Ensino da sustentabilidade e aprendizagem transformadora no contexto da Pós-graduação em Administração da UFCG.

Abstract

Integrating sustainability into management education requires a paradigm shift that goes beyond technical content, drawing on Transformative Learning theory to understand how individuals transform their worldviews. Thus, the general objective of this dissertation is to understand the learning process of students in a sustainability-oriented graduate management program through the lens of transformative learning. Specifically, the study sought to: (1) identify the transformative learning process regarding the dimension of meaning perspectives; (2) understand the transformative learning process regarding the dimension of learning domains; and (3) examine the types of reflection adopted by master's students during the learning process. Methodologically, this study is a basic interpretive qualitative inquiry, exploratory and descriptive in nature, conducted as field research with alumni of the program under study. Data collection was carried out through synchronous online semi-structured interviews with 25 participants. The results reveal that sustainability education acted as a stimulus for transforming thought processes and shaping the student into an agent of change, fostering greater confidence in debates and sparking a new perspective on life and career. The study concludes that the program facilitates genuinely transformative learning, turning passive students into critical agents of socio-environmental change, an evolution reflected in the quality of their research and their continued engagement in academic and social pursuits.