O julgamento da transgenia: sequência didática para o ensino de genética

Abstract

Transgenic organisms are those whose genome has been modified with the aim of giving them a new characteristic or altering an existing characteristic, through the insertion or elimination of one or more genes by genetic engineering techniques. Transgenics have been gaining prominence in biotechnology and in several areas, including agriculture, medicine and the environment. Although the advances are notable, there is an intense conflict between supporters and critics of transgenic technology. Much of the controversy arises from the lack of complete and reliable information about the risks, benefits and limitations of this application. Thus, the main objective of this research is to produce a didactic resource to assist teachers and undergraduate and elementary school students in conceiving the impact of transgenics on today's society, presenting advantages and disadvantages of the use of technology, in a playful and interactive way, presenting different perspectives on the subject. To this end, we chose to use the strategy of a mock jury, in the format of a theatrical play, to bring the debate on transgenics into the classroom, bringing students closer to the subject. The construction of arguments, choice of characters and speeches that substantiated the dialogues of the mock jury play were inspired by bibliographic sources, such as scientific articles and books, newspapers, interviews (accessed on the YouTube channel), blogs of governmental and non-governmental institutions that research the topics in question, such as Greenpeace, EMBRAPA, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FioCruz), National Library of Medicine (NIH). The knowledge developed was organized in a didactic sequence. In the first pedagogical moment, an active search was suggested to determine the level of knowledge of the students regarding the topic, before presenting all the concepts that will be taught by the teacher, and in the second pedagogical moment, we suggested carrying out the mock jury rehearsal, using the concepts learned in the first pedagogical moment to formulate the jury's trajectory. These pedagogical moments served as a basis for the mock jury's performance, which is put into practice in the third moment. The mock jury was organized according to the structure of a real jury trial, where students are divided between a clerk, judge, defense attorney, defense witnesses, prosecution attorney, prosecution witness, and the defendant. The mock jury has the advantage of stimulating the development of critical thinking, since participants must analyze evidence, formulate arguments and counterarguments. This research was the first initiative in mock jury theater exclusively addressing the transgenic theme with the aim of contributing to the understanding of scientific knowledge and its interrelations with society, technology, and genetics.