Teorias sobre a origem do conhecimento biológico na infância: avanços, limites e implicações

Abstract

This paper presents a review of studies that have contributed for the understanding of how take place the structuring of biological knowledge in childhood. The studies reviewed are grouped into two approaches. The first attributes the acquisition and increase of biological knowledge to the identification of similarities and the second approach argues that the biological knowledge is a net of knowledge construed through several cognitivie processes guided by expectations, belief and values concerning the context in which the knowledge is applied. It is also discussed the implications of both approaches to the pedagogical practice and called attention to the importance of new researches in this field.