Dialogue between knowledges: in search of inclusive pedagogical practices from traditional quilombola therapies

Abstract

This article presents an education action plan for a pedagogical activity to be applied in regular schools attending quilombola students or able to establish partnerships with nearby quilombola communities. In line with the policy Diretrizes Curriculares Nacionais para a Educação Escolar Quilombola na Educação Básica, of the Ministry of Education of Brazil, the plan is aimed at pedagogical coordinators and School Board authorities and describes the process of researching and creating a repository of traditional plants for therapeutic uses, systematized as a pharmacopoeia at local school gardens. Besides relating such a repository with knowledge and traditional uses of medicinal plants in quilombola communities, it also seeks to research the most common diseases treated at local public health facilities, establishing correlation between the two initiatives. The script is presented step-by-step, including guidance on the necessary previous pedagogical training of educators involved in the project, as well as a detailed explanation of the activities with the students during interaction with quilombola communities. Systematizing each stage is extremely important so as to generate didactic materials (booklets) that might be used and replicated in schools and communities. To contextualize and justify the proposed experience, the plan also includes a brief theoretical analysis of anti-racist education, emphasizing the importance of a dialogue between different forms of knowledge constitution/production. The article also proposes reflections on curriculum and teaching material production process.