Learning about Microorganisms in Childhood: Four- to Six-Year-Old Children’s Voice in Kindergartens and Museums
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.28976/1984-2686rbpec20181811Keywords:
science education, early childhood education, science museums, microorganisms.Abstract
The main purpose of this research was to identify 4 to 6-year-old children’s ideas about microorganisms, taking into consideration the learning processes carried out in different educational contexts. To this end, data were collected from two institutions – a science museum and a kindergarten – by means of interviews, recorded conversations, drawings, and the application of a didactic sequence with the kindergarten group. A qualitative analysis of the data revealed that children associate the presence of microorganisms with dirty places and see them as pathological agents. The children demonstrated that they understand the idea of scale and the need for magnifying instruments. We found that they consider microorganisms morphologically similar to insects and that they use various scientific words appropriately. It was concluded that young children understand the theme “microorganisms”, and that it should be addressed more actively by institutions that teach four- to six-year-olds, which are responsible for contributing to their scientific literacy and science learning in childhood. It is proposed that the following themes be developed in educational activities with young children: biodiversity, scale, biological functions, and relationships with humans and food.
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Trivelato, J., Jr. (2005). Um obstáculo à aprendizagem de conceitos em biologia: Geração espontânea x biogênese. In. R. Nardi (Ed.), Questões atuais no Ensino de Ciências (pp. 77–84). São Paulo: Escrituras.
Tsai, C. C., & Wen, M. L. (2005). Research and trends in science education from 1998 to 2002: A content analysis of publication in selected journals. International Journal of Science Education, 27(1), 3–14.
White, E., Elson, B., & Prawat, R. (1980). Children’s conceptions of death. Child Development, 49, 307–310.
Amin, T., & Smith, C. (2013). Student Conceptions and Conceptual Change: Three Overlapping Phases of Research. In N. Lederman & S. K. Abell (Eds.), Handbook of Research in Science Education, Vol. II. New York: Routledge.
Bardin, L. (2011). Análise de Conteúdo. Lisboa: Edições 70.
Byrne, J., Grace, M., & Hanley, P. (2009). Children’s anthropomorphic and anthropocentric ideas about micro-organisms. Journal of biological education, 44(1), 37–43.
Byrne, J. (2011). Models of micro-organisms: children’s knowledge and understanding of micro-organisms from 7 to 14 years old. International Journal of Science Education, 33(14), 1927–1961.
Castro, S. T. (2000). O museu e o ensino de ciências na educação infantil: experiências do museu oceanográfico - Instituto Oceanográfico da Universidade de São Paulo. In Anais VII Encontro Perspectivas do Ensino de Biologia (pp. 670–672.), São Paulo: FEUSP.
Cavalcanti, Z. (1995). Trabalhando com história e ciências na pré-escola. Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul: Artes Médicas.
Dominguez, C. R. C. (2001). Rodas de ciências na Educação Infantil: um aprendizado lúdico e prazeroso (Dissertação de Mestrado). Faculdade de Educação, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil.
Dominguez, C. R. C. (2006). Desenhos, palavras e borboletas na Educação Infantil: brincadeiras com as ideias no processo de significação sobre os seres vivos (Tese de Doutorado). Faculdade de Educação, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil.
Duit, R. (2009). Students’ and Teachers’ Conceptions and Science Education. Bibliography - STCSE. Retrieved from http://archiv.ipn.uni-kiel.de/stcse/
Goulart, M. I. M. (2005). Conhecimento do mundo natural e social: desafios para a educação infantil. Revista Criança, 38, 25–29. Retrieved from http://portal.mec.gov.br/seb/arquivos/pdf/rev_crian_39.pdf.
Goulart, M. I. M. (2007). Early childhood science education: what is the challenge? Cultural Studies of Science Education, 2, 835–840.
Goulart, M. I .M., & Gomes, M. F. C. A. (2000). A construção de conceitos em ciências naturais na interação em sala de aula. In Conferência de Pesquisa Sócio-cultural. Retrieved from http://www.fae.unicamp.br/ br2000/trabs/1020.doc.
Helman, C. G. (1978). Feed a cold, starve a fever – folk models of infection in an english suburban community, and their relation to medical treatment. Culture, medicine and psychiatry, 2, 107–137.
Jones, M. G. & Rua, M. J. (2018). Conceptual representations of flu and microbial illness held by students, teachers, and medical professionals. School Science and Mathematics, 108(6), 263–278.
Kalish, C. (1996). Causes and symptoms in preschoolers’ conceptions of illness. Child Development, 67, 1647–1670.
