Making the Qom's Conception of Time Visible in Educational Institutions of Argentina's Great Chaco

Abstract:

The general objective of this project was to investigate day and night time conceptions that circulate in multicultural classrooms of different educational institutions of the Province of Chaco, Argentina. To that end, the Qom ethnic group has been chosen, which is part of the Guaycurú family language. Through action research, it was decided that different activities would be generated and implemented in secondary schools attended by students, mostly from the Qom ethnic group. Records were obtained through written annotations, observations, etc. Finally, the obtained results show a cyclic time conception, where the observation of apparent positions of the Sun throughout the day, atmospheric luminosity during the night, and specific bird songs for both moments are of vital relevance. The completion of the proposed tasks promoted access to a phenomenon dating back to ancestral knowledge, offering a diverse view on natural phenomena.

Keywords: Qom ethnic group; Time conception; Natural sciences didactics; Intercultural education; Indigenous school education