Belonging to a community: the mediation of belonging

This paper introduces the concept of belonging and discusses it in the context of online social networking experience and community experience considering social capital and user’s activities as nuclear concepts to understand collective actions and social relationships mediated by social media. The paper presents an empirical approach based on the study of two local communities and analyses whether interactive social technologies promote greater social involvement and higher production of social capital and participation, that results in a greater sense of belonging within communities. The results indicate a positive relationship between the use of social media and the increase of social capital and sense of belonging. Our work discusses the role and influence of social media in communitarian practices and the relevance social capital theory has as an outcome of media technologies use that result in a greater sense of belonging to a community.

Fracasso escolar no Ensino Médio Noturno : análise crítica de um sintoma social complexo e desafiador

O presente trabalho analisa as razões que levam os alunos do ensino médio noturno, de uma escola pública de Natal, Brasil, a fracassar nos estudos. A pesquisa considera aspectos políticos, sociais, institucionais e técnicos, já que o assunto envolve fatores internos e extraescolares. Para isso, são consultados professores, pedagogos, alunos e documentos, além da literatura que trata da temática. Teóricos apontam que o fracasso escolar é originado na própria escola, que reproduz valores dominantes e por isso se apresenta como uma instituição excludente que legitima as desigualdades sociais. O aluno, por sua vez, é visto como vítima da exclusão social e educacional, uma vez que lhe falta capital cultural, econômico e social para cumprir às exigências desse modelo de escola, levando-o ao fracasso escolar. Diante disso, é preciso que o professor esteja preparado para superar essa lógica excludente. A escola deve atender às necessidades do aluno-trabalhador, garantindo-lhe o acesso ao conhecimento propedêutico e também profissional. Ao Estado cabe investir mais na educação, valorizar o professor e manter políticas públicas para superar as desigualdades sociais daqueles que dependem da escola pública noturna para ascender socialmente, tornar-se um cidadão livre e capaz de contribuir para a construção de uma sociedade menos desigual.

museology and community development in the XXI Century

Each time more, museology professionals are confronted with terms such as community, social inequality, social inclusion and development in their quotidian. Be it in conferences, publications or museum programmes, these are increasingly recurrent terms which, in great part, translate the dynamics of a relationship between museology and community development that has been constructed since the late 60’s. Although it is not new, such relationship has gone through a major bloom in the early 90’s and arrives today as an emerging priority within the world of museology. A first glance on the subject reveals that very different approaches and forms of action share the efforts in endowing museology with a role in community development today. In addition, despite of its growing popularity, it seems to be some misunderstandings on what the work with community development requires and truly signifies, as can be pointed out in a number of assertions originated from the field of museology. Accompanying such a plural environment, discussions and disagreements about to what extend museology is able to claim a role in social change also mark its affairs with community development. People are faced, indeed, with a rather polemic and intricate scenario. To a great extend, language barriers hinder the exchange of information on current initiatives and previous experiences, as well as on the development of concepts, approaches and proposals. Lack of better interactions among the groups of museology professionals and social actors who carry out different works with community development also contributes to making the potential of museology as a resource for development more difficult to be visualised.