Decolonial pedagogical practice: A Black female teacher and the deconstruction of the exclusive use of white authors in the 2023 ENEM writing test

Abstract

This paper emphasizes the urgency of decolonial pedagogical practices in teaching sociocultural repertoires in the ENEM essay, considering their importance for the critical construction of arguments. The analysis is based on the 2023 essay topic, “The challenges of valuing women’s care work in Brazil,” and highlights the absence of references to Black intellectuals among the cited repertoires in top-scoring essays. The bibliographic research revealed that 76.5% of the cited authors are white, indicating the perpetuation of a whitened educational project that renders Black intellectual production invisible. Based on this, the proposed decolonial teaching practice seeks to break with this logic by valuing historically marginalized narratives and knowledge, reclaiming the contributions of Black authors and other subordinated groups. This approach views education as a political act, capable of transgressing power structures and promoting intercultural and inclusive learning. It also challenges the hegemonic ideal of neutrality in education by fostering critical thinking and representativeness within the school environment. Thus, the results indicate that pedagogical practice aligned with the decolonial perspective not only broadens students' cultural repertoires but also contributes to deconstructing stigmas and historical inequalities, redefining the place of minorities in knowledge production. It is concluded that integrating decolonial educational practices into ENEM preparation is essential to transforming the essay into a space of resistance and emancipation.