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Distance In-Service Teacher Training
for Primary School Teachers in Brazil:
the Proformação Program
by
Analice Correzzola Schwartz
The George Washington University
Spring 2001
Distance In-Service Teacher Training for Primary School Teachers
in Brazil: The Proformação Program
ABSTRACT
The main purpose of this paper is to investigate how effectively some general characteristics of distance learning and in-service teacher training programs have been implemented in the context of a specific in-service distance learning program in Brazil: the Proformação Program.The paper provide an overview of the main issues in primary education in Brazil, particularly related to regional disparities in education, primary education teachers’ issues, recent education policies focusing on the new guidelines for teacher education and the new opportunities for teacher education and professional development as prescribed by these policies. The issues in teacher education and the challenges and alternatives to certify Brazil’s “lay” teachers in the form of an in-service teacher education program are discussed.
The paper defines distance learning and the program Proformação as an example of a distance learning program to certify “lay” teachers at the secondary level. The main components of Proformação are described and analyzed focusing on the strategies this program applies to improve teacher quality within the framework of best teaching practices and the characteristics of successful in-service teacher training and distance learning programs drawn from research on these areas.
The paper provides concrete examples of experiences of in-service teachers enrolled in Proformação, discusses the effect of the program on these teachers’ practice and on their career, and reviews the benefits of Proformação for students and the community. The paper concludes with some recommendations for further research.
The paper finds that, although Proformação is a very recent government initiative, it has created unique opportunities for teachers of public state and municipal schools to be certified, and thereby have promoted professional development. For many teachers who completed Proformação, it was their only chance to have a secondary degree and continue their studies in a higher education institution. The paper also shows, by means of examples, that
Proformação is effectively reaching disadvantaged populations in different regions of Brazil. Further research is recommended on the impact programs such as Proformação will have on teaching practice, particularly regarding the variables that contributed to the academic improvement of students. It would also be interesting to make a follow-up study of Proformação graduates and how they continue their teaching careers. Research could explore applying Proformação's course design in other countries with similar conditions of hard to reach populations.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I - INTRODUCTION
II- THE CONTEXT OF PRIMARY CHOOL EDUCAITON IN BRAZIL
A - Disparities in Teaching Systems
B - Teachers’ Salaries
C-Teachers’ Educational Attainment
III- POLICIES TO IMPROVE PRIMARY EDUCAITON AND TEACHER TRAINING
A-The LDB on Promoting In-service Teacher Training
B-Definition of “lay “ Teachers and Route to Qualification
IV- DISTANCE LEARNING EDUCATION
V- THE FUNDESCOLA PROJECT
A-School Development and Teacher Education
VI - PROFORMAÇÃO
A-Course Design
B-Curriculum
C-Training
D-Learner Assessment
E-Program Evaluation
VII - PROFORMAÇÃO AS AN EFFECTIVE LEARNING PROGRAM
VIII - PROFORMAÇÃO AS AN EFFECTIVE TEACHER TRAIING PROGRAM
A-Methods for helping teacher acquire specific skills
B-Methods for teaching meaningfully
C-Methods fof develop positive attitudes towards lifelong learning
D-Methods for helping teachers engage in curriculum development
E-Teachers’ Journal
F-Assure classroom Implementation of Acquired Learning
IX - PROFORMAÇÃO: RESULTS, EXAMPLES AND CHALLENGES
X- PRELIMINARY CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
XI- REFERENCES
XII-APPENDIX
A-Resolution “CEB” no. 2, from 7/4/1998
B-Distance Education in Brazil – Legal Support
Distance In-service Teacher Training for Primary School Teachers
in Brazil: The Proformação Program
I. INTRODUCTION
The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the approach of a distance learning education program as a means of providing in-service teacher training to uncertified primary school teachers in the poorest regions of Brazil.
The paper will first provide an overview of the main issues in primary education particularly related to regional disparities and primary teacher training and the policies that have been implemented to address these issues. The paper then gives a brief definition of distance learning programs as a background to examine Proformação: a distance learning program aimed to certify uncertified teachers at the secondary level to teach the first four grades of primary school in Brazil. The main components of Proformação will be described and analyzed focusing on the strategies this program applies to improve teacher quality within the framework of best teaching practices and characteristics of successful in-service teacher training and distance learning programs drawn from research on these areas. The paper concludes by providing some examples of experiences of in-service teachers enrolled in Proformação, the effect the program on these teacher's practice and on their career and the benefits for students and the community as a result of Proformação and further research recommendations. Since the Proformação has been recently implemented (since 1999), it will take some time and more data to have a comprehensive evaluation of the program's success. This paper finds however that Proformação has had a very positive impact in quality of teaching as well as on the education prospects of its student-teachers.
II. THE CONTEXT OF PRIMARY SCHOOL EDUCATION IN BRAZIL
After years of economic instability and hyperinflation, Brazil embarked in July 1994 on a successful economic stabilization program, the Plano Real (named for the new currency that was introduced). The fact that monetary stability was achieved within a comprehensive framework of macroeconomic policies geared toward achieving sustainable economic growth, also provided the groundwork for social policy development. This was particularly true in the field of education, an area that has witnessed important progress in the recent years (Basic Education in Brazil: 1997, p.7).
