Initial Teacher Education in PIBID BioQui: Addressing Food Fake News Through the Critical Analysis of Nutritional Labeling

Abstract

Digital social media has expanded the circulation of information related to food, health, and body standards, fostering the spread of food fake news, restrictive diets, and pseudoscientific discourses that directly influence young people’s eating habits. In this context, Science Education plays an important role in promoting Scientific Literacy and media literacy, contributing to the development of individuals capable of critically analyzing information disseminated through digital media. This paper reports on a pedagogical experience developed within the Institutional Scholarship Program for Teaching Initiation in Biology and Chemistry (PIBID BioQui) at the Federal University of Ouro Preto (UFOP), carried out with 2nd- and 3rd-year high school students from Dom Benevides State School, located in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The proposal aimed to promote critical food education through the problematization of food-related fake news and the analysis of nutritional labeling. The intervention was structured into three stages: identifying students’ prior conceptions about food and the influence of social media; conducting the “Nutritional Magnifying Glass” activity focused on the critical analysis of ultra-processed food labels; and creating fictional labels for foods cultivated in the school garden. The results revealed active student participation, greater understanding of food label reading, and critical reflection on food-related discourses disseminated online. In the context of initial teacher education, the experience contributed to the development of interdisciplinary and contextualized pedagogical practices, highlighting PIBID’s potential in articulating university, school, and critical teacher education.