Educar Pra Valer Program and the Reconfiguration of Public Educational Management: Implications for School Management and Teachers’ Work in Sousa-PB

Abstract

This article analyzes the repercussions of an educational policy implemented in the municipal school system of Sousa, Paraíba, problematizing its implications for the democratic management of public education from the perspective of school actors directly involved in its implementation. The objective of the study is to understand how school principals and teachers interpret the changes produced by the implementation of the program in school management practices and in the pedagogical organization of schools. This is a qualitative research of an exploratory-analytical nature, based on face-to-face interviews conducted with 25 school principals and 114 teachers from the early years of elementary education, carried out between March and July 2025, covering all urban schools participating in the policy under investigation. The data were audio-recorded, fully transcribed, and analyzed using the content analysis technique. The results indicate that the policy studied represents a setback to the constitutional principle of democratic management, due to significant changes in the organization of pedagogical work, particularly through the standardization of practices, the intensification of results monitoring, and the expanded use of educational monitoring instruments. Teachers and school leaders acknowledge improvements in some educational indicators; however, they also point to tensions related to the centralization of decision-making, limitations on teacher autonomy, and the reduction of spaces for dialogue within schools. It is concluded that, although the policy seeks to improve educational performance, its implementation requires greater articulation with local realities and the expansion of participatory processes in school management.