MEDICINAL GARDEN IN THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT: VALUING POPULAR AND SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE

Abstract

Several studies claim that the use of medicinal plants is related to popular culture that is passed on from generation to generation. Currently, the population has exchanged traditional habits for modern ones, replacing home remedies, prepared from medicinal plants, with allopathic medicines. The school medicinal garden can be a living laboratory that allows the development of several pedagogical activities in education, uniting theory, and practice in a contextualized way, helping in the teaching-learning process and strengthening relationships through the promotion of collective work between the main stakeholders. In this context, the objective of this work was to awaken the students' knowledge and interest in the cultivation and use of medicinal plants, through the implementation of a vegetable garden, making them familiar with the properties, correct use, and medicinal functions of the species. best known to the school community. The research was developed at Escola Municipal Joaquim Barbosa de Maria, located in the 5th District in Salgueiro - PE, with the participation of 31 students from the sixth year of elementary school and the teacher responsible for the disciplines of Science and Agricultural Practices. The data collected showed that 41.18% of the students learned to use medicinal plants for medicinal purposes through family members and among the forms of preparation used, the most expressive was tea (60.71%), being used only for the treatment of some illness (85%), when asked about the importance of implementing a vegetable garden at school, all responded that its creation was very important, as it contributed to the knowledge of medicinal plants, as well as to teaching and learning. The use of educational programs such as medicinal gardens helps to promote interdisciplinarity in the process of applied education in schools, improving student performance.