Writing practices: scientific diffusion texts in a portuguese course book

Abstract

The objective of this article is to show how the production of scientific diffusion texts from a Portuguese textbook used in high schools is taught. The research questions are: (1) how is the scientific diffusion sphere presented to the student? (2) Which is the linguistic-discursive treatment that the authors offer to lead the student to the production of scientific diffusion texts? (3) How do these procedures help improve writing in the most varied genres in the scientific sphere? A didactic activity involving written production of a text for scientific diffusion from the textbook series Português: contexto, interlocução e sentido was chosen. The analysis is based on the concept of text as postulated by Bakhtin and the Circle, for whom the text is a real unit of discursive communication. The result shows that the activity does not materialize the Bakhtinian theoretical bases adopted in the teacher’s manual. In the dialogic perspective, in order to insert the student in the writing practices of scientific texts, it is necessary to make him/her take on the role of reader of journals and specialized magazines, as well as the role of scientist/researcher.