Impact of debates in the classroom

Strengthening textual production and teacher education

Abstract

This article aims to investigate the effectiveness of structured debates in the classroom as a means of improving critical reflection and textual skills of students in the final years of Elementary School. The research was carried out in six private schools in the south of Santa Catarina, Brazil, with a qualitative and exploratory nature. The literature review covered authors in the field of linguistics and education on retextualization in the educational process. Data collection methods involved carrying out theoretical-practical workshops, focus groups and applying a questionnaire to teachers. The results indicated that classroom debates are an effective tool for improving text production skills. The need for continuous teacher education was also highlighted as a means of increasing the quality of writing, including active methodology to enrich the learning process and favor the understanding of multiple perspectives in textual production.