EDUCAÇÃO AMBIENTAL NOS ANOS INICIAIS: DESAFIOS E PRÁTICAS DOCENTES NAS ESCOLAS MUNICIPAIS DE CAMPO GRANDE - MS

Abstract

Environmental Education must be recognized as an essential tool for the formation of critical, conscious citizens, capable of understanding the complexity of environmental problems and understanding how these challenges affect society and the planet. In this way, we present the Thesis Environmental Education in the Early Years: Challenges and Teaching Practices in the Municipal Schools of Campo Grande - MS, built from reflections developed by teaching practice, as a teacher in the initial years of elementary school, making it possible to see that environmental education, when worked on, is often done in a fragmented way, sometimes restricted to specific projects, without a transformative impact on the municipal schools of Campo Grande - MS. This fragmented/punctual approach may be related to the lack of adequate training of teachers and the direction of environmental education in the Curriculum Reference of the Municipal Network of Campo Grande - MS. Given this scenario, we sought to investigate Environmental Education as outlined in the Pedagogical Political Projects of municipal schools and its relationship with teaching practices, reflecting in which scenarios teachers promote interdisciplinarity and encourage a critical vision for teaching environmental education and how the demands of the local community impact daily school life. Before starting the fieldwork, it was necessary to register the Research Project on Plataforma Brazil. Data collection was carried out through a questionnaire via Google form applied to teachers from municipal public schools in Campo Grande - MS, with classes from the 1st to the 5th year of Elementary School. The collection period was between September 25th and October 15th, 2023, with the participation of 47 teachers. A significant challenge was observed regarding the integration of environmental issues into teachers' practice, highlighting a potential mismatch between the interest of these professionals in the environmental area and the opportunities available for their improvement. It was found that several factors, such as content overload, literacy process, limited workload and inadequate materials, among others, contribute to environmental education being perceived by many teachers as just a one-off activity, associated preferably with the curricular components of Science, History and Geography. It is worrying to note that, although there is significant interest in the topic, many teachers admit to having only average and superficial knowledge about environmental issues. This disparity between interest and knowledge points to a gap in continued training, especially considering that many teachers stated that they did not participate in specific training in environmental education. Two schools that develop projects focused on Environmental Education were highlighted, in which both establishments demonstrated a commitment to the inclusion of environmental education in the school space. The practice of cultivating a school garden, associated with concepts of sustainability and nutrition, provided practical and immediate experience for students, promoting a positive impact that goes beyond the school's boundaries. There was a need to promote training courses and encourage teachers to participate in continuing education programs focused on Environmental Education.