Non-Formal Education and non-formal educational settings in Natural Sciences degree programs

Abstract

This article aimed to analyze the themes “Non-Formal Education” (NFE) and “non-formal spaces of education” (NFSE) in Course Pedagogical Projects (CPP) of degree courses in the field of Natural Sciences. The theoretical foundation is based on Bernadete Gatti and Maria Amélia Santoro Franco for teacher training and Maria da Glória Gohn and Daniela Franco Carvalho Jacobucci for discussions on NFE and NFSE. The study is of a qualitative, exploratory and documental nature, carried out from the analysis of the CPP's. For the delimitation of the locus of the research, a spatial cut was established: Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) present in the State of Espírito Santo, systemic cut: HEI maintained by the Federal Government, and modality cut: HEI with degree courses offered in the modality in person. Based on the analyses, it was maintained that, with the curricular security of the degree course in Biological Sciences at the Federal University of Espírito Santo – Campus Alegre, the discipline “Teaching of Natural Sciences in Non-Formal Spaces” was created. However, none of the other eleven courses identified a discipline with a nomenclature that addresses the researched themes. It was also identified a greater presence of NFSE in the contents and in other presentations of the CPP’s after their updates. However, the continuous absence of NFE in the formative processes of the undergraduate courses participating in the research is reinforced. It is considered necessary to maintain the CPP's curriculum, taking into account the low frequency of insertion of male themes for teacher training.