O FRACASSO ESCOLAR À LUZ DA TEORIA HISTÓRICO-CULTURAL: REFLEXÕES ACERCA DA CULPABILIZAÇÃO DO ALUNO

Abstract

School failure is an object of debate in different educational and political spheres. Despite the discussions, it is a problem that is far from a resolution and deserves the attention of researchers. Research in the educational area has pointed out that the explanations for the phenomenon are centered on the student and/or his family. Thus, the aim of this theoretical essay is to problematize the conception that school failure is the sole and exclusive responsibility of the student, and the naturalizing and positivist views about the human being, in an attempt to overcome it. The theoretical and methodological framework to which our analysis sought support is the historical-cultural theory and, therefore, dialectical historical materialism. We specifically analyze the social and psychological dimensions of school failure beyond the accountability of the student and his family, considering the totality of social being and the objective conditions of concrete reality. Taking a critical look at the phenomenon of school failure implies revealing our difficulty as a society, embodied in our education systems, school institutions and education professionals in dealing with the challenges arising from the democratization of education, that is, with the access of the popular classes to the public school. Thus, school failure ends up being treated as an individual problem, exempting the others involved in the schooling process from responsibility.