ENSINO DE CIÊNCIAS NOS ANOS INICIAIS DO ENSINO FUNDAMENTAL: A FORMAÇÃO DE CONCEITOS CIENTÍFICOS E O DESENVOLVIMENTO DOS ALUNOS

Abstract

The research aimed to observe and analyze teaching practices of a teacher of the Initial Years, in a public school, in relation to the formation of concepts in Sciences, with reference to the historical cultural theory of Vygotsky and Davidov 's theory of developmental teaching. Research carried out by this author in Russian schools (1972, 1988) and confirmed by Rosa and Sylvio (2016), Peres and Freitas (2013), among others, verified the predominance, in Elementary School, of education based on empirical knowledge, not knowledge theoretical-scientific. From the premise of developmental theory that it is the theoretical-scientific knowledge that best contributes to the development of the students' higher psychological processes, this study was designed to make observations of science classes with students of the fourth year of elementary school, after previous studies of the theory made with the teacher. It was assumed that knowledge organized and taught in the form of concepts could contribute more effectively to the development of theoretical-scientific thinking and thus promote the mental development of students. The basic question was: are the students appropriating theoretical-scientific knowledge, that is, are they learning by concepts or by mere memorization of content? The observation of classes was done through written and video records, and semi-structured interviews with the teacher. The prevalence in the classes of empirical knowledge teaching can be pointed out as results, with rare manifestations in the students of internalization of theoretical-conceptual knowledge and the identification of limitations in the pedagogicaldidactic knowledge of the content by the teacher. However, evidence has been observed in a few students of movements of thought towards the formation of theoretical-scientific thinking.