THE MATERIALITY OF PRINTED MATTER AND PEDAGOGICAL LEGITIMATION: THE CASE OF THE CENTRES OF INTEREST IN THE REVISTA DO ENSINO OF MINAS GERAIS (1928-1930)

Abstract

This article examines how the material and editorial devices of the Revista do Ensino de Minas Gerais, between 1928 and 1930, contributed to the legitimation of the centres of interest, a pedagogical method associated with the Belgian physician and educator Ovide Decroly, among the teaching staff in Minas Gerais. Grounded in Cultural History, the history of print culture, and studies on the transnational circulation of pedagogical knowledge, the research draws on articles published in the journal as well as on normative devices linked to the Francisco Campos Reform, analysed through a qualitative and historiographical approach. The mapping and analysis of the sections “Secção do Centro Pedagógico Decroly”, “Nossos Concursos” and “Voz da Prática” reveal the journal’s role as an instrument of pedagogical normalisation, articulating official prescription, exemplary validation and the naturalisation of teaching practice. The findings indicate that the journal employed multimodal editorial strategies and discursive hybridisations that reinforced the legitimation of the centres of interest, revealing evidence of a process that may have contributed to the emergence of a ‘Decroly mineiro’, which remains under analysis.