Research in environmental education in the dispute for public school: historical-dialectical materialism as a theoretical-methodological foundation

The aim of this paper is to discuss and analyze the historical-dialectical materialism as a radical foundation considering a critical environmental education in public school. This theme has composed the research objects and knowledge productions of the Grupo de Pesquisa em Educacao Ambiental - GPEA -, which develops its activities together with the Programa de Pos-Graduagao em Educagao para a Ciencia, UNESP-Bauru. Taking into account the fact that the public school is increasingly revealing itself as a social institution disputed by different social sectors and class fractions, its conquest by the working class is a condition for the transformation of the Brazilian public school reality, including for the implementation of critical environmental education. In this sense, academic productions of environmental education which are based on historical-dialectical materialism can reveal the paths and challenges to be faced and overcome in order to materialize in public school. Thus, This paper attempts to analyze and reflect on the need of addressing researches in environmental education under this framework, inasmuch as its essential contributions to knowledge production for a thorough integration of critical environmental education in public schools.