In October 2019, the Graduate Program in Letters, Language and Identity at the Federal University of Acre (PPGLI-UFAC) held its 1st Self-Assessment Seminar, with the participation of teachers and students. The aim of the seminar was to carry out a retrospective assessment of the Program's actions, with a focus on its impact on society, especially with regard to monitoring graduates working in basic, technical and higher education.

During the seminar, a target plan was established for the period from November 2019 to April 2020, which culminated in a second seminar being held in November 2020. These seminars were key to reflecting on the Program's current actions and prioritizing essential goals for the current four-year period.

On April 6, 2020, the UFAC Rectorate published Ordinance No. 685, amended by Ordinance No. 2030, which officially appointed the PPGLI-UFAC Self-Assessment Committee. The committee is made up of representatives of the Program, including the coordinator, vice-coordinator, permanent professors, students, graduates and representatives of the higher administration and society.

Based on the guidelines of the new postgraduate evaluation model in the country, established by the Report of the CAPES Working Group, the committee began to build its self-evaluation plan and developed instruments for gathering data and setting goals, with the aim of diagnosing and enhancing the strengths and overcoming the weaknesses within the Program.

The Self-Assessment of the Graduate Program in Language and Identity - PPGLI-UFAC seeks to identify its potential in order to achieve its goals and to identify the weak points that need to be improved.

The self-evaluation research methodology was based on the application of structured questionnaires, which were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data on the performance of the Graduate Program in Letters: Language and Identity (PPGLI) at the Federal University of Acre (UFAC). This methodological approach aims to evaluate various aspects of the program, from physical infrastructure to didactic-pedagogical issues, administrative management and inclusion policies, in order to identify strengths and areas in need of improvement.

The main objective of the self-assessment survey was to analyze the functioning of the PPGLI in 19 thematic areas, ranging from the physical structure to the quality of the dissertations and theses produced. The aim was to provide input for the definition of goals and actions that can improve the program, especially in preparation for the quadrennial evaluation 2021-2024.

The questionnaires were administered to four segments of the PPGLI academic community:

  1. Professors: 14 responses.
  2. Students: 53 responses.
  3. Graduates: 16 responses.
  4. Technical-administrative staff: 3 responses.

This division allowed for a comprehensive and multifaceted analysis of the program, taking into account the perspectives of the different actors involved.

The data collection instruments consisted of electronic questionnaires based on 19 pre-defined thematic axes. Each axis addressed specific aspects of the program, such as:

  1. Physical structure (classrooms, library, laboratories, etc.).
  2. Political-pedagogical proposal.
  3. Student-supervisor relationship.
  4. Administrative and teaching management.
  5. Inclusion policies and scholarships.
  6. Faculty and student exchange and mobility.

The questionnaires were structured with closed questions, which allowed for the generation of graphs and quantitative analysis, and some open questions, which allowed for the collection of qualitative feedback.

The Google Forms tool was used to design and disseminate the questionnaires, allowing data to be collected in an efficient and organized manner. The data collected was stored in a Google Sheets spreadsheet, ensuring security and access control. In addition, Google Forms offers data analysis and visualization resources, such as graphs and tables, making it easier to understand the results.

Integration with Google Analytics allowed the results to be widely disseminated on the internet, via links to graphs and tables. Google Analytics has thus become the main tool for disseminating Self-Assessment data.

Results of the student questionnaire

Results of the teachers' questionnaire

Results of the graduate questionnaire

Results of the questionnaire for technical-administrative staff

Since 2019, the self-assessment seminars have fulfilled a triple function: to diagnose how the program's internal community has perceived its development and performance; to widely socialize and debate the results and information of this diagnosis with the community as a whole and; to build itself as a propositional and qualified forum for the agreed establishment of collective goals to be achieved.

On October 8, 2019, the Graduate Program in Letters: Language and Identity held its First Self-Evaluation Seminar, an important milestone for the program. The meeting saw the active participation of all the program's professors, students and administrative staff, demonstrating the commitment and dedication of the academic community.

I Self-evaluation Seminar, October 2019. 

During the seminar, a detailed diagnosis was made of the program's current situation in relation to the evaluation criteria of the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES). This analysis made it possible to identify strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and challenges, providing a clear view of the program's current state. This meeting was very important for the construction of the Self-Assessment Plan, which was scheduled to be implemented in the 2021-2024 quadrennium.

In addition, the seminar provided a space for collective discussion and reflection, allowing participants to share their perspectives and experiences. As a result, a set of goals was proposed to be implemented by the end of the 2016-2020 quadrennium, especially with regard to qualified bibliographic production.

These goals were aligned with the program's strategic objectives, with a view to improving the quality of academic training, expanding scientific production and strengthening the program's social insertion. With the implementation of these goals, the Graduate Program in Letters: Language and Identity, in the form of its internal community, demonstrated its commitment to consolidating its position as a leading program in the training of researchers and professionals in the field of Letters in the northern region of the country.

On March 19, 2024, the Coordination of the Graduate Program in Letters: Language and Identity (PPGLI) at the Federal University of Acre (UFAC) held a meeting with the PPGLI's internal community, prior to the application of the self-evaluation questionnaires. The meeting was attended by students from the master's and doctoral courses and was mediated by the program's coordinators, professors Gerson Albuquerque, Elderson Melo and Maria de Jesus Morais.

Self-evaluation questionnaire pre-application meeting, March 2024. 

During the meeting, the program's main challenges and opportunities for the current four-year period were discussed. The program's students, teachers and administrative staff were encouraged to participate in the self-evaluation process by filling in the electronic questionnaires. In addition to a retrospective of the 2021-2023 period, the discussions focused on issues related to increasing student participation in activities that promote greater insertion at local, national and international levels.

Among the main points discussed were:

  1. The need for more master's and doctoral students to be involved in forums, meetings, congresses and international events in the field;
  2. The importance of expanding the submission of articles, reviews and essays for publication in journals in the field of Linguistics and Literature;
  3. The need for students and teachers to maintain a greater connection with basic education and work in other training spaces.

These discussions aim to promote greater dissemination of the qualified production that comes from the PPGLI's research and contribute to the development of the academic community and society as a whole.

On December 17, 2024, we held the II Self-Evaluation Seminar of the Graduate Program in Letters: Language and Identity (PPGLI) at the Federal University of Acre (UFAC). This activity represents an important milestone in the program's self-evaluation process, which aims to assess performance and identify areas for improvement.

II Self-evaluation Seminar, December 2024. 

During the seminar, we had the opportunity to share the results of the evaluation questionnaires applied to the program's teachers, students, graduates and technical-administrative staff. Publicizing the results is essential so that we can debate the program's performance and identify areas for improvement, as well as establish policies aimed at remedying the shortcomings identified by the self-evaluation.

The seminar was a unique opportunity for the PPGLI academic community to contribute to improving the actions developed by the program. The active participation of everyone involved was essential if we are to build an increasingly strong and relevant postgraduate program. In addition, the seminar also aimed to ensure criteria capable of evaluating the entire functioning of the PPGLI, from its infrastructure to didactic-pedagogical issues, as a way of helping to define and/or redefine goals and actions that substantiate the Program's activities for the quadrennial evaluation 2021-2024.

With this activity, we reaffirm our commitment to academic excellence and the continuous improvement of the PPGLI, with the aim of offering quality training to our students and contributing to the development of research in the field of Linguistics and Literature.