Práticas decoloniais no Ensino Superior: entre teorias e uma proposição no contexto da Anatomia Humana

Abstract

The present study aimed to elaborate a decolonial teaching proposal applied to the Human Anatomy curricular component. To achieve this goal, we identified the need to map decolonial teaching practices in the contexto of higher education and to carry out a critical analysis of the historical influence of coloniality on the development of human anatomy. Our methodological approach was based on a qualitative, exploratory and descriptive approach, being developed in three stages: an integrative review of the literature on decolonial teaching practices in higher education, a theoretical essay on the decolonial approach in the teaching Human Anatomy and the elaboration of a teaching proposal based on the theoretical discussions previously held. The results of the identification and analysis of decolonial practices enabled us to group teaching methodologies into two categories, the first characterized by the use of textual resources, such as collective writings, reflective diaries and the use of texts to support discussions and the construction of didactic materials, and the second, represented by the use of audiovisual tools, such as video installations, films, psychodrama and virtual museums. These practices fostered student protagonism, the valorization of knowledge and understanding, sometimes marginalized, such as those carried by those involved and those related to other communities, in addition to the approach to ethnic-racial relations and the intersection between race, gender and class. However, challenges such as personal and institutional resistance, as well as the scarce bibliography of other matrices, are still limiting factors for the application of these practices. On the other hand, when investigate colonial legacies in Human Anatomy, we discuss the instrumentalization of anatomy to legitimize social inequalities between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries, through scientific and pseudoscientific practices, the trafficking and theft of bodies, the use of eugenics to justify hierarchies based on scientific racism and biological determinism. Faced with this scenario, we present strategies to challenge elements of this past, still present in the teaching of Human Anatomy, such as the incorporation of ancestral and diverse knowledge, critical reflection on scientific knowledge and the use of materials that subvert western stereotypes and represent human diversity. From these discussions, we elaborate a decolonial teaching proposal, materialized in a didactic sequence whose central theme is the plurality of human bodies. The sequence consists of activities that encourage the protagonism and critical reflection of students on the diversity of bodies, gender, race and class, and anatomical practices. Thus, this study proposes some discontinuity with eurocentric rationality, promoting a more inclusive teaching capable of valuing epistemological and subject diversity, with a view to creating a fairer and more representative educational environment.