Brazil unveils full-time education program

Brazilian President Lula on Monday (Jul. 31) sanctioned the law establishing the Full-Time School Program, allocating BRL 4 billion to boost the enrollment in full-time basic education by 1 million in 2023. The goal is to reach 3.2 million enrollments by 2026.

Schools should be enjoyable for students while providing a space to discuss urgent and current societal issues, such as climate change, the president pointed out, adding that public funds for education should be seen as investment rather than expenses, underscoring the need to offer equal educational conditions to students in both public and private schools.

“Without equal opportunities for everyone, we can’t talk about meritocracy. A person’s worth should not be measured by the amount of money and privileges they possess. By providing equal opportunities and access to quality public education, everyone stands side by side on same starting line, on equal footing,” he stated.

“Through universal access to public education and quality teaching, we lay the foundations for a more conscious, just, and less unequal society,” the president added.

Spearheaded by the Ministry of Education, the initiative provides financial support and technical assistance at state and city levels. Participation in the program by education authorities is optional.

The program aims to achieve Goal 6 of the National Education Plan: to offer “full-time education in at least half of public schools, serving at least one fourth of basic education students” by 2024. The latest report on the goals for 2022 reveals that the percentage of full-time enrollments in Brazilian public schools has slipped from 17.6 percent in 2014 to 15.1 percent in 2021.