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Neuroscience and Basic Education in Brazil: A Challenging, Promising Way Ahead

Manuel Marcos M. Formiga1, 2*, Marcondes M. De Araujo3, 4* and Ieda M. Santos5*
  • 1 University of Brasilia (UnB), Economics, Brazil
  • 2 National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), International Affairs, Brazil
  • 3 Ministry Science, Technology, Innovations and Communications (MCTIC), Executive Secretariat, Brazil
  • 4 Superintendency for the Developmento of Central-West Region (SUDECO), Superintendent´s Office, Brazil
  • 5 Emirates College for Advanced Education, Curriculum & Instructional Technology Division, United Arab Emirates

This presentation highlights Brazil´s evolving landscape of challenges and opportunities to improve quality in basic education and the increasing potential of emerging neuroscience-based policies and practices. Improving basic education in Brazil with 48.8 million enrollments in 2015 (aged 5 to 18, MEC/INEP 2016) and overly insufficient quality, is one of the most fascinating and urgent agendas in the country´s path towards Goal number 4 in the 2030 sustainable development goals . The world´s 7th largest economy (GDP-US$3.1 trillion PPP-2015 ) features great regional imbalances of income and educational attendance and quality that present huge challenges and opportunities for improvement . According to the most recent Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA-OECD, 2015 ), among 70 nations, Brazil scored very poorly in all three areas: Science (ranked 63rd position), Reading (59th position) and Mathematics (66th position). This worrying fact reinforces an enduring, undesirable, reality since the first PISA test in year 2000. In these three main areas, the Brazilian students performed below basic proficiency level required by PISA 2015 (Science 56,6%; Reading 50,99%, and Mathematics 70,25%). In summary, the three most important and urgent challenges are: reduce dropout and truancy rates; improve teacher´s and education officers´ training and performance; and enhance learning outcomes. In January 2001, as demanded by the Constitution, the Federal Government approved the decennial National Education Plan 2001-2010 (Law 10.172/2001), intended to increase “school attendance, years of study and quality at all levels and reduce social and regional imbalances preventing the success to quality education”. Focused on public education and characterized by a penchant for corporatism of interest groups, general results showed an important increase in school attendance, however, quality remained low. Building from a four-year backlog since the previous plan, in June 2014, the Federal Government approved Law 13.005/2014 – National Education Plan 2014-2024. Composed of 20 overarching goals it intends to continue perfecting the previous objectives while including up to 2024: eradication of illiteracy; 100% school attendance for basic education; adequate funds as a percentage of GDP; education for work and citizenship anchored on moral and ethical values; and, scientific, cultural, technological and humanistic education respecting diversity and socioenvironmental sustainability. While indispensable by legal and societal demands, both plans were too ambitious and optimistic. In a continental nation of diverse political, educational, economic and sociocultural realities, they lacked clear road maps with feasible milestones towards implementation, including how to secure required funds and the indispensable institutional capacity: two old-fashioned paradigms in Brazil´s growing democratic path. In recent years, profiting from the expanding potential of neurosciences to improve education results and tired of insufficient, slow, piecemeal advancements, laudable, academic and private initiatives have been set in motion in Brazil. Such initiatives summon civic awareness “beyond government responsibilities” and aim at the cross cutting transcendence for quality education, in particular to children and adolescents, as pivotal pre-requisite for the country´s future. In this regard, Brazil already has a highly qualified expanding community influencing education policies at federal, state and municipal levels and shaping practices. Stand out in this globally connected network: The Brain Institute at Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN, Natal/RN); The Santos Dumont Institute (Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)/Macaíba/RN); Brazilian Network of Science for Education (CpE - a decentralized consortium of academic researchers, NGOs and businesses); and the National Network on Education and Science (UFSM-UNIPAMPA /RS). The UFRN Brain Institute web page , for instance, exemplifies research and activities, including graduate and undergraduate programs. Worth mentioning the contributions of Brazilian neuroscientists such as Suzana Herculano-Houzelb, a former faculty member at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro recently moved to the US, Sidarta Ribeiro, director of the Brain Institute at the UFRN, and Miguel Nicolelis, co-founder and scientific director of the International Institute for Neurosciences of Natal - Edmond and Lily Safra (IINN-ELS). This excellent constellation of institutional and human capital is poised, committed to demand and assist public authorities to translate timely, state of the art, neuroscientific knowledge into better design and implementation of effective basic education policies, tools and practices.

Acknowledgements

N/A.

References

Brazil. Ministry of Education. National Institute for Education Studies and Research (INEP): 2015 Basic Education Census. Available - http://portal.inep.gov.br/sinopses-estatisticas-da-educacao-basica (Access Feb.12, 2017)
MEC. Available - http://pne.mec.gov.br/
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Available http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/
The World Bank. GDP ranking, PPP based. Available http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog/GDP-PPP-based-table

Keywords: Keywords: Brazil, Basic education, National education plan, Neurosciences, Brazilian Neuroscientist.

Conference: 2nd International Conference on Educational Neuroscience, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 5 Mar - 6 Mar, 2017.

Presentation Type: Poster Presentation

Topic: Educational Neuroscience

Citation: Formiga MM, De Araujo MM and Santos IM (2017). Neuroscience and Basic Education in Brazil: A Challenging, Promising Way Ahead. Conference Abstract: 2nd International Conference on Educational Neuroscience. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2017.222.00016

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Received: 19 Feb 2017; Published Online: 11 Dec 2017.

* Correspondence:
Prof. Manuel Marcos M Formiga, University of Brasilia (UnB), Economics, Brasilia-DF, DF, 71605-260, Brazil, manuelmarcosformiga@gmail.com
Mr. Marcondes M De Araujo, Ministry Science, Technology, Innovations and Communications (MCTIC), Executive Secretariat, Brasilia, DF, 70077-900, Brazil, marcondes.brazil@gmail.com
Prof. Ieda M Santos, Emirates College for Advanced Education, Curriculum & Instructional Technology Division, Abu Dhabi, P.O Box 126662, United Arab Emirates, isantos@ecae.ac.ae