Karadon, H. D., & Sahin, N. (2010). Primary school students’ basic knowledge, opinions and risk perceptions about microorganisms. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 2, 4398–4401.
Kawasaki, C. S. (2000). Calendário biológico: uma experiência pedagógica desenvolvida na Creche Carochinha do campus da USP de Ribeirão Preto. In VII Anais Encontro Perspectivas do Ensino de Biologia (pp. 751–754), São Paulo: FEUSP.
Kirch, S. A. (2007). Re/Production of science process skills and a scientific ethos in an early childhood classroom. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 2(4), 785–845.
Lee, M. H., Wu, Y. T. & Tsai, C. C. (2009). Research Trends in Science Education from 2003 to 2007: A content analysis of publication in selected journals. International Journal of Science Education, 31(15), 1999–2020.
Lin, T. C., Lin, T. J., & Tsai, C. C. (2013). Research Trends in Science Education from 2003 to 2007: A content analysis of publications in selected journals. International Journal of Science Education, 36(8), 1346–1372.
Lima, M. E. C. C., & Maués, E. (2006). Uma releitura do papel da professora das séries iniciais no desenvolvimento e aprendizagem de ciências das crianças. Ensaio – Pesquisa em Educação em Ciências, 8(2), 161–175.
Lorenzetti, L., & Delizoikov, D. (2001). Alfabetização científica no contexto das séries iniciais. Ensaio – Pesquisa em Educação em Ciências, 3(1), 1–17.
Miguel, G. V. B. N. (2010). Temos bichinhos só na barriga? In: VII Mostra de Trabalhos “ABC na Educação Científica - Mão na Massa”. Retrieved from: http://www.cdcc.sc.usp.br/maomassa/mostras/2010/trabalhos/40.html.
Milandri, M. (2004). Children’s’ views of microbes, current beliefs about bacteria in Italian grade school children. The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, 23(12), 1077–1080.
Oliveira, G. (2000). Conceituando digestão na educação infantil. In Anais VII Encontro Perspectivas do Ensino de Biologia (pp. 755–757), São Paulo: FEUSP.
Prokop, P., Fančovičová, J. & Krajčovičová, A.(2016). Alternative conceptions about Micro-organisms are influenced by experiences with disease in children. Journal of Biological Education, 50(1), 61–72.
Scarpa, D. & Trivelato, S. L. F. (2001). Aula de ciências sob um olhar vygotskyniano e bakhtiniano: será que golfinho é peixe? In Atas III Encontro Nacional de Pesquisas em Educação em Ciências, São Paulo, Brasil. Retrieved from: http://abrapecnet.org.br/atas_enpec/iiienpec/Atas%20em%20html/o30.htm#o30
Simonneaux, L. (2000). A study of pupils’ conceptions and reasoning in connection with microbes, as a contribution to research in biotechnology education. International
Journal of Science Education, 22(6), 619–644.
Siry, C., Ziegler, G., & Max, C. (2012). Doing science through discourse-in-interaction: Young children’s science investigations at the early childhood level. Science Education, 96(2), 311–326.
Souza, M. V. A. R. (2009). Estudo de caso: diferentes visões sobre os microrganismos (Dissertação de Mestrado). Instituto de Bioquímica Médica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Teixeira, R. M., Furtado, P. G., & Wille, N. J. (2005). Zoologia de aranhas para crianças da creche UFF. In Anais I Encontro Nacional de Ensino de Biologia e III Encontro Regional de Ensino de Biologia, Rio de Janeiro/Espírito Santo, Brasil.
Trivelato, J., Jr. (1995). Concepções de alunos sobre fungos e bactérias. Série Textos - Pesquisas para o ensino de ciências, n. 6. São Paulo: FEUSP.
Trivelato, J., Jr. (2005). Um obstáculo à aprendizagem de conceitos em biologia: Geração espontânea x biogênese. In. R. Nardi (Ed.), Questões atuais no Ensino de Ciências (pp. 77–84). São Paulo: Escrituras.
Tsai, C. C., & Wen, M. L. (2005). Research and trends in science education from 1998 to 2002: A content analysis of publication in selected journals. International Journal of Science Education, 27(1), 3–14.
White, E., Elson, B., & Prawat, R. (1980). Children’s conceptions of death. Child Development, 49, 307–310.
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2018-04-30
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Learning about Microorganisms in Childhood: Four- to Six-Year-Old Children’s Voice in Kindergartens and Museums. (2018). Brazilian Journal of Research in Science Education, 1(2), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.28976/1984-2686rbpec20181811
