CHEMISTRY TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS BASED ON THE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION

Abstract

In Chemistry teaching, it is known that the experimental part is the main tool for a successful teaching when learning the discipline contents. However, the reality in classrooms in public schools is that traditional teaching still prevails. The infrastructure in schools, the lack of materials and outdated conceptions from the teachers of the discipline are some of the obstacles permanently found for not having experimental classes. To this problem, “Chemistry in schools: integrating theory to practice”, brings the possibility of making real experimental classes using low-cost materials and easy access where experiments are performed in the classroom contributing significantly to the students’ learning. Accordingly, this work aims to highlight the contributions, as well as the positive aspects and challenges in applying the practical classes in public schools based on the initiative of actions from the university extension in Chemistry teaching. To this end, qualitative research was conducted with a sample from students who participated in the project which was used as a reference to discuss the results of this work. It was noted that the accomplishment of the experimental classes in the school environment, using the low-cost materials, shows significant improvements in terms of motivation, participation and commitment of students during the classes theory/practice which infers in a better learning process of the Chemistry contents. A particular attention is drawn to the contribution in the training of undergraduate students who develop skills during their teaching training.