Environmental education at school: international literature and analysis of brazilian studies

Abstract

The article aims to characterize the literature on environmental education at school. The question is how studies that have a critical perspective and are conducted by authors from Brazilian institutions approach this theme. We used a systematic search in the Scopus, Web of Science and Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO) databases. The selection and examination criteria were: exclusion due to non-adherence; categorization in axes: policy, training and pedagogical practice; authors from Brazilian institutions with a critical approach; and use of Pareto’s rule to choose representative texts for each axis. We demonstrate that most of the selected texts are in the Pedagogical Practice axis, followed by Training and Policies; there is a contradiction between theory and practice; meagre mention of current policies; and lack of working conditions for training and theoretical advancement. We discuss the critical approach as problematizing of conservative and naturalistic environmental education, encouraging reflection on the practice of environmental education at school.

Keywords:
Educational Policies; Environmental Education; School; Pedagogical Practice; Teacher Training