SCHOOL AND EDUCATION PSYCHOLOGY IN HIGHER EDUCATION: AN INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE REPORTABSTRACT
By means of School and Education Psychology in its critical perspective, it is possible to (re) think about educational practices within the university. In this sense, this is an experience report of the curricular internship carried out at a federal institution. Student demands were observed, such as adaptation to the university; learning methodologies; emotional and social aspects. Activities were carried out by means of interventions throughout the internship from an extension project aimed at the university audience based on these demands. For the interventions, workshops were planned and executed with undergraduates with themes related to self-regulation of learning. Thus, the internship experience at the university allowed new perspectives on the role of psychology in this space. Another point was the possibility of critical reflection on the construction of proposals that aim to understand and collaborate with spaces for dialogue about academic experiences.
Keyword:
school psychology; higher education; students
RESUMO
A partir da Psicologia Escolar e Educacional em sua perspectiva crítica é possível (re)pensar as práticas educacionais dentro da universidade. Nesse sentido, este é um relato de experiência do estágio curricular realizado em uma instituição federal. Foram observadas demandas estudantis, tais como a adaptação ao ambiente universitário; metodologias de aprendizagem; aspectos emocionais e sociais. Realizaram-se atividades com base nessas demandas com foco nas intervenções realizadas ao longo do estágio a partir de um projeto de extensão voltado para o público universitário. Para as intervenções, foram planejadas e executadas oficinas com graduandos/as com temas relacionados à autorregulação da aprendizagem. Assim, a experiência do estágio na universidade permitiu novos olhares sobre a atuação da Psicologia nesse espaço, bem como a possibilidade de reflexão crítica sobre a construção de propostas que visam compreender e colaborar com espaços de diálogo sobre as vivências acadêmicas.
Palavras-chave:
psicologia escolar e educacional; ensino superior; estudantes
RESUMEN
A partir de la Psicología Escolar y Educacional en su perspectiva crítica es posible (re)pensar las prácticas educacionales en la universidad. Este es un relato de experiencia de la pasantía curricular realizada en una institución federal. Se observan demandas estudiantiles, tales como la adaptación al ambiente universitario; metodologías de aprendizaje; aspectos emocionales y sociales. Se realizaron actividades con base en esas demandas con enfoque en las intervenciones realizadas a lo largo de la pasantía a partir de un proyecto de extensión volcado para el público universitario. Para las intervenciones, se planearon y ejecutaron talleres con graduandos/as con temas relacionados a la autorregulación del aprendizaje. Así, la experiencia de la pasantía en la universidad permitió nuevas miradas sobre la actuación de la Psicología en ese espacio, así como la posibilidad de reflexión crítica sobre la construcción de propuestas que tienen por objetivo comprender y colaborar con espacios de diálogo sobre las vivencias académicas.
Palabras clave:
psicología escolar y educacional; enseñanza universitaria; estudiantes
INTRODUCTION
This article presents an experience report on two disciplines named Estágio Específico I and II and Prática Supervisionada I and II1 (UFAL, 2013)2, realized in the area of “Psicologia Escolar e Educacional” (PEE), or School and Education Psychology, in the psychology graduation course of the Federal University of Alagoas (UFAL), from May 2019 to March 2020. Estágio I and Prática Supervisionada I led to an insertion into the field of School and Education Psychology, in the psychology service provided by the Student Pro-rectory (Proest) of UFAL.
Concerning the services provided by the Proest, there is a variety that is related to Student Assistance. Concerning the Psychology practice, there is the service of Psychological Assistance and the “Programa de Apoio e Acompanhamento Pedagógico” (PAAPE), or Program of Pedagogical Support and Assistance. The Psychological assistance is realized with short-term treatments for UFAL students. The PAAPE is realized by means of the practice of different professionals, such as Pedagogy, Psychology, Social Service, and Educational Technicians (UFAL, 2018; 2019). 3
The internship in this area is based on the conception that support and care are necessary in order to face the demands posed for undergraduates. Thus, the services of psychological, pedagogical, and assistance support are essential at the university because they contribute to the permanence of this public in this environment. PEE is present in education to contribute to the teaching-learning processes and to break up with pathologizing practices at educational institutions (Antunes, 2008).
Researchers used the theoretical referential of Social-historical Psychology because of the closeness with discussions on the works of Vigotski, throughout research projects and graduation disciplines. In this sense, the explored concepts included imagination (Vigotski, 2007, 2009) and the zone of imminent development (Prestes, 2010). The workshops included letters that bring narratives from the academic life of a fictitious character named Gervásio (Rosário, Núñez, & González-Pienda, 2006), and approach different themes. It is considered that the letters lead to the exploration of imagination and connect with the narratives presented by these instruments.
