THE MOCK TRIAL AS A PRACTICE OF CRITICAL ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION IN THE EARLY YEARS OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

Abstract

Critical Environmental Education (CEE) presupposes educational practices that go beyond the transmission of information and foster the problematization of socio-environmental relations and the construction of positions. In this context, the mock trial can constitute a pedagogical space for confronting different perspectives and developing argumentation. This study aims to analyze the processes of argumentation and construction of socio-environmental positions mobilized by students in the Early Years of Elementary Education during a mock trial, from the perspective of CEE. This is a qualitative investigation, guided by a cartographic perspective, conducted in a public school in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, with 45 fifth-grade students. The activities addressed issues related to household waste disposal and the conservation of native vegetation. The empirical material consisted of field diary records produced throughout the pedagogical process and audio recordings of interactions that occurred during the trial. The analysis revealed processes of construction and re-elaboration of socio-environmental positions, articulated through the mobilization of reasons and justifications, the confrontation of perspectives, and the negotiation of meanings. A shift was observed from an understanding initially marked by punishment toward a collective response that incorporated accountability, reparation, and the possibility of change. The results indicate that the mock trial constitutes a pedagogical possibility for fostering processes of argumentation and the construction of positions regarding socio-environmental issues, in alignment with the principles of Critical Environmental Education.