A saúde das professoras, os contornos de gênero e o trabalho no Ensino Fundamental

Abstract

Despite progress in the production of knowledge concerning the visibility of the sexual division of labor 1 , its understanding as a crosscutting issue in studies on the worlds of work and specifically in the field of Public Health 2 is still not sufficiently consolidated. This paper reflects on how the perspective of social gender relations and the sexual division of labor can contribute to more pertinent studies on the work and health of teachers in elementary schools, most of whom are women 3,4,5,6. The concept of social gender relations allows analyzing the power relations between the sexes, highlighting that the persistently unequal and hierarchical division of labor between men and women is a problem requiring serious attention in order to achieve changes 1,2,3. In addition, as emphasized by Kergoat 7 , relations between the sexes and relations between classes should not be hierarchically determined, assigning greater importance to one over the other. Such relations not only coexist, they are coextensive, that is, they are mutually produced and reproduced. Both of them produce the structures and are present in both spheres of activity, i.e., domestic and professional. It would thus be a mistake to ignore the issue of work and class relations in studies dealing with family life (for example, studies on domestic violence), or to ignore the problem of women's oppression in research on the world of production. The issue of consubstantiality in social relations sheds light on another important aspect, the dynamic intersection of social relations as a whole, since each leaves a mark on the others 7. Historically, among the possible alternatives for given class segments of women, participation in the formal work market occurs mainly in professions that bear similarities to the domestic sphere. Such is the case of activities involving "care" and responsibilities with the home and family, which favor the concentration of women in certain types of work, such as teaching 3. Feminization of teaching Given Brazil's growing need to expand its school system, resulting from the country's urbanization and industrialization, in the early 20th century men gradually left elementary teaching, which came to be seen as "women's work" 3,6. However, the feminization of teaching is due not only to women's steady mass presence, but also to the fact that it is associated with a certain way (seen as essentially Women schoolteachers' health, gender issues, and work in elementary education A saúde das professoras, os contornos de gênero e o trabalho no Ensino Fundamental La salud de las profesoras, los contornos de género y el trabajo en la Enseñanza Fundamental

Effects of school violence and work context on teachers’ health

“…For Hoffmann et al (2017), female teachers are more likely to suffer physical and social harm. Although most of the teachers are women (Vianna, 2002;Siqueira & Ferreira, 2003;Neves et al, 2019), men still have more prestigious positions such as school management (Araújo et al, 2006;Neves et al, 2019).…”

Violência laboral: percepções de professores quanto às medidas de enfrentamento

“…21 Changes in teaching work conditions should be leveraged, especially by offering more security. 22 However, prevention actions at different levels are recommended, integrating social and educational policies, 8 highlighting the educational field. It is understood that preventing violence in schools is extremely necessary 32 , since education is the main way to fight violence.…”

“…14 Teachers' appreciation of this investigation was defined as a mechanism to combat violence. It appears that researchers 22 affirm that the valorization of the teacher is of fundamental importance for the development of his activities with satisfaction and, consequently, of a teaching with quality, however, little is done by the managers and by the public policies to make the recognition of this category so real important for any nation. 15 Schools were created with the purpose of educating and protecting adolescents, however, a significant portion of these schools have been configured in spaces that violate their rights.…”

Factors associated with health dissatisfaction of elementary school teachers

“…The general characteristics found in this study, such as the predominance of women, corroborated with other studies that involved teachers in this category and the data from the educational census (12,24) . Due to its gender related characteristic, as this job is usually performed by women, as it became evident in this group of workers, is the result of a historical social process of career construction (31) .…”