Countries in Latin America and the Caribbean are experiencing the advancement of different privatization trends in basic education, a process that undermines society's access to this fundamental right. The finding is part of the research entitled “Trends in the privatization of education in Latin America and the Caribbean”, coordinated by the Latin American Campaign for the Right to Education (CLADE), a network that brings together various groups and entities in defense of education. The research work was organized by professors Theresa Maria de Freitas Adrião, from the Faculty of Education (FE) at Unicamp, and Teise de Oliveira Guaranha Garcia, from the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters (FFCL) at USP, Ribeirão Preto campus.

According to professor Theresa Adrião, the objective of the research, which covered 15 countries [Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Nicaragua and Haiti] , was to identify and debate the mechanisms and trends that lead to the privatization of basic education in Latin America and the Caribbean. The teacher explains that the trends identified are varied and with different degrees of complexity and consequences for the maintenance of public education systems, considered fundamental to guaranteeing access and retention at school.

In general, the researcher continues, what has occurred in the region is the use of institutional and political mechanisms that enable the transfer, directly or indirectly, of public education responsibilities to the profitable private sector. Thus, one of the privatization models, classified in the study's final report as “exogenous”, is implemented through the transfer of public resources to the private sector. “In some countries, corporations that aim exclusively at profit have pressured public authorities to subsidize private schools, generally low-cost, instead of establishing public education networks. In other countries, educational provision is expanded through the payment of 'teaching vouchers', a model that is based on the false idea that families, and here we are talking about poor families, could 'choose' a private school to their children and that this, because it is private, would be better than the public one”. 

Because of this movement, according to the Unicamp professor, there is a gradual replacement of one model by another in several countries. The cases identified by the subjects interviewed in the study indicate this trend for Brazil, Chile and Colombia. The research also identified that there is “endogenous” privatization, characterized by the incorporation, on the part of public management and, consequently, of public schools, of market values ​​and practices, as management models based on achieving results. Experiences of this type were found in countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico and Peru.

Another important point of the investigation, according to professor Theresa Adrião, was the emergence and consolidation, in certain contexts, of new forms of privatization of public education. Among these new formats are programs that assign responsibility for education to local communities; corporate governance processes in the educational field, which allow private companies to participate in decision-making regarding education policy; and the financialization of basic education, which transforms public enrollments into “commodities in the financial market”. 

The research analyzed all these trends considering the implications for the realization of the human right to education, which requires the direct participation of the State in the financing and management of public education systems as a condition for what CLADE and the international community identify to occur. as elements of operationalization of the right to Education: availability, accessibility, acceptance and adaptability. “Privatization accentuates inequalities and makes access to school more difficult”, maintains the FE teacher.

An important point to consider when analyzing this phenomenon, points out professor Theresa Adrião, is that the privatization process occurs in a region in which compulsory basic education is a recent achievement of society. “In most countries, this achievement has not yet been achieved, that is, it is under construction. With the advancement of the logic of private corporations, the human right to education has been at serious risk”, she reinforces. When fundamental elements of educational practice are placed in the hands of the corporate sector, such as the development of pedagogical content, textbooks and educational software, as well as the design of institutional assessments, adds the study coordinator, the public and democratic character of education is called into question, as it is subject to an essentially mercantile logic.

Asked about the specific case of Brazil, professor Theresa Adrião informs that the process of privatization of basic education has deepened in the country. “Here, the situation is even more evident than in Argentina, to give just one example. We can see an increasing allocation of public subsidies to the private sector, a movement that goes against what would be desirable, including considering that during the period analyzed there was an increase in public spending on the sector. Service in daycare centers and early childhood schools is going through this. By delegating the mission to third parties (social organizations, Civil Society Organization of Public Interest - Oscip) or introducing public-private partnerships [PPPs], governments objectively transform education into a service”, points out the Unicamp professor.

One way to resist the process of privatizing basic education, especially when it comes to increasing its mandatory nature, is to make society aware of the implications of this movement, says professor Theresa Adrião. “We, in academia, do this through the publication of articles, the organization and participation in scientific events and joint action with organized sectors of civil society. We also contribute to the training of qualified human resources within the perspective of defending quality public education. An example of this is that five of our undergraduate and graduate advisors participated in the research. Another fundamental 'trench' is activism, such as that exercised by CLADE and the entities linked to it. This group of organizations takes their positions and arguments to numerous discussion forums, competing for guidance in agencies such as UNESCO, [United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization], World Education Forum, Organization of Ibero-American States [OEI ] etc".

METHODOLOGY

The study “Trends in the privatization of education in Latin America and the Caribbean” required a great effort on the part of the researchers, according to professor Theresa Adrião. Initially, a survey of the Constitutions and national legislation relating to basic education was carried out. Secondly, a questionnaire was sent to the organizations that make up CLADE and to experts in educational policy from the 15 countries included in the investigation, indicated by these organizations. “The analysis of the responses made it possible to build an inventory about the perception that organizations and experts have about the privatization processes”, explains the FE professor.

Finally, research participants sought statistical data that could support their understanding of the phenomenon of privatization. “For the countries where data was available, we considered the enrollment rate in basic education in public and private networks during the period from 2005 to 2011. We also considered information available on the stock exchanges of countries in the region, to identify the opening of companies in the area of ​​education in the main capital markets”, explains professor Theresa Adrião. The full report of the study coordinated by CLADE can be accessed through the following email address: https://www.campanaderechoeducacion.org/privatizacion/mapeo-sobre-tendencias-de-la-privatizacion-de-la-educacion-en-america-latina-y-el-caribe/ .

