The full-time school model has been expanding in Brazil, with the goal of improving learning outcomes and the holistic development of students throughout basic education by promoting a more comprehensive and high-quality education.

In Pará, for example, according to the State Department of Education (Seduc), the increased implementation of full-day programs in public schools led to a 1.3-point jump in the 2023 Basic Education Development Index (Ideb). With a score of 4.3 in high school, Pará moved up from 26th place in 2021 to 6th place in the 2023 Ideb ranking.

Pará has accelerated the expansion of full-time schooling. In 2024, SEDUC achieved a 100% increase in enrollment slots at full-time schools. There are 33 new schools operating under the full-time model and more than 17,700 new enrollment slots, bringing the total number of full-time enrollment slots in the state school system to 35,900.

Another notable example comes from the state of Paraná. In state elementary and middle schools (6th through 9th grade), 65.6% of schools operating on a full-day schedule saw their Ideb scores increase between 2021 and 2023, with an average score increase of 14.3%. This improvement was nearly 12 percentage points higher than that of other schools, indicating a 53.9% increase in test scores.

In high school, the Ideb score increased in 51.6% of full-time state schools, compared with 46.2% of the remaining schools—a difference of more than 5 percentage points. On average, the scores of full-time schools rose by 18% between 2021 and 2023.

See also:

• What do we mean when we say “transforming education”?
• Brazilian edtech companies face structural challenges but are emerging with the potential to compete globally
• How Gamification and AI Can Put Students at the Center of the Learning Journey

Since 2019, Paraná has been investing in expanding the number of full-time schools through the Paraná Integral Program. That year, 73 schools operated under this system, increasing to 82 in 2020 and 92 in 2021. In 2023—the reference year for the Ideb assessment—there were already 253 full-time schools, rising to the current total of 412 this school year.

And the improvement in the Ideb score is not limited to Pará and Paraná. According to a report in the newspaper O Globo, full-time schools perform better on the Ideb, particularly benefiting poorer students. Ideb data from 2023 show that students in full-time schools—with more than seven hours of classes per day—learn the equivalent of one additional year’s worth of mathematics, according to an analysis by two institutes focused on improving education in Brazil, Sonho Grande and Natura.

The survey also shows that this group of public high schools with longer daily class hours scored 4.4 on the indicator, compared to 4.1 for part-time schools. Brazil has seen a steady expansion of full-time high schools. In 2019, 13% of high schools and 10% of students were enrolled in these schools. By 2023, these figures had jumped to 33% and 18%, respectively.

MEC's Full-Time School Program

The Ministry of Education’s (MEC) Full-Time School Program allocates funds to create full-time enrollment opportunities at all levels and in all types of basic education within the public school system. The program’s new cycle, covering the 2024–2025 period, has already been adopted by 3,710 municipalities (66.6%) and 18 states (66.7%), according to the latest bulletin released by the MEC in September.

The document also highlights the Northeast Region, which accounts for 85.7% of the confirmed municipalities and is the only region in which all states are participating. State, municipal, and district school systems wishing to join the program have until October 31 to do so. In this new cycle, an additional 1 million enrollments will be promoted nationwide, from preschool through high school, including students with disabilities, from quilombola communities, rural areas, and indigenous communities, according to the Ministry of Education (MEC). The investment will total R$4 billion, and the goal is to reach approximately 3.2 million enrollments by 2026. 

Share on social media: