THE ROLE OF SUPERVISED INTERNSHIP IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION TEACHER TRAINING

Abstract

Teacher education for Early Childhood Education in Brazil has been marked by discontinuities, historical tensions, and structural challenges. This process oscillates between assistentialist conceptions and pedagogical approaches that recognize the child as a subject of rights. The historical analysis reveals the normative and legal development of Brazilian education, from the enactment of the first Law of Guidelines and Bases of National Education (LDB) in 1961 to more recent milestones, such as the National Common Curricular Base (BNCC) and the National Curricular Guidelines for Early Childhood Education (2010; 2024). This article discusses the centrality of supervised internship as a key axis connecting theory and practice, constituting a privileged space for the construction of the teacher-researcher. It also highlights persistent weaknesses in the curricula of Pedagogy programs, which often marginalize specific training aimed at teaching in early childhood settings. Based on a qualitative, bibliographic approach, the study seeks to answer the following research question: what is the importance of supervised internship in the training of Early Childhood Education teachers? It is argued that a solid educational foundation—one that values the plurality of childhoods and the social, cultural, and historical contexts in which children are situated—is essential for a critical, ethical, and transformative teaching practice in Early Childhood Education.