Decolonizing curricular and educational guidelines: rethinking the teaching of Portuguese as a Second Language for deaf people

Abstract

In this article, we bring to discussion the limits and possibilities faced by the deaf community due to the ways in which existing linguistic policies are implemented, such as the training of teachers in written Portuguese as a second language, the insertion of Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) as a subject, and the curricular issues linked to them. As a theoretical contribution, we turn to the concepts of linguistic citizenship and decoloniality, as they offer a profound critique of the power and knowledge structures inherited from colonialism by challenging dominant narratives and proposing a reevaluation of pedagogical practices and linguistic policies. In the methodological approach adopted, we reflect on the urgency of decolonial practices and in favor of the formation of critical citizens who have their linguistic citizenship recognized, as well as the formulation of Portuguese language curricula from a second language perspective, in order to contribute to the construction of more democratic learning spaces. As a way forward and in order to contribute to educational practices for deaf students in higher education, we present an experience report linked to the proposals presented for the training of deaf teachers, in which the decolonial vision, the expansion of world knowledge and the meanings attributed to it by the students are the central elements, in classes that aim to be intercultural.