Cálculo de olho : conhecimentos e saberes matemáticos de merendeiras escolares.

Abstract

The research that led to this dissertation aimed to identify and describe the mathematical knowledge of four school cooks from two municipal schools in the central region of the Vale do Rio Pardo, exploring their practices and their statements about them in their work environment. The investigation also involved understanding how these women acquired their culinary skills and how they apply them in their daily tasks in school kitchens. The mathematical knowledge, which manifested and developed among the school cooks in their artisanal crafts, was problematized. The research employed narrative conversations, using a qualitative method that included interviews, observations, and document analysis, revealing a cultural ritual of repetition and recreation in the narratives of school cooks. This dissertation was supported by the referential framework of authors D’Ambrósio (2023), who highlighted Ethnomathematics; teaching was represented by Larrosa (2018); with Tardif (2014) and Sennett (2020), the knowledge, experience, and craftsmanship were enhanced. Furthermore, the "alchemy" in conducting the research with the school cooks included the special seasoning of some researchers from PUCRS and UNISC, who sprinkled spices into the writing of this dissertation. The mathematical knowledge was practiced by a cultural group (school cooks) and involved repetitions and recreations, observations, interviews, and field notes. The narratives of the questioned cooks allowed the "identification and description" of the knowledge (including mathematical knowledge) involved in this ritual, which aggregates knowledge that can be taught as pedagogical themes in classrooms. In these investigations, it was possible to perceive and conclude that the school cooks carried out their activities in food preparation, often using rough calculations in their work tasks, demonstrating a typical ethnomathematics in their recipes and daily practices.