Implications of the use of experimental activities in biology education in public schools

• Main Authors: Vânia Cardoso da Silva Morais, Adevailton Bernardo Santos
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul 2016-04-01
• Series: Investigações em Ensino de Ciências
• Subjects: Experimental activities; didactic sequence; Biology teaching
• Online Access: https://www.if.ufrgs.br/cref/ojs/index.php/ienci/article/view/243/169
• ISSN: 1518-8795; 1518-8795

This study aimed to verify the influence of a didactic sequence with experimental activities on student motivation in relation to the subject matter Biology and check the possibility of applying such a result having as input the cultural-historical perspective and the dynamic of the three pedagogical moments. The work is part of a Master Degree research developed with 70 students from a high school in Patos de Minas city. The analysis of the data collected through observation, questionnaires, reports, testimonies of students, filming and photography of biology classes, points out that the use of experimental activities in Biology classes contributed to the increase of student motivation relating to Biology classes favoring the teaching-learning process and also to promote a converge between the scientific knowledge and reality of the students besides encourage their self-esteem and investigative sense. The results also indicate that it is possible to develop at school a didactic sequence based on the complementarity of two different theoretical lines like the dynamics of the three moments and in the historical and cultural perspective. Based on above considerations, we believe that the use of experimental activities following didactics positively influences student motivation in relation to Biology, favoring the teaching and learning of Biology. However, it is the whole of this, as the theory and the posture of motivating teachers, allowed approximation between scientific knowledge and reality of the students, enabling greater learning of biological concepts.