Disparities in Access to Basic Education in Brazil During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Conference: The Barcelona Conference on Education (BCE2021)
Title: Disparities in Access to Basic Education in Brazil During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Stream: Education, Sustainability & Society: Social Justice, Development & Political Movements
Presentation Type: Virtual Presentation
Authors:
Mariana Beselga, University of Coimbra, Portugal
João Pedro de Freitas Gomes, University of São Paulo, Brazil
Matheus Lobo Custódio Duarte Maia, Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract:

For years investment in basic education was not a priority for Brazilian governments, but higher education, which materialized in educational and racial inequity between different income percentiles — considering that access to universities was a privilege of families linked to ex-enslavement political elites in the 20th century. The health crisis caused by COVID-19, made the status-quo of basic schooling worsen, as children from low-income families do not have access to resources that allow them to study at home, generating a setback in childhood education. In view of that exhibition, this exploratory inquiry seeks to understand how the sharp increase in inequality in access to basic education among the more vulnerable classes had an impact on the aggravation of structural inequalities. A bibliographical, documental, and digital research is used, through the application of the historical and comparative method to verify the legal and administrative processes that aggravated the inequality of access to education even the Coronavirus crisis. It is also resorted to the use indicators, in the quantitative statistic stage, to measure socio-economic impacts in vulnerable groups. Preliminary findings appoint that the history of spending structure prioritizing the higher level has provided a delay in Brazilian development, as the lack of investment in basic education reflects an inequality in the country's political power, in a moment of crisis the tendency is that areas of social reproduction, like childcare, are less prioritized. This paper will serve as a guide for the realization of forecasts involving public educational policies in the post-pandemic phases.

Virtual Presentation

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