Research reveals that teachers isolate students with more learning difficulties

Widening the gap  in the classroom

Silvio Annunciation In a context in which one in five eight-year-old children does not know how to read sentences, as shown by an assessment released in September by the Ministry of Education (MEC), a recently completed Unicamp survey reveals that the role of teachers in the classroom expands even further the gap between those students who fail and those who succeed in the learning process. The study, conducted with teachers from public elementary schools in Campinas, identified that, in general, these professionals leave aside students who have more  learning difficulties, while the opposite should occur. The research was based on the teachers' own reports about their perceptions regarding children with school difficulties. “Through the study, we noticed that teachers position themselves and provide better feedback in the school environment for those children who have less learning difficulties. Children who need it most, such as those with, for example, dyslexia, attention deficit, hyperactivity and other reading and writing difficulties are relegated”, says psychologist Letícia da Silveira Ioshida, author of the work. The research was developed by her as a master's thesis at the Center for Studies and Research in Rehabilitation “Prof. Dr. Gabriel OS Porto” (Cepre) from the Faculty of Medical Sciences (FCM) at Unicamp. Professor Ivani Rodrigues Silva, from the undergraduate course in Speech Therapy, guided the research. Ivani Rodrigues also works as a postgraduate professor in the Health, Interdisciplinary and Rehabilitation Program at FCM.  Letícia Ioshida explains that children with difficulties, with whom teachers feel unable to deal, are often referred to specialized services. This happens, for example, with students who receive care at Cepre itself, through a reading and writing internship, carried out with the help of graduates of the Speech Therapy course. “Teachers understand that the problem is beyond their responsibility and refer students to a specialized service. In fact, through the study, we identified some attitudes of these professionals in order to justify their own attitude of relegating these students. They say: 'ah, he keeps to himself, he doesn't participate because that's how it is...' In other words, the teachers attribute this discouragement of students with difficulty to a personality trait, but at the same time, they do not encourage these students like they do with students who stand out”, he highlights.  LOOK AND POSITIONING The author of the research clarifies the importance of the teacher’s “look” and the way he positions students and stands in front of them. Such an attitude in the classroom would be fundamental, according to her, in impacting students' positive or negative attitudes in the learning process. Among the desirable positions, the researcher highlights what she called “culturally sensitive pedagogy”, a term coined by scholar Frederick Erickson. According to Letícia Ioshida, it is about taking advantage of the experiences that children bring with them and implementing involvement strategies, allowing students to position themselves. It is fundamental in this process to consider the student as a subject with potential, respecting their peculiarities, accepting their suggestions and topics and encouraging them to express themselves.  “If the professional positions the student as capable, as someone who can learn, this will positively influence this child. The teacher's positioning ranges from looking at the student, speaking in a more affectionate tone of voice, calling them by name, providing verbal reinforcement, to encouraging the argumentative initiative. What cannot happen is that the professional finds the student incapable, does not call him to do activities, among other actions”, he explains. For Ivani Silva, negative attitudes end up further favoring student failure in the classroom. “The children, sent with difficulties, are failing at school. And the teachers understand that the school should deal more with those who are learning and not with those who do not learn. Therefore, many children in the process of acquiring reading and writing could benefit if they had been better positioned by teachers or school staff.” PLASTERED SYSTEM The research advisor considers, however, that it is not a question of blaming the teacher. She states that the conditions of the current education system, both public and private, cause situations like those reported in the research. Classes are overcrowded, pay is low and there is a lack of time and opportunities for training and refresher courses, criticizes Ivani Silva. “The education system is rigid. Classrooms should be less crowded, teachers should have more opportunity and time to take courses and refresher courses. In order to earn a more decent salary, professionals end up teaching at several schools. Even within the private school there is a current structure: numerous classrooms and teachers who have to take care of everything. Therefore, the school structure needs to be rethought.” Still according to the teacher, teacher training is very deficient, especially in the aspect of inclusion and working with diversity. “They are trained to deal with a certain portion of the population and that is not what they find in the classroom. Teachers leave their training imagining that they will only find ideal students, but they find real students, disabled, deaf, blind students... It is this diversity that the school needs to rethink”, she adds. In this sense, highlights Letícia Ioshida, traditionally the school has expectations for an 'ideal' student. “Students who arrive with a learning base and meet expectations serve the school. The other is isolated, marginalized, and ends up failing. This student starts to dislike school, because, from the moment he frustrates these expectations of an 'ideal' student, he stops being considered as a student at the school.” INTERNS In addition to investigating teachers' perceptions, the work also evaluated how interns studying the 6th semester of the speech therapy course at Unicamp deal with students with learning difficulties sent to the school clinic that operates at Cepre.  According to Ivani Silva, who coordinates the internship at the Unit, the results of the research with this group of university students were important to “give feedback regarding the areas of the speech therapy course whose reflection should be intensified.” “They are students in training, they are not professionals yet. One of our hypotheses is that speech therapy students need, at this stage of their training, more experience with this topic. By being closer to the educational area, they can assess this situation more effectively.” METHODOLOGY The work highlighted attitudes that help or harm academic performance and self-esteem in the classroom or in the services provided at Cepre, in addition to verifying similarities and differences in the reports of teachers and interns. According to Letícia Ioshida, data collection was carried out in six schools through semi-structured interviews with teachers and interns, recorded through audio recordings. Subsequently, data transcription and analysis were carried out. “We did a qualitative study. Teachers and interns were interviewed about academic performance, interpersonal relationships, behavior and strategies for working with children. Data processing was carried out through content analysis. The objective of the study was to contribute to education in order to identify postures and interventions that can benefit or harm the child, enabling reflection and planning of work with more effective strategies.” Dissertation: “Perceptions about children with school difficulties” Author: Letícia da Silveira Ioshida counselor: Ivani Rodrigues Silva Each: Faculty of Medical Sciences (FCM)