CONTEMPORARY EDUCATION AND TEACHER TRAINING: CHALLENGES AND PERSPECTIVES FOR PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Abstract

Contemporary education is deeply marked by social, cultural, technological and political transformations that directly affect the role of schools and teacher training. In this scenario, teaching ceases to be understood as a merely transmissive activity and begins to require intellectual, critical and reflective skills capable of responding to the complexity of current educational processes. This article aims to analyze the relationship between contemporary education and teacher training, understanding teacher education as a strategic axis for building pedagogical practices consistent with the demands of the contemporary world. It is assumed that current educational challenges — such as sociocultural diversity, digital culture, intensification of inequalities and reconfiguration of school knowledge — require training models that overcome technicist and fragmented approaches. Methodologically, the study is based on a qualitative approach, of a theoretical-reflective nature, based on a systematic review of recent educational literature, articulating contemporary authors, current normative documents and relevant classical references. The results indicate that, although there is theoretical consensus on the centrality of teacher training for education quality, significant gaps persist between training propositions and real implementation conditions, especially regarding the articulation between theory and practice, the valorization of teaching knowledge, the critical incorporation of educational technologies and training for professional autonomy. It is concluded that thinking about contemporary education implies profoundly rethinking teacher training, recognizing the teacher as a historical subject, knowledge producer and central agent in mediating educational processes. Such a perspective contributes to strengthening teaching professional identity and building more critical, contextualized and socially committed pedagogical practices.