Abordagem da sífilis em livros didáticos em escolas de um município brasileiro

Abstract

Syphilis is a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) considered a public health crisis in Brazil. Aracaju, the capital of the state of Sergipe, has the highest incidence of syphilis cases, with the majority of notifications occurring in the neighborhoods of Santa Maria, Olaria, América, and Santos Dumont. In this context, sexual education emerges as a strategy to mitigate this public health issue by promoting learning focused on sexual health, playing a crucial role in the prevention of syphilis. In the educational context, textbooks (TBs) are widely used as tools for teaching children, adolescents, and young adults. TBs can contribute to fostering the adoption of preventive practices, such as the use of condoms and regular medical testing. However, despite facilitating access to information, some TBs may present inconsistencies in the way they address content. These issues may include conceptual errors and even overly simplistic treatment of the subject matter. Exposed to these challenges, the problem becomes even more serious considering that the TB is often one of the only instructional materials commonly available to students. Given the high prevalence of syphilis cases and the critical role of sexual education, we conducted a content analysis of TBs used in municipal schools located in the neighborhoods of Santa Maria, Olaria, América, and Santos Dumont, in the city of Aracaju. A qualitative study was conducted, employing the content analysis method proposed by Laurence Bardin (1977). The selected schools were Santa Rita de Cássia Municipal Elementary School (EMEF) in the América neighborhood; Laonte Gama da Silva EMEF in Santa Maria; Oviêdo Teixeira EMEF in Olaria; and Olga Benário EMEF in Santos Dumont. It was found that all schools used the same collection of textbooks, specifically the Teláris Essencial series published by Editora Ática, approved by the National Textbook Program (PNLD). We performed the pre-analysis stage of the TBs, followed by material exploration, and finally, data treatment and interpretation. The analysis revealed that most indicators related to the transmission and treatment of syphilis. It was observed that the content tended to be simplified and treated in a reductionist manner, offering only the minimum necessary information in the TBs. Contrary to the approach proposed by the textbooks, the understanding of health processes should be a competency that, in the case of STIs, enables students to autonomously identify symptoms and recognize changes in their own biological bodies.