Letramento científico como prática de (trans)formação social: um estudo sobre o discurso de popularização das ciências da linguagem

Abstract

Scientific popularization is an important discursive practice that enables the knowledge produced in universities to transcend their boundaries and reach the general public. Therefore, the main objective of this research is to analyze the ways in which the discourse of scientific popularization contributes to the linguistic knowledge that enables the emancipation of individuals for the transformation of society. The absence of scientific literacy contributes to difficulties in comprehending issues related to more specific scientific questions. Drawing on the theoretical and methodological framework of Critical Discourse Analysis (ADC), this study is grounded in the contributions of Bueno (1984, 1985); Freire (1995, 1987), Fairclough (2001, 2003), Ramalho e Resende (2011) Motta-Roth (2011), Silva (2020) among others. The analysis followed three main paths: analysis of the conjuncture, of the particular practice, and of discourse. Accordingly, six articles on scientific popularization (ArtPC) were analyzed, according to the categories of discursive genre, semantic/grammatical relations between words, clauses and sentences (cohesion and coherence), intertextuality, and interdiscursivity, from the perspective of scientific literacy as a social practice. According to the conducted study, scientific literacy, as an emancipatory social practice, is one of the alternatives to connect the technical sophistications of academic research, recontextualize them, and position them in everyday life, in the discussions, debates, and policy formulations, and in the decision-making process of society. By popularizing concepts, theories, principles, and themes from linguistic research, conditions are created for the recognition of the work of researchers in this field, which generates transformations beyond the classroom and the walls of universities.