| Hello, *|NOME|* Today is celebrated the Day of the Teacher, a professional whose performance is essential for the formation of our population. Among the less favored, its role is even more relevant, as the role of the school is more prominent. According to the most recent data from the National Institute of Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira (INEP), provided by the School Census, Brazil has about 2.6 million active teachers, of which 2.3 million work in basic education (which covers early childhood education, elementary and junior high school, and high school) and 310 thousand in higher education. These professionals are responsible for teaching approximately 57 million students – 47 million in basic education and almost 10 million in higher education.
The data reveal that between 2014 and 2023 there was a reduction in the number of enrollments and of teachers in elementary education; expansion in early childhood education, especially in daycare centers, with a 42% increase in enrollment and a 62% increase in the number of teachers; and a 24% growth in enrollments and a 16% increase in the number of teachers in technical-vocational high school.
This information allows three important conclusions: the first is that the efforts of the municipalities to expand access to daycare centers and promote greater attention to early childhood resulted in a significant increase in the demand for teachers in this segment. The second is that, in several states, the number of enrollments in high school has grown, thanks to the expansion of technical vocational courses. The third conclusion is that the expansion of secondary education increases the demand for specialized professionals, both in the disciplines provided for by the National Common Curricular Base (BNCC) and in the technical areas of professional courses. Data from the Higher Education Census reveal that, between 2010 and 2023, there was a 56% increase in enrollments and a 7% increase in the number of professors in this segment. In private institutions, enrollments grew by 66% and the number of professors was reduced by 18%. In 2023, private institutions concentrated 79% of university students in Brazil. In public institutions, the growth was less pronounced: 25% in enrollments and 41% in the number of professors. In general, the data reflect important advances in access to education in Brazil, both in basic education and in higher education. Although Brazil has made considerable progress in educational inclusion, at all levels, significant gaps still persist with regard to the quality of education offered. The results of the most recent PISA (Program for International Student Assessment), from 2022, place Brazil among the 20 countries with the worst performances in Mathematics and Science. Among the 81 nations evaluated, Brazil ranks 65th in Mathematics, 52nd in Reading and 62nd in Science. These data show that a substantial portion of Brazilian students still do not reach basic levels (73% in mathematics, 50% in reading and 55% in science). Several scholars have dedicated themselves to the study of the factors that influence the production of quality education, recognizing that this is a complex process. Measures such as continuous education, modernization of teacher training curricula, implementation of evaluations and bonuses for performance should be considered and are essential to promote the continuous development of teachers throughout their life course. There is a unanimous belief that it is impossible to achieve quality education without providing teachers with training that fully prepares them for the exercise of their functions. For the reader interested in the subject, information on the adequacy of teacher training is systematized in Imdsbrasil.org, expressed by an indicator developed by INEP based on data from the Educational Census of Basic Education. The information can be consulted by territorial, state and municipal level, with segmentation by type of network (public or private) and stage of basic education (see here). According to data from the Higher Education Census, courses in the area of education corresponded, in 2023, to 17% of the 10 million enrollments – a 28% growth in the number of enrollments since 2010. Despite this growth in the number of students in education courses, the number of teachers working in teaching remained practically the same throughout this period (80,862 in 2010 and 80,664 in 2023). When we deepen the analysis of education courses, by type of institution and teaching modality, we observe: • In private institutions of higher education, there was a 47% increase in the number of enrollments in courses in the area of education, but a 43% drop in the number of professors. There were approximately 36 thousand teachers in 2010; in 2023, about 20 thousand;
• In public higher education institutions, the number of enrollments remained practically unchanged (563,410 in 2010 and 563,065 in 2023), but there was a 30% increase in the number of professors in the same period;
• Distance learning: in the period analyzed, there was a significant increase in the proportion of students enrolled in the distance learning modality, which went from 31% in 2010 to 67% in 2023. In the pedagogy course, the course with the largest number of students in higher education – about 852 thousand – this percentage is even higher, reaching 80% in 2023.
These data lead us to two conclusions: the first is that more and more young people and adults are looking for courses in the area of education; The second is that there are fewer and fewer teachers training these future professionals, particularly in private institutions, where distance learning is concentrated. Be that as it may, the fact is that in the coming years we will have a relevant number of professionals who, in principle, will be able to teach. It remains to be answered whether they will be able to train future generations.
Until the next "IMDS Letter”! Paulo Tafner CEO |
