Perceptions of teachers in initial primary teacher education on sexuality and gender in Brazil and Portugal: pilot study for validation of questionnaire

Abstract

This paper aims to present preliminary results of a PhD research in Child Studies at University of Minho, Portugal. The main objective of this research is analyze the gender and sexuality understanding of Brazilian and Portuguese teachers in initial primary teacher education. A questionnaire was made considering the review of the literature, which was submitted to teachers in both Brazil and Portugal. The questions were designed to know teachers’ concepts of gender and sexuality and the pedagogical practice of these teachers in relation to these subjects in their daily routines at school. The results revealed that some important information about the teachers were not included in the questionnaires, as initial training. In addition, it was observed that teachers believe to be important to address this subject with the students, but the lack of continuing education creates a sense of deficiency preparation to discuss it. It is concluded that the application of the questionnaire revealed good results. Adaptations and improvements will be made for future new applications.