Pescola “Francisco de Assis” (1955-1983): nexos entre ocupação populacional, religião e educação em Itaporã-MT/MS

Abstract

This dissertation is linked to the field of the History of Educational Institutions (HIE), from the perspective of Cultural History, and aims to analyze part of the historical trajectory of the Francisco de Assis School, which was located in the municipality of Itaporã-MT/MS, more specifically in the neighborhood of São Francisco. Thus, we sought to understand the process of creation and operation of this institution, relating it to formal education in the south of Mato Grosso/MT and in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, in view of the process of population occupation and demands for schooling in the region. , with the presence of Catholic religious. The Francisco de Assis School was created by the Franciscan friars in 1955 and, later, in 1964, the Franciscan Catechist Sisters arrived to teach classes and manage the school institution. The time frame covered the period from 1955, when Itaporã was a municipality in the State of Mato Grosso, to 1983, when the municipality of Itaporã was already located in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, created in 1977. The justification is that the year 1955 marks the date of creation of the School by the Franciscans and the year 1983 refers to the date on which the Franciscan Catechist Sisters left the town of Bairro São Francisco. For the methodological development of the research, a set of historical research techniques was adopted, which involved document analysis, visits to collections and historical archives, and fieldwork through oral testimonies. Bibliographical research was also used in books, scientific articles, theses and dissertations, as well as printed and electronic materials that supported the writing of the work. For the production of written, official and routine administrative sources of the school institution, the archive of the State School Olívia Paula, located in the district of Piraporã, municipality of Itaporã, was used, since this school institution was the destination of the documents of the School Francisco de Assis. The investigation included interviews with scripts of semi structured questions addressed to people who witnessed the creation and transformations of the referred school in the period established for the study. Thus, already with the proposed materials and notes about them, the systematization of data, transcripts of interviews and analysis of documents for the record and writing about the creation, transformations and links of the Francisco de Assis School established with schooling were carried out. The analysis explained the motivations for the creation and development of the Francisco de Assis School, which was initially managed by Franciscan friars (1955 to 1964), and indicated that education in the place was driven by them, in addition to the spread of Catholicism. Later, with the arrival of the Franciscan Catechist Sisters, continuity was given to the administration and progress of classes at the school (1964 to 1983), as well as evangelization through the catechesis they carried out. These religious, with their Franciscan way, between disciplining, educating and loving, became fundamental collaborators for the advancement of schooling in the region and the development of the Francisco de Assis School, still present in the memories of the people of the community.