Photovoltaic energy in the enhancement of indigenous education in the Brazilian Amazon

Within the context of electricity supply in indigenous communities in Brazil, this work presents the experience of the Kalapalo ethnic group, living in the Aiha village (Xingu indigenous land), with photovoltaic energy in the scholar environment. Besides being the most adequate resource for a sustainable energy supply in the village, it is in tune with the social and cultural aspects of its people, being a desired alternative by the community. The natives themselves chose the Aiha Central Indigenous State School to house a pilot project, which brought clear improvements in working conditions, teaching and learning. The main purpose of the present work was to evaluate the contributions that the photovoltaic energy brought to the educational actions in the village. To that end, the indigenous teachers participated in the definition of the content to be measured, allowing the methodology used (and its appropriate statistical treatment) to prioritize the perceptions and expectations of the students and the community. The arrival of electricity had an overall positive impact, allowing indigenous people to associate scholar activities with fishing and agriculture, to conserve food and have audiovisual resources available for the classroom and the community.