Map of research on chemistry teacher education in Brazil

The production and dissemination of scientific knowledge on Chemistry Education has received a great deal of attention from researchers national and internationally. In this study, 104 master dissertations and 33 doctoral theses on this topic defended in Graduate Programs in Chemistry, Education, and in Science and Mathematics Education in Brazil (CAPES - area 4, 38, and 46), between 2001 and 2010, were analyzed. The documents were investigated thoroughly based on the following descriptors: year of defense; geographic region, institution, and graduate program; level of education; thematic focus and type of academic work. The results strongly indicate the consolidation of the Chemistry teacher education research area in the country showing an increased production within the period analyzed. The levels of education focused were high school (37,2%) and higher education (54,8%), whereas the topics initial teacher training (53,3%) and continuing professional development (36,5%) were the most investigated.