Do confronto à criação: aprende-se a argumentar jogando

Abstract

The exercise of critical thinking involves engaging citizens in issues that permeate society, politics, and economics, especially when these are controversial matters. This process entails the development of a (self)reflective awareness, which requires distinct actions such as: questioning (oneself and others), attentively listening to differing viewpoints, and subsequently confronting them by discussing paradigms and collaborating in the creation of new ones. In this ongoing process of self, other, and societal construction, games hold a prominent place as they facilitate the development of strategies, decision-making, negotiation processes, and the allocation of rewards. This can activate various important skills not only for the mechanics of the game but, above all, for the dynamics of life in society. Associating these skills with the principles of educational games implies advocating that critical thinking, necessary for solving everyday problems, can be stimulated through controversial issues that simulate real challenges. Within this context, this thesis focuses on the practice of argumentation mediated by the board game CriAÇÃO. Its general objective is to investigate the dynamics of this game in the learning of argumentation, and to achieve this, there are four specific objectives: (i) to analyze the discursive and argumentative interactions in games of CriAÇÃO; (ii) to identify the skills activated during the gameplay; (iii) to map the argumentative movements present in these games; (iv) to analyze multiliteracy practices developed in the game(s) of CriAÇÃO. To achieve these objectives, the theoretical framework includes the conception of language from the Bakhtinian Circle, sociocultural literacy studies, interactional argumentation studies, and the proposal of teaching argumentation as a social practice. Methodologically, this research adopts a qualitative approach of an interpretivist nature, supported by the frameworks of ethnographic action research and situated within Applied Linguistics. The collaborators in this research are students enrolled in high school, specifically in the Youth and Adult Education modality, and in higher education at a federal school in Rio Grande do Norte. For data generation, the following instruments were used: field notes; photographs and recordings; questionnaires. From the data generation, three categories of analysis emerged: discursive and argumentative interactions in the CriAÇÃO game, recurring argumentative movements, and characterization of multiliteracy practices. The data analysis indicates that each game of CriAÇÃO constitutes a literacy event conducive to learning argumentation, as it promotes: (i) the realization of discursive and argumentative interactions; (ii) the activation of skills, especially those related to arguing and counter-arguing; (iii) the use of argumentative movements; (iv) the mobilization of visible and non-visible elements of each game in favor of constructing arguments; (v) a break from the traditional approach to teaching argumentation in favor of game-based learning. Given the importance of students engaging in these practices, the data obtained allow us to assert that the game CriAÇÃO serves as a pedagogical tool through which one learns to argue while playing.