Games, historically associated with competition and sports performance, may assume an expanded educational character when guided by pedagogical principles that value student protagonism, expressed through students’ active participation in the planning, organization, and implementation of the event. The research is grounded in theoretical frameworks that discuss school sport from a critical and educational perspective, as well as in approaches that understand youth/student protagonism as a pedagogical practice and a constitutive element of civic education. It also engages with municipal curriculum documents from Fortaleza that recognize protagonism as a formative axis of full-time schools. Methodologically, this is a qualitative study characterized as action research, developed through questionnaires, conversation circles, and participant observation, within the context of organizing and conducting the 2025 Interclass Games. Data analysis was carried out using the content analysis technique proposed by Bardin, enabling the identification of categories related to students’ experiences, perceptions, and participation practices. The results indicate that the Interclass Games can constitute a privileged space for learning by fostering experiences of cooperation, autonomy, shared responsibility, and collective decision-making, thereby expanding the meanings attributed to sport in the school context. As an educational product, a pedagogical booklet was developed for Physical Education teachers in lower secondary education, offering practical guidelines to promote student protagonism in the organization of Interclass Games, grounded in the research data and the theoretical contributions discussed throughout the study.