Nanotecnologia e meio ambiente para a promoção de alfabetização científica para sociedade

Abstract

The cross-cutting themes in education have as their central objective the understanding and construction of social reality, addressing the rights and responsibilities associated with individual and collective life. In this context, scientific literacy emerges as a fundamental path for the understanding and construction of this reality, with chemistry serving as a central science. The research conducted had as its main objective to investigate the potentialities and limitations of the themes Nanotechnology and Environment, in light of the Scientific Literacy Indicators (IAC) present in the textbooks of the collection "Chemistry as Protagonist" (QSP), used in the National Textbook Program (PNLD) between the years 2012 to 2021. The methodological journey included a comprehensive review of the state of the art, with the perspective of evaluating the respective teaching and learning methods related to Nanotechnology and the Environment. The focus of published research and the subjects involved in the last 10 years in 20 Brazilian journals were considered. The results of the analysis of the QSP collection revealed 1,473 occurrences of Scientific Literacy Indicators (IAC), with 1,377 (93.5%) related to the Environment and 96 (6.5%) to Nanotechnology. The discrepancy in quantity between the two themes was evident, with the Nanotechnology theme being virtually nonexistent in some IAC, constituting a negative point in the collection. The analysis of the scientific landscape in the last 10 years also revealed challenges, with only 8 publications among the 20 journals analyzed relating the teaching of Nanotechnology to Chemistry. On the other hand, the theme of the Environment presented a significant number of publications, with 656 records in the last 10 years and occurrences in all indicators, despite gaps still existing in the "create" and "act" indicators. Overall, there was a presence of a large number of contextualized questions in the materials analyzed, but an absence of questions that would allow the student to take an active stance on both themes. Given the context presented, the educational product developed in this dissertation is a textbook entitled "Nanotechnology and Environment," with a focus on basic education students and chemistry education. The purpose of the book is to fill the gaps found in the research conducted, seeking to provide students with a comprehensive study of the themes of Nanotechnology and the Environment, as well as effectively addressing the skills of scientific literacy indicators. To validate the material, an assessment was conducted with 5 individuals specialized in the theme or with experience in basic education. The results of this analysis were positive, considering the educational product suitable and a valuable tool for the study of the aforementioned themes, in order to promote the development of scientific literacy skills, as established as one of the main objectives for this textbook.