SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN BASIC EDUCATION AS A LEARNING STRATEGY IN THE SEMI-ARID CONTEXT

This article analyzes the contributions of scientific research as a pedagogical strategy in Basic Education, based on an experience with students from the 6th and 7th grades of Elementary School II at EEFTI Cefisa Aguiar, in the municipality of Cariré - Ceará.The study had as its axis water resources, with a focus on forms of water supply and access to potable water by the local population. Of a qualitative and descriptive nature, the investigation was developed through an investigative pedagogical practice, involving students in the stages of the scientific process, based on the problem: how does the population of Cariré access potable water? The socialization of the results took place at Ceará Científico 2025, a state event held annually, in which the students participated in Category III Junior Research, Elementary School II, final years. The results show that the approach to water resources, articulated with environmental education and coexistence with the Semi-arid region, favored student protagonism, meaningful learning, and the critical understanding of local reality. It is concluded that scientific research in Basic Education strengthens the formation of critical subjects and the school as a space for the production of knowledge.