Day 1
Title: Privatization and Inequality in Higher Education: The case of Brazil
9:00am-10:20am
Panel Description
This panel will explore issues of access to higher education in Brazil. Several topics will be covered, from focusing on the historical inequities affecting Brazil's college going populations, to economic disparities that influence education. A wide range of socio historical contexts will be addressed, as well as the current economic climate which influences the privatization of schooling in Brazil.
Panelists
Antoine Lousao, Adolfo Ignacio Calderón
Discussant
Regina Cortina
Antoine Lousao
Biography
Antoine Lousao is a Visiting Scholar at Teachers College for the academic year 2015-2016. He works at the Rio de Janeiro State Government, in Brazil, and is currently the Deputy Secretary of State for Human Resources at the State Secretariat for Education, an organization with eighty thousand teachers and nearly one million students. He is part of the leadership team that reformed the public schools of his State, which grew from the 26th to the 4th position among the 27 Brazilian states in the education national index within four year.
Antoine Lousao contributed to research on subjects such as public policies and public administration in Brazil, and social inclusion and economic development. He taught Civil Service and Ethics in the Brazilian School of Public Administration and participated in think tanks such as the Institute for Studies on Work and Society (Iets, Rio de Janeiro).
Antoine Lousao completed a PhD in Political Philosophy at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (2010-2014), a Professional Masters in Administration at Sciences Po, Paris (2006-2008), a Masters in Political Philosophy at Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne and a Human Sciences Degree at Université Paris X Nanterre and Lycée Henri IV, Paris (2002-2005).
Panel Abstract
Inequality in access to higher education: structural problem, public investment distribution and public management
Inequality in higher education in Brazil is a multifaceted issue, including access and quality. While only 40% of the 18-25 year-old population has access to college, the majority of low-income populations can only enroll in private universities, which represent more than 70% of the higher education offer but are not the best-ranked institutions. This scenario is the product of historical inheritances, but also of an unreasonable educational system, where the State funds public higher education for the few and where only 20% of the amount invested in public higher education goes to basic education, unlike in most developed countries. Understanding and discussing the failures in the public education system – including the funding and the bureaucratic structure – and the linkages between basic education results and access to higher education may be the first steps to address an urgent problem in a country with 50 million young people, where the population will get older faster than in most other countries.
Adolfo Ignacio Calderón
Biography
ADOLFO IGNACIO CALDERÓN holds a doctorate in social sciences from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (Brazil), post-doctoral degree in Educational Sciences at the University of Coimbra (Portugal), full professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas (Brazil), researcher with scientific productivity grants from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) [Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development], scientific advisor and consultant to research funding agencies in Brazil, such as the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) [Foundation for State of São Paulo], Comissão de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal do Nível Superior (CAPES) [Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination], and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) [Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development]. He's also reviewer of renowned Brazilian scientific journals such as Ensaio: avaliação e políticas públicas em educação [Ensaio: evaluation and public policy in education], Diálogo Educacional [Educational Dialogue], Estudos em Avaliação Educacional [Studies in Educational Evaluation] and Educação & Realidade [Education & Reality]. His research is focused on various aspects of basic and higher education: evaluation of educational systems, rankings in education, educational policy, and school effectiveness. His most recent papers are: Academic rankings in higher education: mapping of its expansion in the ibero-american space (ActaScientiarum Education, 2015), The expansion of private higher education in Brazil. From FHC’s administration to Lula’s (Revista Iberoamericana de Educación Superior, 2015); The evaluation by results and the culture of performativity: The teacher evaluation in public school of São Paulo State (Brazil) (Revista Iberoamericana de Evaluación Educativa, 2014).
Panel Abstract
The for profit universities in Brazil in the light of performance in academic rankings
Since the second half of the nineties we could realize the impressive quantitative growth of private for-profit universities, organized and effectively managed as companies in a scenario that has institutionalized a dynamic and competitive higher education market. This study analyzes the performance of for-profit universities in light of its performance in three existing academic rankings in Brazil: General Index of Courses (IGC), of the federal government; Best Universities Award, of Student Guide, sponsored by Editora Abril; and University Ranking Folha (RUF), produced by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo. It is shown that even though this type of university has a big importance in expanding access to higher education, focusing on a specific niche market which is the mass education, they are institutions that are mainly characterized by offering framed educational products, predominantly they present the minimum quality standards required by law, on the threshold between the least satisfactory and unsatisfactory. It is a reality that makes us reflect on the government's need to expand the access to public higher education, about the importance of regulatory mechanisms to ensure the quality of educational services, as well as the relevance of the recommendations of UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientificand Cultural Organization) in terms of risks to educational systems represented by the expansion of the called “degree mills’.
