Abstract

PIRES, Daise  and  SIQUEIRA, Vera Helena Ferraz de. Multiculturalism, identities, professional training and quotas: constructions by medical students from UFRJ. Rev. Elet. Educ. [online]. 2019, vol.13, n.3, pp.1082-1102.  Epub Sep 01, 2020. ISSN 1982-7199.  https://doi.org/10.14244/198271992546.

Based on notions of cultural studies on identity and difference, this article discusses the notion of multiculturalism, evidencing it as a useful concept to understand meanings built on changes introduced in the university from the introduction of quotas - particularly in social relations and in the formation and practice of the future professional of medicine. As a data collection technique, semi-structured interviews were conducted with students of the UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) medical school, an institution that was very resistant to the introduction of this policy. Content analysis was employed for the analysis of the constructions carried out by the students in different periods of the course. The results showed the identification of power relations and conflicts as mediators of the conviviality among the multiple cultures; at the same time, we found the recognition that the coexistence of multiple cultures introduces new agenda, brings the concreteness of other experiences previously absent from this context, which is an invitation to reflect on the role of this institution, the medical course, and its curriculum. In spite of not solving social inequalities, the politics of quotas causes important fissures in the social, cultural and racial homogeneity that, in general, characterizes the elite courses such as medicine. Thus, it is important to reflect on the dynamics of the processes of identity construction present in this space, making possible inquiries about the formation of this professional and the possibility of more democratic relations in the public university.

Keywords : Multiculturalism; Identities; Medical training; Quotas system.

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