The objective of this article is to discuss the continuing education of teachers, based on the experience of a graduate course with a specialization in sociology education at the School of Education at the Federal University at Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ).  The study used Bourdieu’s concepts of field and habitus, to analyze interviews, responses to questionnaires and evaluation data from the course administration to understand the impacts of the movement of teachers between university courses and schools where they teach. The conclusions highlight that for a considerable portion of the students, the course offers a real opportunity to resume academic education that was largely abandoned when they began teaching at schools. The analyzed data reaffirm the design of the Specialization Course in Knowledge and Practices in Basic Education - CESPEB, whose principles are based on the relationship between the university and public schools.