Education in Brazil

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

The 1988 Brazilian Constitution said about education that it is, "a right for all, duty of the State and of the family, and is to be promoted with the collaboration of society, with the objective of fully developing the person, preparing the individual for the exercise of citizenship and qualifying him/her for work."

The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Education and Sports, defines the guiding principals for the organization of educational programs, but does not establish such programs. Local governments are responsible for establishing local educational programs following the guidelines and using the funding supplied by the Federal Government.

The National Educational Bases and Guidelines Law enacted in 1961 says that, "national education, inspired in the principles of freedom and in the ideals of human solidarity, has the purpose of:

understanding individual rights and responsibilities, as well as those of citizens, the State and other community groups;
respecting man's dignity and fundamental freedoms;
strengthening national unity and international solidarity;
integral development of the human personality and his/her participation in the work towards common welfare;
preparing individuals and society to master scientific and technological resources which will allow the use existing possibilities to common welfare;
protecting, disseminating and expanding cultural heritage;
condemning any unequal treatment resulting from philosophical, political or religious belief, as well as any social classes or racial prejudices.

1 Situation
2 Organization and structure
3 Teacher training and qualification
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] Situation

As a large middle-income country, Brazil still has several underdeveloped regions. Its educational system is accordingly plagued by many defficiencies. [1]. Of 100 students that start the 1st grade:

50 quit in the first or second year
37 finish the 4th grade
17 finish the 8th grade
9 finish high school
6 go to university
Of 12 million children ages 4-6, only 1.5 million go to pre-school
50% of teachers have inadequate training. 200,000 teachers without Certificate
Great differences exist between rural and urban schools. Schools in cities receive more and better resources.
School curriculum and materials are inadequate
Not enough money is spent on education

However, despite the generally poor state of the Brazilian educational system, there are also several high schools and universities with great reputation and outstanding standards. In particular, despite its generally poor record in primary and secondary education, Brazil is paradoxically known for having developed an internationally recognized system of undergraduate and graduate higher learning education centered around a few elite public universities such as Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), and Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), plus a smaller number of research-oriented private universities such as the Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio). Brazil is also ranked among the top five developing countries in scientific output as measured by number of publications in peer-reviewed international journals (reference needed).

[edit] Organization and structure

Education is divided into three levels, with several grades in each division. Fundamental education (the first educational level) is free for everyone (including adults), and mandatory for children between the ages of 6-14. Intermediate education is also free, but it is not mandatory. Higher education (including graduate degrees) is free at public universities.

[edit] Pre-school

Pre-school is entirely optional, and exists to aid in the development of children under 7. It aims to assist in all areas of child development, including motor skills, cognitive skills, and social skills while providing fertile ground for the later acquisition of knowledge and learning. There are day nurseries for children under 2, kindergartens for 2-3 year olds, and preschools for children 4 and up.

[edit] Fundamental Education

Fundamental Education is mandatory for children ages 6-14. There are 8 grades. Generally speaking, the only prerequisite for enrolling in first grade is that a child should be 6 years of age, but some educational systems allow children younger than 6 to enroll in first grade. Older students who, for whatever reason have not completed their fundamental education are allowed to attend, though those over 18 are separated from the younger children.

The Federal Council of Education sets a core curriculum consisting of Portuguese, Social Studies (including History and Geography) Physics, Biological Science, and Mathematics. Each educational system supplements this core curriculum with a diversified curriculum defined by the needs of the region and the abilities of individual students.

The length of the school year is set at 200 days by the National Education Bases and Guidelines Law. Fundamental schools must provide students with 800 hours of activities per year. The actual school calendar is set by individual schools which, in rural areas, often organize their calendar by sowing and harvesting seasons.

[edit] Intermediate Education

Intermediate education can take anywhere from 3-5 years. However, it is a commonplace for schools to adopt a 3 year program, with the third year serving mostly as a revision of the previous two, having the objective of helping students recap what they will need to know in order to pass College entrance examinations. The minimum is 2,200 hours of coursework over 3 years. Students must have finished their Fundamental education before they are allowed to enroll in Intermediate school. Professional training is often included in Intermediate Education, and when it is, the education takes longer.

[edit] Higher Education

Intermediate education is mandatory for those wishing to pursue higher education. In addition, students must pass a competitive entrance examination (known as vestibular) for their specific course of study. The number of candidates per available place in the freshman class may be in excess of 20 or 30 to one in the most competitive courses at the top public universities.

Higher education in Brazil, as in many nations, can be divided into both undergraduate and graduate work. In addition to providing education, Universities promote research and provide stand-alone classes to the community.

The standard Brazilian undergraduate bachelor's degree is awarded in most fields of arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematical sciences, or natural sciences, and normally requires 4 years of post-secondary studies at a certified university. Five-year degrees (known as diplomas) are awarded in the so-called professional careers such as architecture, engineering, veterinary medicine, and law. The undergraduate degree in medicine requires in turn six years of full-time post-secondary studies, including at least two or three years of clinical studies in a teaching hospital.

Students who hold a four-year bachelor's degree or a five-year professional diploma qualify for admission into graduate school (pós-graduação). Graduate master's degrees are normally awarded following the completion of a two-year program requiring satisfactory performance in a minimum number of advanced graduate courses (typically between five and seven classes), plus the submission by the degree candidate of a master's thesis (dissertação de mestrado) that is examined by an oral panel of at least three faculty members, including at least one external examiner. Doctoral degrees on the other hand normally require four years of full-time studies during which the degree candidate is required to complete further advanced graduate coursework, pass a doctoral qualifying exam, and submit an extensive doctoral dissertation (tese de doutoramento) that must represent an original and relevant contribution to current knowledge in the field of study to which the dissertation topic belongs. The doctoral dissertation is examined in a final public oral exam administered by a panel of at least five faculty members, two of whom must be external examiners. Results from the dissertation are normally expected to be published in peer-reviewed journals, proceedings of international conferences, and/or in the form of books/book chapters.

[edit] Teacher training and qualification

Teacher training is available at both Intermediate schools and Universities, depending on what grades one desires to teach. A 3-year course in Intermediate school will qualify prospective teachers to teach the first 4 grades of Fundamental school. A 3-4 year Intermediate school course plus an additional year qualifies one to teach grades 5 and 6. Intermediate school training takes place at the University level. There are frequent programs for teachers to update their skills.