Geotecnologias e tecnologias no ensino de geografia para o estudo de paisagem na bacia hidrográfica do córrego Mineiro, Nova Olímpia – MT

Abstract

This research investigated how geotechnologies and digital technologies can motivate and stimulate students' interest in learning the content of the Geography subject in Basic Education. The subjects involved were students from two 6th-grade classes of Elementary School II – final years – in the morning period, at the Wilson de Almeida State School, located in the central area of the city of Nova Olímpia – MT. Its objective was to ascertain how digital educational resources (DERs) can contribute to the learning of geographical content, analyzing their limitations and possibilities, as well as respecting the particularities of student learning. Thus, the research focused on examining the contribution of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to a playful and equitable geographical education to foster student interest and, consequently, cognitive learning of the content. We based our work on the hypothesis that an educational scenario combining the use of digital educational resources with topics relevant to students' experiences favors geographical education, arousing their interest, attention, engagement, and emotion in the act of learning. To this end, we used the following digital educational resources: Google Earth, Google Sites, gamified activities, digital maps, and the Padlet platform. As a basis for applying the didactic pedagogical actions, we used George Bertrand's (1971) concept of landscape, adapting it to accessible language so that the students participating in the research could understand it and associate it with the study of landscape dynamics in the Mineiro stream watershed (BHCM), located in the municipality of Nova Olímpia – MT. At the end of the research, we were able to conclude that ICTs, when used with pedagogical intent by the teacher and when adequate infrastructure conditions exist, are widely accepted in the teaching-learning process and enable a more playful and attractive geographical education for students, thus contributing to the production and use of a greater diversity of didactic and methodological strategies. In this context, ICTs provide opportunities for a more dynamic, equitable, and inclusive education.