Besides that, based on the concept of zone of imminent development, the workshops presented in the experience report constituted a space for sharing experiences and approaching themes that aimed at contributing to the participants’ ability to establish a dialogue with peers. The activities proposed at each meeting helped participants act on their possibilities regarding the development of academic experiences. In this sense, the listed Vigotskian concepts lead to reflection on how academic life involves subjective processes that affect the students’ lives.
INTERNSHIP REPORT EXPERIENCE
The extension project developed along the internship was named PROFIC: Promoção de oficinas de integração acadêmica, or Promotion of Workshops for Academic Integration. This extension project was based on the project realized by Rosário et al. (2010). The objective was to assess the activity of promotion of self-regulation for learning among students from the 1st year of university with failure experiences. The instrument used by the researchers consisted of letters that had been written as if by a university student commenting on his personal academic experiences.
The construction of this project was supported by the field supervisor, the Proest psychologist, and by the internship supervisor, teacher in the psychology course. The most important demands from students that motivated this project include adaptation to the course and transition from high school to graduation courses. There were 27 participants and the meetings were well attended. One of the positive factors that contributed to the good number of people participating was the realization of the project in the beginning of the semester, when students have more free time. The letter instrument was translated from Portugal Portuguese into Brazilian Portuguese. There was one translation and one free adaptation of the letters from the Rosário et al. project (2006, 2010). Seven letters were used: letters no. 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 12.
Letters no. 0 and 1 concern adaptation to the university; letter no. 2 approaches the organization of time; letter no. 3 dwells on appointments; letter no. 4 concerns procrastinations; letter no. 5 is about memory and letter no. 12 approaches anxiety. The letters good-humoredly portray academic situations while causing readers to feel identification and empathy. Throughout the internship, field diaries were made as instruments for the registration of activities referring to each one of the workshops.
Concerning the workshops, the first one concerned entrance into the university and the adaptation process. Initially, there was an activity for introducing the participants to each other and there was the elaboration of a contract regulating the operation of the workshops and for the confidentiality of the contents of the dialogues that took place during the meetings, as well as respect for diverging opinions. Letters no. 0 and 1 were discussed. They approach Gervásio’s process of entering the university and his impressions. Thus, it was possible to foster discussions on the themes by the students and the sharing of experiences. In the end, it was proposed that participants attempted to talk to students in the psychology course that were between the 3rd and the 10th periods of the course in order to ask for suggestions regarding strategies that could be used for adaptation into the course.
The second workshop was about time management. Participants were requested to talk to students from other periods and share the contests of the conversation. This moment was described by the group as a very interesting opportunity to get to know other people, regard the opportunities offered by the course throughout their academic trajectories and have their own impressions. Letter no.2 was used and it was about time management. Gervásio approaches his own trajectory and the difficulties he faced regarding that theme. In order to reflect on academic and personal activities, it was proposed that participants use an instrument in the planning format in order to plan weekly activities related to academic matters, as well as leisure time. The third one was about procrastination and it was started with a dialogue on instruments for time management. In general, the participants reported that the instrument was useful for the systematization of activities. Some students said that they had already been using that mode of organization, but there were also participants who affirmed that they preferred to make a list of general activities or mentally organize their appointments. They also reported the difficulty to have time for leisure because of the excess of academic activities, guilty feelings for doing activities that were not academic and the gradual engagement with the numerous university activities, for example.
In order to approach the discussion on procrastination of academic activities, letter no. 4 was used. In this letter, Gervásio talks about the procrastination process and the factors that hinder the accomplishment of academic tasks. At the end of the workshop, participants were given a letter with an academic text and some guidelines for them to read using different reading strategies.
The fourth workshop focused on the organization of studies. The text that had been given to the students was brought back and students were inquired on the contents of the text by means of different strategies. Some students reported that it was difficult to concentrate on the text while someone else was reading because it caused distraction. The strategy that was pointed out as the most efficient one was attentive reading while underlining the most important parts. Also, letters no. 3 and 5 were used. In his letters, Gervásio points at strategies he uses to organize his studies and keep himself focused. Most of the participants reported that taking notes and explaining things to other people are efficient strategies for learning. In order to wrap up the workshop, it was suggested that students produced a diary on what made them anxious at the university.
The theme of the fifth workshop was anxiety. Participants were told to feel free to approach the diaries they had elaborated. Some of the observed situations were: demanding academic activities, self-criticism, presentation of works and shyness. Letter no. 12 was used and there was further discussion on the reported situations by means of the diaries. To finish the workshops, it was proposed that participants write a letter to themselves in which they imagined themselves as seniors at the end of their courses.
Finally, in the sixth workshop, there was a conclusion by means of the reading of letters participants had written in the previous meeting. There was a lot of participation in this activity. They were asked for permission to exchange letters and share readings. During the readings, the participants felt identification with the situations described by their peers and demonstrated empathy in their listening.
In a nutshell, the use of the letters as a trigger for discussions made it possible to notice that there were several situation with which the participants felt connected, such as the changes in study routines brought along by university, the heavy load of reading material, texts with complex content, less time to sleep, less time to spend with family and friends, difficulty to speak in public, and the planning of schedules.
