Vanessa F. A. Neves

Associate Professor at the Faculty of Education of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (Brazil). She is currently serving as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Education (2022–2026). She coordinates the research group Estudos em Cultura, Educação e Infância (Studies in Culture, Education, and Childhood – https://enlacei.com.br/). At present, she is leading a longitudinal and ethnographic research programme entitled Cultural Development in Collective Contexts, which aims to contrast the lived experiences of infants and young children across different early childhood education settings. This programme is grounded in the theoretical and methodological frameworks of Cultural-Historical Psychology and Ethnography in Education. It encompasses a range of research initiatives at undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels. She has supervised 8 PhD and 10 Master dissertations.

Education and training

2017-2018 – Postdoctoral position at The Ohio State University. Supervisor Prof. Laurie Katz. My topic was children’s ways of participating in Early Childhood Education Centres.

2007-2010 – PhD in Education, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG – Brazil). My advisors were Prof. Maria Lucia Castanheira (UFMG – Brazil), Prof. Maria Cristina S. Gouvêa (UFMG – Brazil) and William Corsaro (Indiana University – US). My topic was the transition from Early Childhood Education to Elementary School.

2003-2005 – Masters in Social Psychology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. My advisor was Prof. Lúcia Afonso (UFMG – Brazil). My topic was children’s perspectives of an Early Childhood Education Centre.

1988-1993 – Bachelor in Psychology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais

Academic Positions

2011-Current – Professor at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais

1992-2011 – Elementary teacher at Municipal Schools (Brazil)

1988-1992 – Early Childhood teacher at Private Schools (two years in Nottingham, England; one year in Raleigh, US)

Publications in English

  1. Neves, V. F. A., Quiñones, G., & Silva, E. B. T. (2025). Ethics of care involving young children: perspectives from Australia and Brazil. Ethnography and Education, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17457823.2025.2585267
  2. Neves, V. F. A., Silva, E. B. T., & Oliviera, V. S. (2025). A triangle of curiosity: infants, researchers, and the video camera. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2025.2514022
  3. Neves, V. F. A., Katz, L., Silva, E. B. T., & Macário, A. P. M. (2023). Researchers’ subjectivities in a study of infants & toddlers. International Journal of Research & Method in Education, 46(4), 390–407. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743727X.2023.2167976
  4. Neves, V. F. A., Quiñones, G., Gomes, M. de F. C., & Ribeiro, F. A. F. (2023). A cultural-historical perspective of young children gaining autonomy in the playground. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 32(3), 464–480. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2023.2262174
  5. Gonçalves, J. da S., Silva, E. de B. T., & Neves, V. F. de A. (2023). “Not a box!”: transformations of the senses assigned to a cardboard box. Cadernos de Pesquisa, 53, e09934. https://doi.org/10.1590/198053149934_EN
  6. Katz, L., Neves, V. F. A., Zurmehly, D., & Sanderson, M. (2020). Making visible acts of caring among infants & toddlers. Pedagogies: An International Journal, 16(3), 225–240. https://doi.org/10.1080/1554480X.2020.1763800
  7. Neves, V. F. A., Katz, L., Goulart, M. I. M., & Gomes, M. de F. C. (2018). Dancing with the pacifiers: infant’s perizhivanya in a Brazilian early childhood education centre. Early Child Development and Care, 190(4), 558–569. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2018.1482891
  8. Cortezzi, L. P.; Neves, V. F. A.; Sales, S. R. (2022). “Come on, guys! Let’s discover new horizons?”: lived experiences in an early childhood curriculum. Debates em Educação, v. 14, p. 375-399.
  9. Gomes, M. D. F. C., & Neves, V. F. A. (2021). Affect/Socially situated cognition/culture/languages in use (ACCL) as a unit of analysis of human development. Educação em Revista, 37, e26560. https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-469826560

Main Publications in Portuguese

  1. Oliveira, V. S., & Neves, V. F. A. (2025). Tempos e vivências de uma criança no contexto da Educação Infantil. Práxis Educativa, 20, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.5212/PraxEduc.v.20.24792.098
  2. Oliveira, V. S.; Marques, R.; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). Os bebês na sala do berçário: diferentes trajetórias no espaço. Educação e Pesquisa, v. 49, p. e255022, 2023.
  3. Franca, E. S.; Munford, D. ; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). Ciência e imaginação nos anos iniciais do ensino fundamental. Revista Brasileira De Educação, v. 28, p. e280084,2023.
  4. Silva, V. T.; Goulart, M. I. M.; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). Vivências de bebês no contexto de um berçário em Belo Horizonte. Educar em Revista, v. 39, p. 01-21.
  5. Silva, e. B. T.; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). A construção de uma lógica na pesquisa com bebês. Revista Diálogo Educacional, v. 23, p. 93-122.
  6. Baptista, M. C.; Silva, H. A. L.; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). Leitura, escrita e alfabetização: o que a Educação Infantil tem a ver com isso? Humanidades & inovação , v. 10, p. 168-182.
  7. Penafiel, k. J. Q.; Gomes, M. F. C.; Neves, V. F. A. (2023). Vivências-letramentos: a trajetória de Larissa na Educação Infantil. Revista Brasileira de Alfabetização, v. 19, p. 1-16, 2023.
  8. Gomes, M. F. C.; Neves, Vanessa F. A.; Silva, L. P. Cognição como atividade humana criadora em vivências de estudantes de pedagogia. Revista Diálogo Educacional, v. 21, p. 1967-1988, 2021.
  9. Amorim, K. S.; Barreto, A. M. R. F.; Gomes, M. F. C.; Macario, A. P.; Neves, V. F. A. Oliveira, Z. M. R.; Rossetti-Ferreira, M. C. (2020). Continuando o debate sobre cuidado e educação de crianças nos primeiros anos de vida. Teoria e Prática da Educação. Vol. 15, 22-35.
  10. Silva, E. B. T.; Neves, V. F. A. (2020). Os estudos sobre a educação de bebês no Brasil. Educação Unisinos, v. 24, p. 1-19.