State secretaries of education and the National, State, and District Councils of Education are calling for the changes to high school education—which are currently being drafted by the Ministry of Education (MEC)—to take effect only starting in 2025. In a joint statement, they argue that the new high school system has already been implemented in all states and that the changes will require a feasible transition period.

“Any change to be implemented requires a feasible transition period, which is why the decisions to be made following the public consultation should be implemented only starting in the 2025 school year,” argue the secretaries and board members. They say that any changes would entail new adjustments and regulations, including a rewrite of the curriculum guidelines, which would be impossible to complete in time for the 2024 school year.

The joint statement by the National Council of Education Secretaries (Consed), the National Education Council (CNE), and the National Forum of State and District Education Councils (Foncede) was submitted to the Ministry of Education (MEC) on Monday (21).

In their statement, the secretaries and council members also highlight four aspects they consider essential to the provision of secondary education. In addition to transition rules within a timeframe deemed feasible, they call for the continuation of distance learning (EaD) both in basic general education—which covers the content stipulated by the National Common Core Curriculum (BNCC) and is common to all schools in the country—and in specialized tracks, which are the areas students choose to study in greater depth based on the availability of each school district.

According to them, technology-mediated education “is a prerequisite for enabling the implementation of the reform in the evening session and is necessary to address the specific territorial challenges of each region (demographic gaps, indigenous education, rural education, Quilombola education, among others).” The text also cites infrastructure issues, school transportation logistics, and a shortage of teachers as reasons for continuing to offer distance learning.

In addition, the secretaries and council members advocate that 2,100 of the 3,000 hours of high school be devoted to basic general education and that the educational tracks be reduced from ten to two: one consisting of languages, mathematics, and the humanities and social sciences, and the other consisting of languages, mathematics, and the natural sciences. Students may also choose the vocational and technical education track.

Review

The New High School System was approved in 2017 by Law 13,415/2017 and was implemented last year in schools across the country. The model has been the target of criticism, and upon taking office, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva pledged to review it.

In the first half of this year, a public consultation was launched to evaluate and restructure the National Secondary Education Policy. On August 7, the Ministry of Education (MEC) released a summary of the consultation’s main findings. In total, more than 11,000 submissions were received between March 9 and July 6.

Among the proposed changes presented by the Ministry of Education (MEC) based on the consultation are an increase in the number of class hours for the core curriculum, a restructuring of curricular components, and the elimination of distance learning (EaD) for Basic General Education, with the exception of technical vocational education, for which up to 20% of instruction may be offered in this format. Distance learning may also be used in specific situations, such as during a pandemic.

Following the release of the summary, the Ministry of Education (MEC) set a deadline for educational institutions and regulatory bodies to provide feedback on the document. The deadline expires this Monday (the 21st).

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Other organizations have also spoken out. According to the Brazilian Union of High School Students (UBES), the New High School Law must be repealed immediately. The students point out that, as it is currently being implemented, the law only exacerbates inequalities among students, who are at the mercy of the availability and quality of each school system.

The National Campaign for the Right to Education released a technical statement in which it advocates for “guaranteeing 2,400 hours dedicated to Basic General Education as a crucial step toward ensuring a solid education for our students”; the organization also advocates for 100% in-person education, without exception, and emphasizes the importance of increasing public funding for public education and implementing a set of criteria that ensure the excellence of the conditions provided, in accordance with the Student Quality Cost (CAQ), thereby guaranteeing the constitutionally mandated standard of quality.

The proposals still have a long way to go before they reach the classrooms. Now, the Ministry of Education (MEC) will finalize the report, which will be submitted to the National Congress for review. The MEC’s proposals for high school education will also be presented to the Education Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate so that they can contribute to the final report, based on information gathered during public hearings held by the legislative bodies.

Source: Agência Brasil

 

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