THE TENSION BETWEEN LITERACY AND READING IN POST-2019 BRAZIL: AN ANALYSIS OF POLICY, ACADEMIC CONTROVERSIES, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHING PRACTICE

Abstract

This theoretical-essayistic article aims to analyze the tension established in the field of Brazilian Education between the technical-scientific approach of the National Literacy Policy (PNA), instituted in 2019, and the critical and sociocultural perspectives of literacy (letramento), historically consolidated by authors such as Magda Soares, Paulo Freire, and Roxane Rojo. The central objective is to investigate how this conflict manifests and impacts teaching practices in Basic Education and academic production in the period from 2019 to 2025. Through a narrative bibliographic review, official documents, peer-reviewed articles, and recent productions addressing the dichotomy between the instrumental view of literacy and the complexity of letramento as a social practice were consulted. The critical analysis demonstrates that the PNA, by prioritizing a phonocentric and evidence-based view, generates a field of dispute that challenges teaching autonomy and the Brazilian pedagogical tradition, while stimulating a vigorous critical response in recent research. The final reflections point to the need for a complex and ecological view that articulates the systematic learning of the alphabetic system with the social and critical use of writing.