Brazilian Eratosthenes Project: autonomy of teachers in experimental activities of Astronomy

Abstract

Research results point to the use of experimental activities in Science Education as one of the most efficient strategies to arouse interest and dedication of the students. One of the important considerations about the experimental activities is that there is no effective contribution to the use of kits with ready scripts, closed procedures and measurement of expected experimental results. This limits the autonomy of the teachers and students in the teaching-learning process. Specifically on Astronomy Education, the researches show the importance of considering the observational component and practice of this science. Then, our research question was structured: which elements subsidize the construction of teacher autonomy in the development and implementation of experimental activities in order to effectively contribute to the teaching of Astronomy? We developed this research in the context of Brazilian Eratosthenes Project, through a discourse analysis of a group of teachers participating in this project since 2010. Our results reveal the predominance of a training model cast in an approach extremely focused on the content and under the technical rationality, with few elements contributing to the construction the autonomy of teaching. On the other hand, a historical analysis of Eratosthenes Project and the activities developed by some of the participants indicate potential regarding the development of elements that can enable these professionals to exercise independently their profession, to develop and implement experimental activities unstructured in the interdisciplinary teaching of Astronomy.