DIDACTIC GRAMMARS OF PORTUGUESE IN THE MID-TWENTIETH CENTURY: ANALYSIS OF AN UNPUBLISHED DOCUMENT

Abstract

In the first half of the 20th century, numerous didactic grammars for the teaching and learning of the Portuguese language were published. Many of these authors aimed at the official recognition of their works through the approval in a competition for official use in the Portuguese educational system. It is in this context that appears the unpublished document Parecer acerca de 7 (sete) gramáticas da língua portuguesa by Berta Valente de Almeida, in which the author analyses seven grammars of the Portuguese language. She presents her opinion on issues ranging from the structure of the works to specific grammatical aspects. Thus, this research aims at presenting the view of an experienced and qualified author about these grammars, particularly concerning issues related to the programmes in force and the methodological options followed by the authors. This research uses a historical and hermeneutic methodology, which is based on a confrontation of different types of sources: the grammars of the mentioned authors, the document written by the author and the programmatic and curricular guidelines for the learning of the Portuguese language of the time. As a result, this paper provides a better understanding of the Portuguese metalinguistic manuals that were produced in the mid-twentieth century.

Keywords:
Portuguese gramar; didactic grammars; policy of the single textbook; school programmes; didactic strategies