Flores para além da esperança: políticas públicas educacionais e a infância cidadã: um estudo nas escolas de educação infantil da rede municipal de São Leopoldo

Abstract

In Brazil, until half of the XIX century, care provided to small kids who were away from their mothers was almost nonexistent, and it was not a public policy issue. The care provided to children became a public concern from the creation of the conception of childhood as a distinct stage, which emerged in the contemporary society (XX century), both in terms of the provision of services and spaces that could handle such demand, as well as in terms of the policies presented to society. We may consider some historical moments as hallmarks for the actual recognition/discovery of children under a perspective of citizenship, among them we may mention the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959) and the signing of the Federal Constitution in Brazil (1988). This thesis is the result of a research carried out during the Masters’ Degree course in Education, taken at the Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos from 2006 to 2008. It approached the discussion about the materialization of public policies for childhood in