The Missions of the Regional Pedagogical University: Post-Non-Classical Understanding

Pedagogical universities are in the area of great attention from the society and the state because of their increasing role in forming the human capital of the territories. The purpose of this article is to explain the necessity and possibility of creating a mission and strategy for the development of pedagogical universities in (macro) regions on the basis of a post-non-classical understanding of pedagogical education. Methodology and methods: to construct the mission of the pedagogical university, claiming to play an active role in the ecosystem of education in the region, the post-non-classical methodology was used in understanding pedagogical education as an open, system-synergetic approach (ecosystem as its kind), as well as the typical of the post-non-classical methodology, methods of reconstructing the experience of designing an open pedagogical education in a heterogeneous (academic and teaching) professional community. Research results: three missions of the regional pedagogical university are characterized: education, research and impact on society, from the standpoint of the ecosystem approach and the concept of an entrepreneurial university. A pedagogical university acts as a key element of the ecosystem if it demonstrates an entrepreneurial type of behavior, overcomes resource constraints due to the dominance of the third mission over education and research, subordinating them to the task of creating a cohort of agents of change – vanguard groups of future a working teachers in the territory. Conclusion: the missions of the pedagogical university should be subordinated to the influence on the entire pedagogical corps of the region by increasing the density of connections in educational and professional communities.

Research of the Health, Aging, and Society Laboratory

This chapter describes the work being done in North-East Brazil to clarify how social issues are constructed and reconstructed in processes driven by the values, symbols, and patterns that characterize the area’s social and cultural spaces. Aging, but also care, quality of life, and work are studied, analyzing them in the process of their naturalization guided by daily communication and practices. The Lab at the Federal University of Paraiba (UFPB), in Joao Pessoa, also draws on contributions from other areas of Brazil (especially Rio de Janeiro) and focuses mainly on studying the aging process. Its work is guided by principles of interprofessionalization in the field of gerontology, especially in its critical advancements. The Aging Institute founded at the UFPB (the first in the whole country) aims to combine research and a third mission, exploiting the potential of social representations theory for engaged research.