Alda Enestina dos Santos developed the table after an online course during the Covid-19 pandemic. The material is available on the internet and will be turned into an application.
Um online course during the pandemic, an idea and the emergence of an important tool in inclusive education: the periodic table in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras). The idea came from Alda Ernestina dos Santos, a chemistry professor at the Federal Institute of Minas Gerais (IFMG), Bambuí campus, who made the table available for free on the institute's website and plans to turn it into an app.
The teacher, a native of Luz, in the Midwest of Minas [Gerais], told G1 that she has been teaching chemistry at IFMG for a year and is part of the Support Center for People with Specific Educational Needs (NAPNEE) on the Bambuí campus.
The Inclusive Periodic Table was created during a Sign Language course she took during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to put the knowledge she gained in the Sign Language course into practice.
“I had the idea of developing it after taking the course. As a member of NAPNEE, one of my goals is to produce adapted educational materials for students with some type of specific educational need, such as visual impairment, hearing impairment, ADHD,” she said.
Development
The material began to be produced in April and was finalized in July. However, the release took place on August 7. The teacher explained that the creation of the table had no financial cost, but required intense days of dedication and work.
“All the planning and creation of the material, from the layout to the link configuration, were developed by me. However, I had the collaboration of chemistry teacher Vássia Soares in reviewing the technical content, and ASL interpreter Layse Moura in reviewing the language,” explained Alda, adding that both are staff members at IFTM Bambuí.
The educator also stated that, due to the positive feedback she is receiving for creating the material, she decided to expand the project.
“We are going to turn the inclusive periodic table into a mobile app. This project is underway and currently has the participation of three other professors and a computer engineering student from the campus,” he said.
Scarcity of inclusive content
Ph.D. and Master in Chemistry from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Alda highlighted that there is a shortage of adapted materials for students with specific needs, especially in the teaching of exact sciences such as chemistry, physics, and mathematics.
Therefore, she believes that the periodic table will be a material of great value, both as a support for teachers and for the accessibility of deaf students in the country.
“Considering that deaf people have Libras as their native language, and teachers do not always master this language or have a Libras interpreter available in the classroom, the inclusive table can assist both the teachers” work and the students' learning, inclusion, and socialization.” highlighted.
The table is also a resource for general students who wish to learn the representation of chemical elements in Libras and get to know their main properties. In addition to the sign language symbol, the material features important information for each element, such as atomic number, atomic mass, electronic configuration, physical state, and the group to which it belongs.
“In terms of educational encouragement, I believe the development of the table can also contribute to more inclusive initiatives like this being developed by teachers in other areas aimed at facilitating the learning of students with some type of specific educational need,” the teacher concluded.
Source:
LIBRASOL
