Investigações sobre a matemática presente na profissão de pedreiro

Abstract

Mathematical knowledge has been present since the dawn of mankind, and much knowledge has been developed from experiences in response to the need to perpetuate problem-solving skills and the evolution of society. In view of this, ethnomathematics arose with the purpose of studying the cultural differences in the environment of mathematics education concerning the body of knowledge transmitted by different groups and individuals, as is the case of the masonry profession. The present work aimed to investigate the applied mathematics behind the profession of mason, focusing on knowledge about calculating area, volume, ratio, proportion, angles and the use of Geometry to relate to the skills proposed by the National Common Curricular Base. To this end, we sought to identify the methods used by these professionals and evaluate the knowledge used seeking to associate these activities with the skills proposed by the Common National Curricular Base - BNCC. For this, a qualitative research was conducted, based on semi-structured interviews in a field research, in which open questions were asked to the participants in the form of an informal conversation seeking the possibility for them to talk about the experiences, from this, an interpretative network was assembled aiming to correlate the answers to the objectives of this research. Both professionals who participated in this study attended elementary school, however, the knowledge associated with mathematics was improved through experiences with family members from whom they learned the profession. The techniques used for area, volume, ratio, and proportion calculations were present for both professionals in the constructions where the field study was carried out. Skills associated with measuring angles, the Pythagorean theorem, and geometry were observed. The masons, therefore, are capable of applying this knowledge in a practical and simple way, demonstrating abilities from basic operations for preparing mortar, to building from the foundation to the roof and raising walls where theorems are applied empirically. From this perspective, it was possible to observe the importance of ethnomathematics to the masonry profession, highlighting its importance, in which the professionals were able to apply different knowledge acquired from their cultural and professional experiences, contributing to the development of the society in which mathematics appears, embedded in different activities, being possible to promote a critical reflection about the profession and the knowledge used.