Teaching work in early childhood education: The participation of daycare assistants

This article synthesizes the results of a research that sought to understand how the teaching work of daycare assistants is coordinated with the work of teachers, from a qualitative exploratory perspective and based on a documentary analysis of regulations regarding the teaching work of daycare assistants in the state of Espiritu Santo, in the Brazilian southeast. The findings show that there is an uneven recognition and appreciation between teachers and assistants. In this context, regulations reiterate that there is a dichotomy regarding teaching between caring actions (attributed to assistants) and actions of education (associated with teachers) in early childhood education. It highlights a struggle for more equal working conditions, looking to promote a closer relationship among female workers and, simultaneously, the consolidation of teaching in early childhood education, with a commitment to the integral development of children..