A contribution of critical environmental education for constructing new views on the drought in the Bahia area of semiarid Brazil

Abstract:

For centuries, the drought in northeast Brazil has produced many stereotypes resulting in different perceptions of people, which lead us to search for a better understanding about this phenomenon. We investigated the work of teachers in a municipal school located in the community "Brejo dos Olhos d'Água" in semi-arid area of northeast Brazil. Data were collected during a course process of environmental education, in a critical perspective, based on participatory methodologies. We used questionnaires, focus groups and a photo-elicitation method, which were analyzed through a hermeneutic approach. We outlined a panorama of social process, which was made up of the participants' perceptions of the drought, noting some historical and political background that directly influences the way people live and perceive their environment. We believe that the lack of investment in a continuing and contextualized training for teachers was apparent; since many of them still reproduce discourses historically propagated by the media and misguided literature.

Key-words:
Environmental education; Drought; Teachers' training