There was also an assessment of the project on the last day. Participants were given an instrument for rating the workshops. Among the 19 attending students, 14 provided answers. For improvement, it was suggested that a written material be prepared on the themes; more instruments for time management; execution of relaxation exercises. The positive aspects included the comfortable environment, the opportunity to talk and discover that other people go through the same situations that seem so personal, at first, the whole well-being produced by the experience, and the opportunity to get better acquainted with their own classmates and other students in the course. It was easy for them to feel a connection with the contents of the letters, which were considered a good instrument for the workshops.
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
The internship was a rich opportunity to better understand the possibilities of PEE, and to realize practical activities that contributed to the university environment. The theory-practice relation experienced in the internship was also fundamental for the professional and personal development of the intern.
Based on the perspective of Social-Historical Psychology, it was possible to use the letters as instruments to have a dialogue with the students on academic experiences. The narratives were the connection to approach academic life and share in a light-hearted way the experiences connected to adaptation to university. Based on the concepts of imagination and zone of imminent development, the letters promoted a reflection over narratives that referred to different academic situations, based on the experiences of each student, it was possible to establish a place for sharing something that was experienced or imagining oneself in different situations.
Thus, it is considered that the workshops were rich spaces for exchange among participants, and they had the opportunity to realize that there were other students going through similar situations regarding the academic process and to develop strategies to handle the difficulties they face in their trajectories by means of collaboration with other students in the course. Thus, the insertion into the field of School and Education Psychology led to a new way of regarding university and professional formation.
References
-
Antunes, M. A. (2008). Psicologia Escolar e Educacional: história, compromissos e perspectivas. Psicologia Escolar e Educacional, 12(2), 469-475. doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1413-85572008000200020
» https://doi.org/10.1590/S1413-85572008000200020 - Prestes, Z. R. (2010). Quando não é quase a mesma coisa: análise de traduções de Lev Semionovitch Vigotski no Brasil. Repercussões no campo educacional Tese de Doutorado, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brasil.
-
Rosário, P., Nunes, T., Magalhães, C., Rodrigues, A., Pinto, R., & Ferreira, P. (2010). Processos de auto-regulação da aprendizagem em alunos com insucesso no 1º ano de Universidade. Psicologia Escolar e Educacional, 14(2), 349-358. doi: https://doi.org/10.1590/S1413-85572010000200017
» https://doi.org/10.1590/S1413-85572010000200017 - Rosário, P., Núñez, J. C., & González-Pienda, J. A. (2006). Comprometer-se com o estudar na universidade: “Cartas do Gervásio ao seu umbigo” .Coimbra: Edições Almedina.
- Vigotski, L. S. (2007). A formação social da mente: o desenvolvimento dos processos psicológicos superiores 7 ed. São Paulo: Martins Fontes.
- Vigotski, L. S. (2009). Imaginação e criação na infância: ensaio psicológico São Paulo: Ática
-
1
In the Psychology course at the Federal University of Alagoas (UFAL), A. C. Simões Campus, in Maceió - AL, the curricular mandatory internship is organized into Estágio Específico I and II to be realized in the last year of graduation, the 9th and 10th respectively. Graduation takes 5 years. Each stage has a total duration of 300 hours. Each stage is connected to a Supervised Practice, which is guided by a teacher from the course. In order to help students get familiar with the practice fields for psychology throughout the course, in the 5th and 6th periods, there are the disciplines names respectively Práticas Integrativas I and II, in which there are field trips. In the 7th period, students can choose from two disciplines, Psychological Intervention in Health and Psychological Intervention in Socio-cultural Processes. Students can also choose one of the practice fields they observed in the Práticas Integrativas I and II disciplines to propose interventions, and a preceptor of their choice in the field. The Estágio Específico, or Specific Internship, emphasizes two factors: Health and Socio-cultural Processes.
-
2
UFAL. (2013). Political-pedagogical Project of the psychology course. Psychology Institute. Maceió. 2013. Recovered from: http://www.ufal.edu.br/unidadeacademica/ip/graduacao/psicologia/ppc/projeto-pedagogico/view. Access on: February 2021.
-
3
UFAL. (2018). Normative instruction no. 07/2018/PROEST from February 15, 2018. Recovered from: https://ufal.br/estudante/assistencia-estudantil/publicacoes/instrucoes-normativas/apoio-e-acompanhamento-pedagogico. UFAL. (2019). Student assistance at Ufal. 2019. Recovered from: https://ufal.br/estudante/assistencia-estudantil.
-
This work is based on a partial report on Specific Internship I, presented at the VI National Congress of Education (CONEDU) in 2019, with the title “Higher Education and School and Educational Psychology: Experience Report”.
-
This paper was translated from Portuguese by Régis Lima.
