In recent years, the Brazilian education system has faced one of the greatest challenges in its recent history. The pandemic disrupted routines, kept students out of school, and highlighted inequalities that were already present in the education system. This period left a deep mark on learning, and the data help illustrate the extent of this situation. According to the Ministry of Education, only 35% of elementary school students achieved adequate proficiency in Portuguese, and in mathematics, that percentage drops to 18% ( BRAZIL, 2024).

Given this scenario, the debate over learning consolidation is gaining momentum: a structured strategy to ensure that students consolidate what they have learned throughout their educational journey.

In 2025, the Federal Government established the National Pact for the Reorganization of Learning, with a focus on supporting school systems in identifying learning gaps, reorganizing curricula, and implementing strategies aligned with learning outcomes. This initiative demonstrates that the reorganization of learning has become a national priority. At the same time, its implementation in school systems requires technical support, data organization, and structured strategies that make it possible to transform guidelines into concrete actions in everyday school life.

Remedial Instruction, Academic Reinforcement, and Learning Recovery

Historically, the Brazilian education system has sought ways to support students with learning difficulties. As early as the first Law on Educational Guidelines and Principles (LDB) (Law No. 4,024/1961), there was already concern about academic performance, although no specific details were provided regarding remediation strategies.

It was through subsequent legislation (Law No. 5,692/1971) and the current Framework Law on Education (Law No. 9,394/1996) that remedial mechanisms became more structured, providing for remedial activities throughout the school year and additional opportunities for students to achieve their learning objectives. Consequently, such initiatives—such as remedial learning and academic support—have come to the attention of administrators and teachers in their quest for better results and improvements in the quality of education.

Remedial learning is generally associated with one-time interventions, often carried out at the end of a school term. It typically focuses on reviewing material that students have not mastered, offering them a new opportunity to meet the established minimum objectives through additional activities and assessments.

On the other hand, academic support—which is also part of school practices—deepens the study of certain concepts through ongoing, personalized activities. These are individualized interventions, typically conducted in smaller groups during after-school hours.

Even with all the effort, these measures, taken in isolation, may not be enough to close the learning gaps.

The restructuring of learning proposes a shift in approach. Rather than focusing efforts on specific moments, it is structured as a continuous process, integrated into the curriculum and guided by evidence. It begins with an assessment of learning, takes into account students’ different levels of development, and organizes pedagogical interventions over time, with a focus on real and progressive advancement.

This difference is not merely terminological, but pedagogical. While remediation and reinforcement tend to focus on what has already been covered, recomposition seeks to understand each student’s starting point in order to promote more consistent and lasting learning.

Thus, learning remediation can be understood as a set of intentional, ongoing, and organized pedagogical actions aimed at identifying and addressing gaps in the learning process. This effort includes using data from district- and school-level assessments to reorganize the curriculum and plan classroom interventions.

Recomposition in Practice

This shift in perspective aligns with the concept of meaningful learning proposed by David Ausubel. According to the author, learning occurs more consistently when new knowledge connects with what the student already knows, allowing for the construction of meaning rather than merely the memorization of content (AUSUBEL, 2003).

When this connection is not made, learning tends to be superficial and short-lived, which helps explain why strategies based solely on reviewing content are not always sufficient to bridge existing gaps.

In this regard, rebuilding learning requires understanding each student’s starting point and creating conditions that allow learning to make sense over time. In other words, it is essential to consolidate skills —even those from previous years—to enable learning to progress.

In practice, this process involves three key steps: assessment, analysis, and action:

• Assessment: identifies which skills have been mastered and which still need to be developed, providing an evaluation of the students' starting point.
• Analysis: transforms data into educational insights, making it possible to identify patterns and levels of learning and to set priorities.
• Action: Organizes classroom interventions focused on prioritizing curriculum content, providing differentiated instruction by ability level, and ensuring students’ continuous progress.

Although this approach is increasingly recognized, putting it into practice in a structured way remains a challenge for many school systems. Assessments are conducted and data is collected, but they do not always translate into clear guidelines for teaching.

Furthermore, when the interpretation of results, the differentiation of learning levels, and the definition of interventions are left solely to the teacher, this places a significant burden on the teaching staff. It is necessary to reorganize the learning process based on a consistent pedagogical plan that brings together teachers and administrators.

Without a framework that links assessment, curriculum, and action, data tends to become fragmented, which hinders decision-making and limits the impact of recovery strategies.

How FOCUS Helps with Learning Remediation

It is in this context that FOCUS emerges—an educational solution designed to support school districts in reinforcing learning in a structured, ongoing manner that is aligned with students’ actual needs.

The process begins with an assessment of the school system, based on an analysis of state or municipal curricula and existing learning data, followed by the organization of skills by school term with clear priorities, so that teachers know exactly what to focus on at each point in the school year.

Next, a sequence of content is suggested to be covered progressively, in line with the school district’s curriculum, indicating the number of class periods for each stage and how it integrates with the teaching materials already in use, and suggesting to the teacher which chapter to use for each learning objective.

Thus, with each new assessment (diagnostic or formative) that the school system already administers, students are grouped by learning level, and the learning path is updated to indicate, by class, what needs to be addressed. This process also makes it possible to identify gaps more precisely and determine the starting point for addressing them.

Finally, for content areas with the greatest learning gaps, ready-made action plans are provided: with step-by-step instructions for teachers, strategies tailored to each learning level, and guidance on when and how to implement them.

This structure makes it possible to define strategies that are better suited to each class, taking into account their varying levels of progress in the remedial process. Thus, rather than proposing the same path for everyone, it becomes possible to plan interventions and lesson plans that are better aligned with the students’ actual needs.

Rebuilding learning requires turning assessments into action in the day-to-day life of schools. With organization, intentionality, and structured support, it becomes possible to better guide pedagogical work and promote real progress. In this process, FOCUS contributes by supporting networks and teachers in building more consistent paths to learning.

by Júlia Hobold, Vanessa Benites, and Patricia Ferreira

*Content is the sole responsibility of the advertiser.
**This text does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bett Brasil.

References:

AUSUBEL, David Paul. Knowledge Acquisition and Retention: A Cognitive Perspective. Lisbon: Plátano, 2003.

BRAZIL. Decree No. 12,391, dated February 28, 2025. Establishes the National Pact for the Restructuring of Learning. Official Gazette of the Union, Brasília, Federal District, 2025.

BRAZIL. Ministry of Education. Guide for Implementing Learning Recovery. Brasília, Federal District: MEC, 2024.

BRAZIL. Ministry of Education. National Pact for Learning Recovery: Context and Guidelines. Brasília, Federal District: MEC, 2024.

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