Resumen
LAS UNIVERSIDADES CON FINES LUCRATIVOS EN EL BRASIL A LA LUZ DEL DESEMPEÑO EN LOS RÁNQUINES ACADEMICOS
Desde la segunda mitad de la década de noventa acompañamos el impresionante crecimiento cuantitativo de las universidades privadas con fines lucrativos, organizadas y administradas efectivamente como empresas, en un escenario en que se institucionalizó un dinámico y concurrido mercado de educación superior. En este estudio analizase la actuación de las universidades con fines lucrativos a la luz de su desempeño en tres ránquines académicos existentes en el Brasil: Índice General de Cursos (IGC), del gobierno federal; Premio Mejores Universidades del Guía del Estudiante, promovido por la Editora Abril; y Ranking Universitario Folha (RUF), producido por el periódico Folha de São Paulo. Se demuestra que aunque ese tipo de universidad desempeñe papel protagónico en la ampliación del acceso a la educación superior, enfocándose en un nicho de mercado específico como es la enseñanza de masas, son instituciones que preponderantemente se caracterizan por ofrecer productos educacionales encuadrados, predominantemente, en los padrones mínimos de calidad exigidos por la ley, en el límite entre lo mínimo satisfactorio y lo no satisfactorio. Se trata de una realidad que lleva a reflexionar sobre la necesidad gubernamental de ampliación del acceso a la educación superior pública, sobre la importancia de mecanismos de regulación que aseguren la calidad de los servicios educacionales, bien como la pertinencia de las recomendaciones de la UNESCO (Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura), en términos de los riesgos a los sistemas educacionales representados pela expansión de las llamadas fábricas de diplomas.
Maria de Fatima Duarte
Biography
Doctora en Psicología, Universidade Federal de Pelotas
Panel Abstract
The Implications of Reforms of Public Education in Teacher Training of Early Childhood Education in Brazil and Repercussions in their Health
The aim of this paper is to present the possible relationship between the educative working process and the so called teacher’s malaise and the new demands of being a teacher of early childhood conducted by educational and curricular reforms set in Brazil on the last twenty years. The article is the result of studies on possible relationship between the teaching work process and illness, which we have been conducting since 2009. We investigated two dimensions of work – control over the work and psychological demands. characteristics that in this neoliberal globalization times, are producing processes of illness on the teacher’s, which has being submitted to increasing technical and bureaucratic tasks along with its professional activities. We did a historical review of the implementation of this type of education in Brail and the influences of neoliberal policies in education policy especially in the training of preschool teachers. We conclude that the complexity of problems faced in the classrooms and the social expectations of schools and teachers excellence demanded by society may be engaged in the production of teacher´s illness. Teachers gradually lose control over their professional practice, making the educational work with children a burden sometimes difficult to carry.
Resumen
LAS IMPLICAÇÕES DAS REFORMAS PÚBLICAS EDUCACIONAIS NA FORMAÇÃO DE PROFESSORES DA EDUCAÇÃO INFANTIL NO BRASIL E AS REPERCUSSÕES EM SUA SAÚDE
O objetivo desse artigo é apresentar os possíveis elos entre o mal-estar docente e as novas exigências do ser professora da educação infantil, veiculadas pelas reformas educacionais e curriculares implementadas no Brasil, nesses últimos vinte anos. O artigo é o resultado de estudos sobre as possíveis relações entre o processo de trabalho docente e adoecimento, que vimos realizando desde 2009.
Abordamos duas dimensões do trabalho – o controle sobre o trabalho e as demandas psicológicas advindas do mesmo que, neste momento de globalização neoliberal, estão provocando um processo de adoecimento do professorado, cada vez mais submetido a exigências técnicas e burocráticas em suas atividades profissionais. Parte-se de uma revisão histórica da implementação dessa modalidade de ensino no Brasil e as influências das políticas neoliberais nas políticas educacionais especialmente na formação de professores de educação infantil. Conclui-se que a complexidade dos problemas presentes nas salas de aula e a expectativa social de excelência que a sociedade está exigindo das escolas e dos profissionais da educação, podem estar implicadas no adoecimento docente. Os professores gradativamente perdem o controle sobre seu exercício profissional, tornando o trabalho educativo com as crianças pequenas um fardo, por vezes, difícil de carregar.
