Ele precisa muito estar aqui, é bom ele estar aqui!: frequência escolar na Educação Infantil

Abstract

The objective of this research was to investigate the conceptions of educational professionals on the school attendance of children enrolled in the Municipal Infant Education Units (UMEIs) of the Education Department of the city of Belo Horizonte. It is an exploratory study based on the hypothesis that research on school attendance can contribute to understand the actors' conception about the schooling of children in the age group from zero to five years. The study presented an analysis of recent Brazilian legislation on the child, highlighting the changes implemented in the last decades including the compulsory attendance from the preschool. Discusses family expectations about the role of the early childhood education institution. It contextualizes the current offer in the municipality, also presenting a brief history of the attendance. The research was carried out, in the year 2017, in three UMEIs located in the North Regional of the city, which were selected according to the HDIM of the neighborhood. The methodological procedures brought together qualitative and quantitative research techniques with the following instruments: documentary analysis, application of questionnaires to family members, and semi-structured interviews with family and education professionals. The analysis of the class diaries indicated a greater number of absents in the UMEI located in the most vulnerable area of the regional, as well as a tendency to decrease infrequency as the children age increased. The analysis of the questionnaires evidenced the infantile illness as the main reason for absences. However, it also pointed out the existence of diverse situations that can influence the index of school attendance of the children, which show to be related to variables referring to the economic situation and social development of families such as the schooling of those responsible, place of residence and family settings. The results of the interviews indicated that there is agreement among families about the contribution of UMEIs to child development, even among the group of families of infrequent children, demonstrating that the high number of absences does not necessarily indicate a devaluation of the work performed by the institutions. Education professionals, in general, emphasized the importance of school attendance for a satisfactory development of educational activities, and some emphasized it as a form Education professionals, in general, emphasized the importance of school attendance for a satisfactory development of educational activities, and some emphasized it a form of realization of the right to education and protection of the child against social vulnerabilities. The conclusion of the research indicated the need for investment by the municipal government in the monitoring of school attendance in early childhood education, in order to provide not only access to children but also permanence. Such a measure is important because, according to the data presented, the number of absences can indicate beyond the conception regarding the service, social vulnerabilities that involve the lives of children and their families.