Research on primary school Natural Sciences textbooks in Portugal

Abstract

The main aim of this research paper is to understand the place given to Botany in Natural Science textbooks used in Primary School Education in the last century in Portugal. In order to interpret the shifts in the content approach for Botany, didactical books at this educational were studied based on eleven principles: Form, Kingdoms, Classification, Organs, Roots, Stem, Leaf, Flower, Fruit, Reproduction and Dimensions. This study used a qualitative methodological approach supported by a content analysis and the establishment of a posteriori categories, as well as a cluster analysis through the construction of dendograms. The latter constructions were intended to promote the comparison of first hand sources – textbooks – taking into account the pedagogical and didactical orientations, the educational and curricular policy recommendations as well as the educational and scientific values suggested. Data analysis shows that changes have occurred in the terms used for the teaching of Natural Sciences and in the contents approached, which have taken on different relevance over time. Therefore, one may find the conservation of various botanical contents distributed throughout different botanic dimensions; namely, the notional dimension, the morphological dimension, the functional dimension and the ecological dimension.