Programa de Manutenção e Desenvolvimento do Ensino (PMDE) em Fortaleza: uma avaliação em profundidade sob a ótica dos atores sociais no período de 2019 a 2024

Abstract

This research investigates the Education Maintenance and Development Program (PMDE) in Fortaleza, considering the social actors directly involved in monitoring and implementing the program from 2019 to 2024. Through the lens of democratic management, the analysis describes how the principles of autonomy and participation are implemented in the school environment, with the school and fiscal councils, as well as the Financial Resources Execution Units (UERF), as advocates of these principles. This investigation is relevant, given that the PMDE is one of the main financing policies for municipal education in Fortaleza. The overall objective of this research is to evaluate the PMDE within the framework of public and democratic education management, with an emphasis on the performance of School Councils and Financial Resources Execution Units.To this end, the specific objectives were outlined as follows: (1) to analyze the content and context of the MDE's formulation and implementation in light of the principles of democratic management, autonomy, and participation; (2) to reconstruct the MDE's institutional trajectory from its implementation to 2024, considering this interval as a temporal spectrum; and (3) to analyze the perceptions of social actors involved in collegiate bodies and Financial Resource Execution Units regarding the PMDE's planning. execution, and oversight. The methodological proposal is based on the assumptions of In-Depth Assessment (RODRIGUES, 2008, 2011). To meet the objectives outlined in this study, a qualitative methodological approach was adopted, based on the analysis of relevant legislation and a review of specialized literature. In addition to the bibliographic research, data collection and analysis were carried out through the application of an online questionnaire, composed of open-and closed-ended questions, directed to the social actors involved with the PMDE in the school units selected as a sample.Based on the analysis, we conclude that, although Brazilian legislation ensures democratic management as a fundamental principle of public education, the reality observed in schools is still far from this ideal. The analysis of empirical data obtained from collegiate bodies, such as the School Board, the Supervisory Board, and the Executive Unit, reveals significant weaknesses in the effective participation of the school community in decision-making processes. In many cases, these bodies operate merely formally, with low representation, lack of awareness of their responsibilities, or lack of autonomy to influence school management. These results highlight the urgent need to strengthen the mechanisms for training, monitoring, and valuing these collegiate bodies, in order to promote a participatory culture that goes beyond the limits of legal discourse and becomes a reality in the daily lives of schools.