Abstract:

This communication is part of a research project developed in a network by a team of researchers from CESC - Child's Studies Center, University of Minho (Portugal), under the title: "Contexts and practices of collaborative research in elementary education curriculum".
This project, consisting of four interrelated "knowledge communities", is based around two central research questions:
1. How can we make the curriculum of early education integrated and relevant to offer to all students, in their diversity, the best opportunities in terms of learning experiences, to ensure their educational success.
2. What is the project organization potential with a "knowledge communities” type of approach in order to create a "culture project", to improve both the processes of curriculum development and the professional development teachers and researchers in the construction of knowledge about curriculum integration.
This communication will give account of the objectives and work developed in one of the tasks of the project called "curriculum integration for educational innovation", which focuses on a community of young researchers - teachers from pre-school and primary education - students in the Master of Curricular Integration and Educational Innovation, University of Minho. These student-teachers are in their turn organized in four teams of collaborative action-research, supported by academic research specialists in different areas, who will make a valuable contribution to the training of teachers as researchers and also to enlarge and deepen the knowledge of curriculum integration.
These themes are: a) Models and processes of construction, development and evaluation of the Integrated Curricular Project; b) Models and processes of curriculum articulation between levels of education; c) Models and processes of curriculum organization in the "full time school model" and d) Models and strategies for development of experiences of innovation in Elementary Education.
In terms of products, the preparation and public defense of 15 masters’ dissertations intended to be published in a book together are expected.
In summary, this knowledge community seeks to investigate and develop responses to the needs of transformation of curricular practices in elementary education, with an epistemological focus on integrated approaches to curriculum and on theory on innovation, through the definition of significant problems that allow to develop collaborative research, that provide an innovative and relevant construction of knowledge about curriculum integration, while developing skills and attitudes of research, reflection and collaboration, typical of processes of educational change and professional development.
It is also expected the exploration of the extent to which communities help to bridge the gap between educational research and practice.

Keywords:

knowledge community, curriculum integration, innovation, collaborative.