Elements of didactics for youth: Between the relational dimension and the construction of senses

Abstract

This article aims to reflect on didactics for youth from the perspective of young people about school and teaching practice. The objective is to iden­tify elements of didactics that contribute to the process of teaching young people. The data are results of research in a public high school that serves young people from the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, from classroom obser­vations, questionnaires to students and interviews with teachers and man­agers. The text articulates references of studies on youth with the field of didactics and the teaching profession. From a multidimensional didactic conception, it is concluded that for young people, the teacher who “knows how to teach” has the power to motivate them to learn and to give meaning to the school itself through a diversified and relational pedagogical prac­tice. The work points to the relevance of investing in didactics for youth associated with three elements: methodological variations, emphasis on the relational dimension favoring interactions and recognition of the moti­vating role of the teacher as a constructor of meanings.