Educação ambiental em cena: uma abordagem geográfica através de filmes

Abstract

The animated movies Wall-E and The Lorax: Searching for the Lost Truffle deal with environmental issues, which favor the understanding and contextualization of geography teaching. The spatial scope includes two public elementary schools, located in the urban and rural areas of the municipality of Nova Iguaçu. The methodological proposal of the action research is suited to the educational field, due to the collaborative construction of knowledge and information, providing a dialogical approach between teachers and students. A school that prioritizes the practice of Environmental Education in a continuous and integrated way contributes to raising awareness and building citizenship and collectivity among students. Pedagogical activities related to animated movies can therefore be applied in many school realities, based on the observation and action of the teacher. Qualitative research was favored by the application of questionnaires to compose the analysis material, allowing us to obtain the students' perception of the environmental themes highlighted in the animated movies. The questionnaires applied in schools revealed the same environmental problems in the respective movies: increased waste production and deforestation. Students suggested avoiding waste and implementing selective collection to reduce waste quantity. Regarding deforestation, schools emphasized the importance of trees in reducing pollution and benefiting climatic conditions. Interpretations differ regarding consumerism, as the State School Mestre Hiram attributes only environmental damages, while the Municipalized School of Jaceruba identifies financial debts related to excessive consumption. The term sustainability addressed through the audiovisual languages of the selected movies described in the questionnaires as conscious consumption, dignified living conditions, socio-environmental balance, and Environmental Education. The aim of this exploratory process is to provide elements that can qualify the students' understanding of the movie’s narratives and the socio-environmental reality that surrounds them. Educational research reinforces the need to seek in Geography methodological paths that can improve the teaching-learning process. Thus, critical Environmental Education, realized through the geographical approach, becomes potent when it attributes action research, in the emancipatory and liberating perspective of Paulo Freire.