ARBOVIROSIS IN SCIENCE TEACHING IN THE SEMI-ARID POTIGUAR REGION:
RELATIONS WITH SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Arboviruses Teaching; Sustainability; Teacher training.
Mosquitoes of the genus Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus are the protagonists in the spread of arboviruses throughout the world. Among the most frequent arboviruses in Brazil, Zika, Chikungunya, Yellow Fever and the most reported, Dengue, stand out. The campaigns developed, mainly by public bodies, are focused on eradicating the vector, centering on medical issues and excluding political, social, economic and environmental factors that favor the triggering of epidemiological outbreaks. Teaching has a fundamental role in the discussion of these issues within the school environment. Education for Sustainability allows students to visualize the problems that surround society from a holistic approach. In order to contribute to the teaching of arboviruses in science and biology classes, this research aimed to raise how this theme is worked on in publications in the field of science education. We also surveyed the knowledge, approaches, evaluation methods and educational objects used by teachers to develop the theme of arboviruses in public schools in the city of Currais Novos, in the interior of Rio Grande do Norte. The research methodology is qualitative and exploratory in nature. As a result, we observed a teaching directed to the medical issues of the disease and excluding social and environmental factors directly related to the expansion of epidemiological outbreaks. Furthermore, we perceive a need for continuing education for teachers, given the unsatisfactory level of knowledge, especially for arboviruses recently reported in Brazil – Zika and Chikungunya. We suggest the introduction of Education for Sustainability, inserted in the Sustainable Development Goals, in order to work with arboviruses in a broader way, contemplating social, economic and environmental aspects, in order to develop critical and citizen education.