Análise das atividades experimentais de uma coleção de livros didáticos de Ciências utilizados em escolas públicas

Abstract

The work investigates the experimental activities for the teaching of Sciences which are present in a textbook collection chosen by the teachers and supplied by the Textbooks National Program to public schools of Brazil. The research was carried out at two municipal elementary schools of São Lourenço do Sul, state of Rio Grande do Sul – Brazil, and it used as a research material, through a descripitve analysis, the experimental activities found in a collection of Science textbooks, as well as the reports written by the learners. This analysis was characterized was a qualitative research of documents and theoretical references used. The purposes sought to analyze how these activities are described in Sciences books and investigate the pedagogic and methodologic potentials of experimental activities from its usage and development in Sciences classes from the 6th to the 9th grade. Thus, it was possible to note that the activities are contextualized based on the conceptual contents proposed by the curriculum of the schools involved in the research. They are all safe and fully conducted by guidelines and they present few or no questions. However, since the teacher’s mediation, the classes conducted in a view of Teaching through Research, enable the investigation of previous knowledge of the learners, the search for new information, the use of conceptual knowledge, the discussion with their peers and the writing from the students. Even from ready guidelines, the experimental activity enabled the development of a proposal of Teaching through Research where the learners were motivated to express their ideas, to observe and research about the investigated phenomena, and, in the end, to write about all the developed steps