What Language do Teaching Materials for Portuguese as a Foreign Language Teach?

Abstract

This article analyzes how textbooks of Portuguese as a second language deal with the spectrum of language variation imposed by Brazilian Portuguese. This study was conducted with five textbooks, comparing five grammar topics across them: object pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, subject pronouns, pronunciation of the verb estar (‘to be’), and the preposition para (‘to’, ‘for’). The results indicate that most materials present a highly standard variation of Portuguese, with colloquial variants being mostly neglected even in exercises mimicking informal dialogues. The materials also ignore the communicative situation in which speakers were inserted. In this scenario, the article questions whether an approach to Portuguese language based on the standard variation would be the best teaching strategy for promoting literacy and the socialization of students in Brazil. We also suggest some topics related to informal Portuguese that could be incorporated in language classes.