EDUCATION LINKED TO AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES: THE PERCEPTION AND SENSIBILIZATION IN SAO LEOPOLDO CITY, RS

Abstract

ABSTRACT The present work had as subject evaluate the efficacy of education focused on herpetofaun in the city of São Leopoldo, State of Rio Grande do Sul, from identification of knowledge and attitudes of final grades’ students of formal fundamental education and of its science teachers. For that, a Fundamental Education State’s School which has presented suitable environments to amphibians and reptiles around it was chosen. As instrument of data survey, an interview questionary was applied to science teachers (n=2) and a questionary, previously validated, made of 30 questions, with all students from the 5th to 8th grades of the school (n=231). The questionary had the maximum value of 25 points, in which seven questions referred to particular situations of the students and 23 exposed specific questions about the herpetofaun – that should be accosted in the science teaching. The mean of points obtained at questionaries’ correction was 8 points, equal to 32% of appreciation, being the high score 18.8 and the worst zero. Was verified that even after the study about amphibian and reptiles in the 6th grade curriculum the students don’t recognize the group, the species that compose it, and even its importance, given the means obtained among the different grades (5th grade = 7.5; 6th grade = 7.9; 7th grade = 7.8; and 8th grade = 8.9). This can be related to the teach-learning method used at school, characterized by the use of the didactic book, contents fragmentation between grades, few practical activities and no field work, fundamental to the student inclusion in his own environment. From this paper can be inferred that the education directed to the herpetofaun in São Leopoldo, State of Rio Grande do Sul, is very poor, given that no other school situated in this city presents so suitable conditions to knowledge of these animals like the chosen one. Key words: Education. Environmental Perception. Herpetofaun. Amphibians. Reptiles. São Leopoldo (State of Rio Grande do Sul).