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Among the contents worked in the school context, we highlight Astronomy, an area of knowledge inserted in the discipline of Sciences, whose scientific contents seek to explain the astronomical phenomena that are observed in everyday life. This text is part of a master's research and aims to investigate the approach of Astronomy contents in the Early Years of Elementary School and its implication in the teaching and learning process. Data collection was carried out with the application of questionnaires, directed to the Municipal Department of Education of a municipality in the state of Paraná, to school directors/coordinators and to Sciences teachers, with the participation of 56 volunteers. The results discuss the aspects that influence the teaching and learning process of Astronomy contents, reflecting on the training of education professionals and inquiring about the problems that permeate the teaching of this content in classroom practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching Science with quality is unquestionably one of the principal requirements for attaining higher material and cultural development indices in Brazil. With this in mind, the State University of Maringá, State of Paraná, established in 1992 the Science Initial Teacher Training course, a pioneer course aiming to develop specialized teachers to work from the 5th to the 8th grades. These professionals act, by rights, in the disciplines of Science and Mathematics in Primary School and in Methodology of the Teaching of Science in Secondary School. However, it is necessary to verify if the graduates have really found proper work opportunities. Here, the situation of the aforementioned teachers competing in public selection exams (for temporary and permanent teaching posts) carried out by the Paraná State Government is analyzed. The analysis indicates that the rules of the selection processes do not give the Science teachers due credit in their indispensable role in Brazilian Education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]