MAIN CAUSES IN LEARNING DIFFICULTIES IN PORTUGUESE, MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCES: WHAT DO RESEARCHERS SAY?

Abstract

External tests applied periodically in Basic Education schools show that there are many difficulties with regard to learning Portuguese, Mathematics and Science for students enrolled in this level of education. For this reason, a bibliographic review was carried out on the subject in order to describe the causes related to this situation. The instrument used was the Bardin analysis. We searched for works published on the subject, from February 19, 2002 to February 19, 2022, on Scielo platforms and CAPES journals, with a total result of 32 national articles, which fit the criteria developed for this research. Among the main results, the difficulty of textual comprehension stands out in the three curricular components. In Portuguese, in the literacy process, learning difficulties are related to phonetics and teacher’s lack of knowledge about phonology. In Mathematics, the difficulties involving arithmetic and writing stand out. In Science, the problems boil down to the difficulty of interpretation and the abstract way in which the contents are taught without relating them to the student's social context. The authors attribute these difficulties to deficit of reading and interpretation because of didactic and phonological problems (75%), followed by emotional factors (9%) and without a specific cause (16%). As for the didactic problems, the articles suggest that they are due to the lack of professional training. With the discussions established before the data, it is expected that this review will help teachers to recognize and reflect on these difficulties, awakening the interest in seeking strategies to change the current scenario.