Educational Projects on the Cultural Heritage of the Ribeira Valley Based on the New São Paulo Curriculum

Abstract

This article analyzes the teaching process about the cultural heritage of the Ribeira Valley through the methodology of educational projects in History classes in the region's schools, based on the guidelines of the new São Paulo curriculum for elementary education. This work presents various aspects of the cultural heritage of the Ribeira Valley and highlights a scenario of ignorance by a considerable portion of students in the region about this cultural wealth, which fosters attitudes of devaluation and prejudice toward the culture of local groups such as Indigenous peoples, Caiçaras, and Quilombolas.

To address these negative factors present in student education, the new 2019 São Paulo Curriculum proposes studying local cultural manifestations as an essential factor for building individual and regional identity, fostering empathy, and valuing cultural diversity among students. Moreover, this educational document encourages the study of various local cultural manifestations in the History discipline through the development of educational projects as an important pedagogical practice for meaningful learning of historical knowledge, the development of students' intellectual autonomy, and the critical analysis and understanding of the specificities and identities of the ethnic and social groups that constitute the culture of the various regions of the State of São Paulo.