An overview of Brazilian education, from kindergarten to higher education, covering public and private sectors.

1. Education in Brazil
2015
(short version)

2. Opening international markets for digital companies
Market Intelligence
Business Development
Sales Representation
www.latamconnection.com

3. About the author
Fabiana Zanni
Brasil Online 1995-1996
Abril 1996-2013
Pearson 2013-2015
Latam Connection 2015

4. ✓ Brazil is the largest market for
primary and secondary
education in Latin America*
✓ World‘s fifth largest market for
postsecondary education**
Sources: * Mercosur Education System Statistical Indicators / ** UNESCO (2010/2013)
Market size
58 million students
240k schools (K-12) 2,4k schools (HED)
50,7 million students (K-12)
(15% private)
7,3 million students (HED)
(73% private; 17% distance)
2 million teachers (K-12) 200k teachers (HED)

5. Brazilian Education System
✓ Brazilian Education System is organized
in 2 main levels:
Basic
Education
Municipalities
Kindergarten +
preschool
Elementary + Lower
Secondary Education
Upper Secondary
Education
Higher
Education
Undergraduate
Graduate
State Governments
Federal Government*
✓ Government level responsibility:
Extension
Vocational
* Federal Government also sets the overall
educational policies and objectives and allocates
federal funding to all education levels

6. Access to postsecondary education
✓ High school is compulsory for those wishing to pursue university studies
✓ In addition, students must go through a selection process
✓ Since 2009, students can use the score obtained in the National Secondary Education
Examination (Enem) to join a few universities in the country.
Basic Education Higher Education
. Vestibular
. ENEM

7. Government investment in Education
✓ Public investment in Education has increased since 2000
Source: OECD

8. Key challenges for education in Brazil
✓ Access and retention
✓ Literacy
✓ Quality
✓ Infrastructure and Planning
✓ Teacher training & development
Sources United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) / to ABC Proof 2011 / Prova Brasil 2011 / INEP / MEC / OECD / PISA
2012

9. PISA 2013 results
Brazil placed 58th
out of 65 countries
Student average score:
402 (< 497 average
OECD)
MATHEMATICS
Low
performance
students
High
performance
students
67,1% 1,1%
SCIENCE
Low
performance
students
High
performance
students
61% 0,3%
READING
Low
performance
students
High
performance
students
49,2% 0,5%

10. National Education Plan: goals and strategies
1 Universal access to
kindergarten
2 Universal access to
primary education
3 Universal access to
secondary education
4 Universal access to
special / inclusive
education
5 Literacy for all
children until 3rd year
of elementary school.
6 Full-day schooling in
at least 50% of public
schools
7 Appropriate learning
at the right age
8 Average education
of at least 12 years of
study
9 Literacy and
functional literacy for
youth and adults
10 Vocational
education for youth
and adults
11 To triple
enrollment of
Vocational Education
12 To raise gross
enrollment rate in
higher ed to 50%
13 More teachers
with master's and
doctorate in Higher
Education
14 More enrollments
in graduate school
15 Higher education
for teachers
16 50% of high
school teachers with
graduate degrees
17 Teacher
appreciation
18 Career plan for
teachers
19 Democratic
management for
education
20 10% of GDP in
education by 2024

11. Private sector has grown substantially in the last decade due to
social demographic changes and government incentives
✓ New middle class
✓ Gain in purchase power
✓ Need for skilled labor force
✓ Government financial incentives focusing mainly Postsecondary Education

12. Basic Education

13. Sources: INEP/MEC
Basic school in Brazil is largely provided by
Government
2 million teachers

14. Over the last decade, the increase in purchasing power
caused families to exchange public by private schools
✓ Revenue of private schools grew by
23% in two years
✓ On the other hand, the reduction of
birth rates contributed to the
decrease in number of public schools
Sources:
INEP/MEC

15. Sistemas de Ensino: a Brazilian alternative for an
integrated approach to basic education
✓ Sistemas de Ensino have emerged by a combination of unique factors in Brazil: strong
demographic pressure, poor teacher qualification and experience from the pre-test
market
✓ A SISTEMA consists of a solution pack including product and services, consulting,
training and whatever is involved in school environment
✓ It serves both private and public schools (average school size: 300 – 1000 students)
✓ Financial model: single ticket per student/school year paid by the institution. This value
is incorporated into the tuition charged by the institution

16. Postsecondary Education

17. Sources: INEP/MEC / World Bank / Hoper
Brazil is the 5th largest postsecondary education
market worldwide, with 7,3 million students
61% growth in 9 years
6,7% CAGR

18. Source: Hoper / INEP / MEC
Private institutions are primary providers of
postsecondary education in Brazil.

19. Distance learning is the fastest growing mode of
education in the postsecondary education market
Sources: MEC

20. Vocational Education

21. Vocational Education
✓ Technical education might be one of
the fastest solutions for the current
scarcity of skilled workers in Brazil
✓ Between 2007 and 2010, the number
of students enrolled in technical
programs grew at an average rate of
13.5% per year
Sources: INEP
Private
47,8%
Public
52,2%
X

22. English teaching

23. The penetration of English language education in
Brazil is still very low
Sources: Data Popular / British Council

24. English teaching is reduced to the very basics in
regular school
✓ Although teaching of a foreign language at elementary and high school is compulsory
in Brazil, English teaching - both public and private - is unable to provide students with
a usable level of English.
✓ Lack of language teaching equipment, overfilled classrooms, poor teacher qualification
and few hours set aside for teaching English contribute for bad results

25. Technology

26. 50% of Brazilians
have Internet
access
✓ Brazil’s online population has
quadrupled over the past decade
✓ Brazilians are avid users of social
networks.
✓ High speed of smartphones
penetration
✓ Increasingly, teachers and principals
are actively experimenting with new
technology and teaching practices on
their own.
Sources: CETIC CETIC (Brazil’s Center for Information and Communication Technologies)
Internet usage in Brazil is not universal, but digital
engagement is high More than 60
million Facebook
users
75% of Brazilians
have a mobile
phone
1.25 cellphone
subscriptions per
capita
Almost 11% of
households have a
tablet
21% use mostly
smartphones for
going online

27. On the other hand…
✓ Internet usage varies according to region and class
✓ Household Internet penetration has been held by high prices and gaps in coverage
✓ 63% of people without a computer at home state that they cannot afford one
✓ 20% of Internet users still frequent Internet cafes
✓ Few of Brazil’s government departments have gone fully digital
Sources: CETIC CETIC (Brazil’s Center for Information and Communication Technologies)

28. Technology and digital
resources usages @ school
Urban schools (public and private), primary and secondary education

29. Infrastructure and connectivity are some of the main
barriers to the use technology in Brazilian public schools
Private
98%
Schools with computer
Public
99%
Private
99%
Schools with Internet access
Public
95%
Private
13%
Schools with tablets
Public
11%
✓ There is significant increase of mobile devices
in public schools - especially tablets - derived
from government programs that distribute such
equipment
✓ Most teachers of public and private institutions
say the number of computers available are not
enough
Private
28%
Schools that have internet connection of
up to 2 Mbps
Public
52%

30. Thank you
Fabiana Zanni
fabiana@latamconnection.com
+55 11 999858967

31. Contact us for a detailed report
contact@latamconnection.com