Humanismo e tecnologia no curso de radiologia do CEFET - PR - Unidade de Curitiba

Abstract

This dissertation tries to answer the following question: what kind of a human being is being formed in the Technical Course in Radiology, offered by the CEFETPR (Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica), which is implementing an educational reform based on the Act Number 2.208/97? The main objective here is to make an analysis of the human dimension of technology from the values which guide the organisation and the implementation of the technical course in radiology. The specific objectives are to identify the funding aspects of the referred course, to analyse the course grade and its syllabus, and to gather inputs for the re-elaboration of new courses in technology. It uses a bibliography in the field of Philosophy, aiming at an interpretation of Humanism. The concept of Humanism is brought about from the concept of Rationality, and thus, this research examines rationality starting from Max Weber´s theory – a pioneer in this sort of research- from where were borrowed the concepts of methodological individualism, rational actions towards goals, traditional actions towards values, and bureaucracy. Some attention is paid to the founding fathers of Modern Science like Bacon, Galileu and Descartes, in order to extract a better idea of the concept of rationality met in the sort of science they founded. By making reference to those authors, this researcher believes that it is possible to have a theoretical context in order to understand the thoughts of Adorno, Horkheimer and Habermas of the Frankfurt School. Hence, the current study takes into consideration some thoughts of Adorno and Horkheimer through the concepts of the Traditional Theory and the Critical Theory through which the authors reach the conclusion that modern science manipulates nature and alienates the human being, and this can be tamed instrumental rationality. Habermas goes further in this analysis and proposes a communicative rationality as a path to think a humanism built on dialogue. As this study leads with a reform of technical education, it also searches for a concept of technology and of technical education. The first concept is explained by Milton Vargas, who defines technology as applied science . An interpretation by Ruy Gama, on the other hand, says that modern technology is a science of productive work. The theoretical part is finally concluded in a sort of dialogue with the above authors by João Augusto Bastos, who proposes a technological education in the perspective of communicative rationality separated from the logic of the subservience to the market and redirected towards a logic committed to the human dimension of things. Finally this dissertation ends up wtih a qualitative survey, using a semi-structured interview of twelve participants who currently lecture in the Technical Course in Radiology at CEFET-PR. From the interviews came the evidence that the humanism found in the referred course is based on the perspective of instrumental rationality, as defined by Weber and criticised by Horkheimer and Adorno. Nevertheless, the instrumental culture found in the referred course doesn´t rule out the emancipating potential present in the actors who run it.