AQUAPONICS IN SCHOOLS: CONTRIBUTIONS TO INTERDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE EDUCATION

Abstract

Science education still faces challenges related to the fragmentation of content and the difficulty of connecting scientific knowledge with students' everyday experiences. In this context, this study aimed to analyze the contributions of aquaponics to interdisciplinary Science education through the implementation of a pedagogical proposal developed with first-year high school students from a public school in the state of Goiás, Brazil. This qualitative study was grounded in Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, Freire's thematic investigation approach, and the Three Pedagogical Moments (TMP) proposed by Delizoicov, Angotti, and Pernambuco. The pedagogical proposal was organized as a Study Situation, using aquaponics as the central theme to integrate Biology, Chemistry, and Physics from the perspective of Science, Technology, Society, and Environment (STSE). Data were collected through classroom observations, audiovisual records, students' written activities, and the One Minute Paper strategy. The results showed that the use of aquaponics promoted the contextualization of scientific content, strengthened the integration of different areas of Natural Sciences, encouraged students' active participation, and fostered a more comprehensive understanding of sustainability, biogeochemical cycles, and ecological relationships. It is concluded that aquaponics represents an effective pedagogical strategy for promoting interdisciplinary, inquiry-based, and contextualized learning, contributing to scientific literacy and environmental education.