Os avanços tecnológicos na educação: o uso das geotecnologias no ensino de geografia, os desafios e a realidade escolar

Abstract

This research aims at diagnosing how Geotechnology has been used in the Educational System, especially in teaching geography in high school. This is a qualitative research of a theoretical-practical character. Thus, a comparative study was carried out at two different schools – one public and the other a private high school. A semi-structured questionnaire, answered by students attending the third year of high school in Maringa, Parana State, was used as a methodological tool. Results derived from data analysis pointed out that Geotechnology has been widespread and widely known in the last years; however, such technologies have hardly ever been used in the current teaching of geography in high school. It was verified that, although computers are available at the investigated schools, the use of computers is limited to Google Earth software, whose access does not happen in the school space. Therefore, it is observed that the school offers the computers, but there is a lack of structure and adequacy for using systems such as SIG (GIS), Google Earth, and other equipments, such as GPS for example. It was concluded that the school and te geography teachers may improve that relationship, contributing to the insertion of technology and to the improvement in the quality of teaching, thus enabling a better understanding of the complexities of the inhabited space on the part of students, the school and society.