A música popular brasileira como facilitadora da compreensão do conceito de lugar no ensino de geografia

Abstract

This paper evaluates how Brazilian popular music can be used as a teaching resource to enhance the understanding of the concept of place in geography classes. The study was made in a public school downtown of Teresina, Piauí, in a high school class, and had as the main goal to analyze the relation between music education and the learning of geography, especially regarding the valorization of cultural identity and the perception of the space lived in which the students live. The methodology adopted includes qualitative and quantitative approaches, using as instruments, quizzes, pedagogical experiments in the classroom, and a review of the academic literature about the theme. The results show that using MPB songs with lyrics rich in regional, social, and cultural storytelling improves the understanding of the concept of place. The music awakens critical thinking, connecting the students with their life experiences and the local context. This approach promotes greater identification of the students with geography themes while enhancing reflection about spatial and cultural dynamics that structure their reality. In addition, the study shows that MPB can act as a teaching tool extensive and accessible, capable of engaging students with different profiles and increasing interaction and participation in the classroom. Another meaningful aspect of this paper is the statement that music transcends its role in entertainment, assuming a role as a mediator in the educational process. Lyrics composed by Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and Belchior, for example, offer valuable subsidies in the analysis of themes such as urbanization, regionalism, social inequity, and collective memory. By relating these contents to the daily life of the students, the geography classes become more dynamic and inclusive. Like this, this study reinforces the role of MPB not only as a cultural element but also as an innovative and transforming pedagogical strategy while teaching geography.