Critical Mathematics Education and Environmental Education: a mathematical way to postpone the end the world

Abstract

Environmental problems have fueled discussions in different sectors of society, especially after the worsening of climate conditions around the world. Several projections indicate that we are living at a point of no return for adequate conditions for human survival and the tendency is for more and more people to suffer from global warming and its adverse effects. To rethink our relationship with the environment, awareness is essential. Based on the perspective defended by Paulo Freire of an education that is emancipatory, that is, a contribution to understanding and overcoming social adversities, we believe that the school and Critical Mathematics Education can be an important role in the process of raising awareness among students. Therefore, we carried out a literature review to understand how research already carried out associates Mathematics with environmental issues in the school context. We seek to identify how awareness, according to Paulo Freire’s conception, is seen as a concern in these works when dealing with urgent themes related to the environment, through Mathematics, aiming at the citizenship formation of students. In this way, it was possible to notice an increase in work involving this theme in Brazil and the need to prioritize awareness and establish connections between mathematical contents and the reality experienced and perceived by students for a new meaning of the mathematics curriculum and school practices.