A gestão democrática em uma escola pública municipal da região metropolitana de São Paulo

Abstract

The object of this research consists of the lived experience of the principles of democratic and participatory management within the context of the collegiate bodies of a municipal public school in the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo. The research is guided by the following triggering question: In what way does democratic management materialize in the daily life of a municipal school, and what are the points of tension and divergence between legal prescriptions and the effective participatory practice of its subjects? The general objective is to analyze how the collegiate bodies (School Council and Parent-Teacher Association) materialize the precepts of democratic and participatory management, confronting normative predictions with the dynamics of real participation in the school routine. As specific objectives, the study sought to: a) identify the alignment of the school unit's guidelines with the National and Municipal Education Plans; b) verify the regularity and parity of participation among different segments in the school collegiates; and c) describe the power dynamics and decision-making processes observed in the meetings of these instances. Methodologically, the study is based on a qualitative approach of an interpretive nature, utilizing document analysis and participant observation. Field immersion was facilitated by the researcher's professional role as an Education Supervisor, which allowed for the recording of organic perceptions in a field diary. The results reveal that, although the unit shows a high level of compliance with the legal framework and a harmonious and organized relational management, political participation in the collegiates is still in a stage of maturation. A "paper democracy" was observed, in which parity is formal but not functional, with the hegemony of discourse concentrated in the management team and, at times, the teaching staff. It is concluded that the silence of external members (parents and guardians) and the centrality of records in administrative and financial agendas evidence a tutored participation, indicating the challenge of transforming these spaces into arenas of authentic dialogue and pedagogical co-authorship.