Regina Cortina, Discussant
Title: Privatization and Inequality in Higher Education: The case of Brazil
9:00am-10:20am
Panel Description
This panel will explore issues of access to higher education in Brazil. Several topics will be covered, from focusing on the historical inequities affecting Brazil's college going populations, to economic disparities that influence education. A wide range of socio historical contexts will be addressed, as well as the current economic climate which influences the privatization of schooling in Brazil.
Panelists
Antoine Lousao, Adolfo Ignacio Calderón
Discussant
Regina Cortina
Antoine Lousao
Biography
Antoine Lousao is a Visiting Scholar at Teachers College for the academic year 2015-2016. He works at the Rio de Janeiro State Government, in Brazil, and is currently the Deputy Secretary of State for Human Resources at the State Secretariat for Education, an organization with eighty thousand teachers and nearly one million students. He is part of the leadership team that reformed the public schools of his State, which grew from the 26th to the 4th position among the 27 Brazilian states in the education national index within four year.
Antoine Lousao contributed to research on subjects such as public policies and public administration in Brazil, and social inclusion and economic development. He taught Civil Service and Ethics in the Brazilian School of Public Administration and participated in think tanks such as the Institute for Studies on Work and Society (Iets, Rio de Janeiro).
Antoine Lousao completed a PhD in Political Philosophy at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (2010-2014), a Professional Masters in Administration at Sciences Po, Paris (2006-2008), a Masters in Political Philosophy at Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne and a Human Sciences Degree at Université Paris X Nanterre and Lycée Henri IV, Paris (2002-2005).
Panel Abstract
Inequality in access to higher education: structural problem, public investment distribution and public management
Inequality in higher education in Brazil is a multifaceted issue, including access and quality. While only 40% of the 18-25 year-old population has access to college, the majority of low-income populations can only enroll in private universities, which represent more than 70% of the higher education offer but are not the best-ranked institutions. This scenario is the product of historical inheritances, but also of an unreasonable educational system, where the State funds public higher education for the few and where only 20% of the amount invested in public higher education goes to basic education, unlike in most developed countries. Understanding and discussing the failures in the public education system – including the funding and the bureaucratic structure – and the linkages between basic education results and access to higher education may be the first steps to address an urgent problem in a country with 50 million young people, where the population will get older faster than in most other countries.
Adolfo Ignacio Calderón
Biography
ADOLFO IGNACIO CALDERÓN holds a doctorate in social sciences from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (Brazil), post-doctoral degree in Educational Sciences at the University of Coimbra (Portugal), full professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas (Brazil), researcher with scientific productivity grants from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) [Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development], scientific advisor and consultant to research funding agencies in Brazil, such as the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) [Foundation for State of São Paulo], Comissão de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal do Nível Superior (CAPES) [Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination], and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) [Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development]. He's also reviewer of renowned Brazilian scientific journals such as Ensaio: avaliação e políticas públicas em educação [Ensaio: evaluation and public policy in education], Diálogo Educacional [Educational Dialogue], Estudos em Avaliação Educacional [Studies in Educational Evaluation] and Educação & Realidade [Education & Reality]. His research is focused on various aspects of basic and higher education: evaluation of educational systems, rankings in education, educational policy, and school effectiveness. His most recent papers are: Academic rankings in higher education: mapping of its expansion in the ibero-american space (ActaScientiarum Education, 2015), The expansion of private higher education in Brazil. From FHC’s administration to Lula’s (Revista Iberoamericana de Educación Superior, 2015); The evaluation by results and the culture of performativity: The teacher evaluation in public school of São Paulo State (Brazil) (Revista Iberoamericana de Evaluación Educativa, 2014).
Panel Abstract
The for profit universities in Brazil in the light of performance in academic rankings
Since the second half of the nineties we could realize the impressive quantitative growth of private for-profit universities, organized and effectively managed as companies in a scenario that has institutionalized a dynamic and competitive higher education market. This study analyzes the performance of for-profit universities in light of its performance in three existing academic rankings in Brazil: General Index of Courses (IGC), of the federal government; Best Universities Award, of Student Guide, sponsored by Editora Abril; and University Ranking Folha (RUF), produced by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo. It is shown that even though this type of university has a big importance in expanding access to higher education, focusing on a specific niche market which is the mass education, they are institutions that are mainly characterized by offering framed educational products, predominantly they present the minimum quality standards required by law, on the threshold between the least satisfactory and unsatisfactory. It is a reality that makes us reflect on the government's need to expand the access to public higher education, about the importance of regulatory mechanisms to ensure the quality of educational services, as well as the relevance of the recommendations of UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientificand Cultural Organization) in terms of risks to educational systems represented by the expansion of the called “degree mills’.
