Principais obstáculos à inserção da História da Ciência e da Filosofia da Ciência no ensino de Física no contexto da educação básica

Abstract

The main objective of this work is to present and discuss the main obstacles that make it difficult to integrate, in the context of basic education, historical considerations and epistemological questions that help to give meaning to the contents of physics that are transmitted there. The main motivation of this work lies in the fact that the poor performance of students in elementary education in the field of science, as it is verified in the results of the PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) exam, is widely acknowledged. We chose for our analysis two obstacles among the many that exist: (1) the excessive linearization of historical processes and (2) the mythology of genius. We argue that, as far as the law of inertia is concerned, the excessive linearization usually practiced in many situations of teaching at the secondary level is clearly harmful for students to acquire a minimally adequate understanding of the scope of the law itself. As an emblematic example of the mythology of genius, we quote the letters written by Leonhard Euler to a princess, through which he evidenced Isaac Newton as a genius, extolling his deeds. We conclude that a consequent scientific education cannot dispense with bringing to bear all the two obstacles mentioned here and trying to overcome them, using the autonomy of the teacher. One of the requirements of the Professional National Master's Degree in Physics Teaching was the preparation of an educational product. It was decided to prepare a guide whose purpose is to present and discuss the main obstacles to the insertion of the History of Science and Philosophy of Science in teaching physics in the context of basic education through texts and questionnaires.