SCHOOL GARDEN AS A PRECEPT TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION: CASE STUDY IN A PUBLIC ELEMENTARY EDUCATION SCHOOL IN SOLEDADE-RS

Abstract

For a long period, there was the irrational use of natural resources by humanity without concern for future consequences, therefore needing to use them in a sustainable way, emerging one of the characterizations of sustainability, forwarding to the balance between the use of elements available in nature and their exploitation, thus emerging sustainable development, which conceive methods of raising awareness among society and sustainable alternatives. Sustainability and environmental education (EE) are fundamental to sustainable development, with regard to educational practices with an environmental bias, and one of the ways to integrate them can be with the implementation of a vegetable garden in the school environment, in addition to it's follow continuous. The research, result of a university extension project, aimed to understand how EE can contribute to awareness and participation around environmental issues with a view to contributing to sustainability, designing, for this purpose, a vegetable garden in a public elementary school in the municipality of Soledade- RS and following the stages of its development. The research had an exploratory and descriptive nature, with a qualitative case study approach. The school garden with a view to EE was a participation tool for the school community, with the aim of promoting awareness, preservation, and environmental awareness and, at the same time, a permanent discussion with social relations, the environment and the community. With the interdisciplinarity manifesto, new reflections were made possible, and the rethinking of actions by the teacher in view of the student's training needs, with learning opportunities in each project, enhancing their autonomy in skills and abilities.