Vol. 9 No. 2 (2019): Revista Portuguesa de Educação Artística

"In the current volume, the essay Difficulty of Jumping when a Mirror is Ahead, by Jorge Barreto Xavier, former Secretary of State for Culture, is highlighted, where the narcissistic effect of amplifying the “Mirror of the Self” is addressed on the social networks, mainly among the youngest. In addition to reflecting on this effect of technological screens in our lives, the author proposes that teachers and stakeholders in the field of artistic education assume themselves, in this new context, as builders of democracy and citizenship, through the power of creation and the courage to build new worlds. The text presented here is the result of the speech that the author held at the opening conference of the X Congress of Artistic Education, which took place in Funchal, on the 4th of September 2019. 

This essay is even at the origin of the cover of this issue, where we include a painting by Caravaggio. In this painting, the master of the baroque portrays Narcissus with his hands at the water's edge, in a composition that holds him looking at himself. 

In addition to this essay, some relevant topics are addressed in this issue: the public action policy of the “Full-Time School” with a focus on (un)equal opportunities; the discipline of Artistic Education in Compulsory Basic Education, in a school located in Cidade da Praia, Cape Verde; reflections on pedagogical work with children with special educational needs; the collaborative pedagogical practice between the teacher, the musician and the students in consolidating the learning and creative processes in dance; and, finally, the potential of using cinema in a learning context, as a way of bringing the school closer to the benefits of holistic learning, which integrates the arts in its curriculum."