Resumen
LAS UNIVERSIDADES CON FINES LUCRATIVOS EN EL BRASIL A LA LUZ DEL DESEMPEÑO EN LOS RÁNQUINES ACADEMICOS
Desde la segunda mitad de la década de noventa acompañamos el impresionante crecimiento cuantitativo de las universidades privadas con fines lucrativos, organizadas y administradas efectivamente como empresas, en un escenario en que se institucionalizó un dinámico y concurrido mercado de educación superior. En este estudio analizase la actuación de las universidades con fines lucrativos a la luz de su desempeño en tres ránquines académicos existentes en el Brasil: Índice General de Cursos (IGC), del gobierno federal; Premio Mejores Universidades del Guía del Estudiante, promovido por la Editora Abril; y Ranking Universitario Folha (RUF), producido por el periódico Folha de São Paulo. Se demuestra que aunque ese tipo de universidad desempeñe papel protagónico en la ampliación del acceso a la educación superior, enfocándose en un nicho de mercado específico como es la enseñanza de masas, son instituciones que preponderantemente se caracterizan por ofrecer productos educacionales encuadrados, predominantemente, en los padrones mínimos de calidad exigidos por la ley, en el límite entre lo mínimo satisfactorio y lo no satisfactorio. Se trata de una realidad que lleva a reflexionar sobre la necesidad gubernamental de ampliación del acceso a la educación superior pública, sobre la importancia de mecanismos de regulación que aseguren la calidad de los servicios educacionales, bien como la pertinencia de las recomendaciones de la UNESCO (Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura), en términos de los riesgos a los sistemas educacionales representados pela expansión de las llamadas fábricas de diplomas.
Maria de Fatima Duarte
Biography
Doctora en Psicología, Universidade Federal de Pelotas
Panel Abstract
The Implications of Reforms of Public Education in Teacher Training of Early Childhood Education in Brazil and Repercussions in their Health
The aim of this paper is to present the possible relationship between the educative working process and the so called teacher’s malaise and the new demands of being a teacher of early childhood conducted by educational and curricular reforms set in Brazil on the last twenty years. The article is the result of studies on possible relationship between the teaching work process and illness, which we have been conducting since 2009. We investigated two dimensions of work – control over the work and psychological demands. characteristics that in this neoliberal globalization times, are producing processes of illness on the teacher’s, which has being submitted to increasing technical and bureaucratic tasks along with its professional activities. We did a historical review of the implementation of this type of education in Brail and the influences of neoliberal policies in education policy especially in the training of preschool teachers. We conclude that the complexity of problems faced in the classrooms and the social expectations of schools and teachers excellence demanded by society may be engaged in the production of teacher´s illness. Teachers gradually lose control over their professional practice, making the educational work with children a burden sometimes difficult to carry.
Resumen
LAS IMPLICAÇÕES DAS REFORMAS PÚBLICAS EDUCACIONAIS NA FORMAÇÃO DE PROFESSORES DA EDUCAÇÃO INFANTIL NO BRASIL E AS REPERCUSSÕES EM SUA SAÚDE
O objetivo desse artigo é apresentar os possíveis elos entre o mal-estar docente e as novas exigências do ser professora da educação infantil, veiculadas pelas reformas educacionais e curriculares implementadas no Brasil, nesses últimos vinte anos. O artigo é o resultado de estudos sobre as possíveis relações entre o processo de trabalho docente e adoecimento, que vimos realizando desde 2009.
Abordamos duas dimensões do trabalho – o controle sobre o trabalho e as demandas psicológicas advindas do mesmo que, neste momento de globalização neoliberal, estão provocando um processo de adoecimento do professorado, cada vez mais submetido a exigências técnicas e burocráticas em suas atividades profissionais. Parte-se de uma revisão histórica da implementação dessa modalidade de ensino no Brasil e as influências das políticas neoliberais nas políticas educacionais especialmente na formação de professores de educação infantil. Conclui-se que a complexidade dos problemas presentes nas salas de aula e a expectativa social de excelência que a sociedade está exigindo das escolas e dos profissionais da educação, podem estar implicadas no adoecimento docente. Os professores gradativamente perdem o controle sobre seu exercício profissional, tornando o trabalho educativo com as crianças pequenas um fardo, por vezes, difícil de carregar.
Regina Cortina, Discussant