Atividades experimentais para construção de conceitos em hidrostática e hidrodinâmica

Abstract

The present research proposes the study of experimental activities with students of the sixth grade of elementary school II to construct concepts related to hydrodynamics and hydrostatics, in the perspective of the meaningful learning of David Ausubel. These activities aim to provide the construction of learning, with rediscovery being one of the stages. Throughout the school life, students find challenges in assimilating concepts of Physics and in associating events of their daily life with the phenomena explained by this science, that is, in relating everyday knowledge to scholarly knowledge. With the relationship between daily and formal knowledge as a basis, this work proposes the application of experimental activities to younger classes, in order to make possible the understanding of this science, in what concerns the construction of concepts in hydrostatics and hydrodynamics, with the rigor of scientific language. The work involves: (1) research with students; (2) analysis of the teaching practice in relation to the accomplishment of experimental activities; (3) a study on what challenges the teacher faces in performing these actions. The study developed in the light of the epistemology of Gaston Bachelard, who in his book "The Formation of the Scientific Spirit" highlighted the notion of an epistemological obstacle - impediments to the development of scientific knowledge. Bachelard warns of certain misunderstandings in the course of the scientific progress which, in this work, concerns the difficulties in carrying out the experimental work. However, as far as the meanings assigned by the students are concerned, the Theory of Significant Learning, by David P. Ausubel, was used. The work included the observation of science teachers and students involved in the construction and conduct of experiments. Analyzing the development of the work, it is observed that the experimental activity contributed to the assimilation of concepts related to Physics, for youth groups. This moment was also important for teachers to rethink the role of experimental activity as a didactic event and its importance as a facilitator for the assimilation of concepts, and how students construct their meanings about a particular subject studied, observing the scientific language.