The subjects 'human body', 'gender' and 'sexuality' in teaching books of fundamental teaching sciences

Abstract

The subject’s 'gender' and 'sexuality' have been the object of speculation and discussion in different social contexts such as family, justice, medicine, religion, the media, social networks, and school. Focusing the school on the discursive production on these themes leads to a prominent issue: the science textbooks. This didactic resource carries scientific information about gender and sexuality from the ideas that express themselves in society. This article presents the results of a qualitative documentary research carried out in sixteen Primary and Secondary Science textbooks from 6th to 9th year, whose objectives were: to analyze the ideas about gender and sexuality conveyed; to characterize the contents presented and understand how these contents are disclosed in the Science books. The categories of analysis constructed were named as "biological body" and "sociocultural body", problematizing as the theoretical-methodological perspective of Cultural Studies in Education suggests. The science textbooks under analysis disclose little information about gender and sexuality and the contents that appear are guided by the biological and physiological perspectives of gender and sex. The sociocultural aspects are inexpressive, but can be seen. Thus, it is necessary to problematize that the didactic book of Sciences can be a potent social communicator of wide spectrum in the diffusion of knowledge on gender and sexuality. Such disclosure may allow social subjects the opportunity to interpret gender and sexuality issues from contextual, interdisciplinary, ethical, citizen, and scientific ideas.