According to Castro (1999), there were three significant factors that contribute to changes in government action in the field of education. First, a reasonable degree of agreement has been reached in the diagnosis of the causes behind the lack of effectiveness of school systems. Second, a great convergence of actions developed by different levels of government has evolved, specially concerning primary education. Third, society has started to place a higher value on education, and is getting more organized in order to demand better quality teaching in the public schools (Castro:199, p.17).
Emphasizing primary school teachers, the following reviews main areas concerning public primary school education in Brazil that have been addressed by the latest education policy reforms in Brazil.
A. Disparities in Teaching Systems
A countrywide study conducted by SAEB[1] included in the basic characteristics of Brazilian primary education (1st to 8th grade) the variation in teaching systems. The results showed that the average student proficiency between states and also between regions indicated severe inequalities both in regions and states, reflecting the profound inequalities in the distribution of education services; great differences were also evident between the average proficiency levels in urban and rural areas, with rural areas having the lowest scores in the country. The study concluded that the education system is reinforcing regional disparities, with the North, Northeast, and Center-West being the ones with the lowest performance rates, meaning that they offer less opportunities for learning than those offered in more developed regions like the South and Southeast, where higher performance levels were found. (Castro:1999, p.30.)
B. Teacher's Salaries
As shown in the table below, teacher's salaries varied widely among the regions, with teachers in Brazil’s poorest region, the Northeast, receiving the lowest salaries. At the same time, the data also show that, in all regions, teacher salaries depended strongly on their qualification, and that even in low-pay regions, teachers could double their salary provided they would be able to attain one more level of education.
This was one of the many indicators of regional disparities in education sector at the time the Brazilian government was discussing education policy changes. In addition, looking at primary education at the classroom level, the classroom environment was considered not to be appropriate for learning to occur in some schools in Brazil. A study conducted in 70 first grade classrooms from 40 public schools in 8 municipalities of Bahia state (in the Northeast) found that the lack of materials and the poor physical conditions of the classrooms restricted effective teaching practices. Teacher pedagogical practices were directed at the classroom as a whole, there was excessive emphasis on student writing as the means of instruction and evaluation, and the considerable short duration of classroom time in Bahia State were the factors within the school that affected student performance (Portela, 1998).
C. Teachers' Educational Attainment Level
When considering teacher's level of education, the SAEB study confirmed the importance of pre- and in-service teacher training. As shown in Table 2, student performance increased
Table 1. Average Monthly Teacher Salary of Primary Education Teachers
(1st to 4th Grade) According to Teacher Qualification, 1997 (in R$)
______ Basic Education Secondary Tertiary
Incomplete orEducationEducation
RegionAverageCompleteCompleteor higher
______
Brazil529.92152.12358.18730.96
North456.52197.15412.38769.92
Northeast297.18110.19238.62514.18
Southeast686.31252.39479.38804.78
South558.98242.63382.28670.35
Center-West573.76190.65343.90821.34
______
Source: MEC/INEP/SEEC
Exchange rate in 1997: US$ 1= R$ 1.70 (approximately).
along with the teacher's level of education in all grades and subjects that were evaluated.[2] (Castro:1999, p.31). For example, a 3rd grade student whose teacher only had a secondary degree, had an average performance in Mathematics of 293, while another student at the same level whose teacher had a higher education degree in teaching had a score of 303. It is also interesting to notice on Table 2 that students who had teachers with a higher education degree in “other subjects” scored higher than those who had teachers with a teaching degree.
Table 2. Average Student Proficiency in Relation to Teacher Educational
Attainment Level, by grade and subject, Brazil 1997
______
4th Grade 3rd Grade
Teacher education MLSMLCPB
Secondary Education
Teaching Degree181158176293282281286264
Secondary Education
Degree in other subjects187165177303263295295283
Higher Education
Teaching degree194170187303290292287294
Higher Education
Degree in other subjects208180195313308321306301
______
Source: MEC/INEP/DAEB
Abbreviations: M: Mathematics; L: Portuguese language; S: Science; C: Chemistry; P: Physics; B: Biology
These results may also call into question the quality of teacher training provided by teacher education programs of Universities.[3]
Teachers’ low level of education, low salaries, lack of pedagogical materials as well as lack of access to quality education are the ongoing issues face by many teacher's in Brazil today, particularly from the most disadvantaged regions, indicating that Brazilian. education system is far from satisfactory particularly for primary school teachers. Educational changes implemented in the 1990's by all three levels of government (Federal, State and Municipal) that share responsibility for maintaining and developing public education have been carried out to address these issues. The government has recognized the urgency to improve its education system in order to build a democratic public education system of quality able to support the country's participation in the global economy. The most recent education policies towards quality public education and strategies for quality teaching have been created and implemented under the New Law of Guidelines and Basis of National Education (LDB). The next part of this paper will concentrate on the policies generated after this law geared to improve primary school education and quality in teaching.
III. POLICIES TO IMPROVE PRIMARY EDUCATION AND TEACHER TRAINING
The New Law of Guidelines and Bases of National Education (LDB) (Law no. 9,394/96 from December 24 ,1996) created the environment necessary for implementing significant changes in Brazil's education system, including by redefining responsibilities of each education system (federal, state and municipal), giving greater autonomy to the public schools, making the curriculum more flexible, and encouraging teachers to improve their qualifications. (Brazilian Education: Policies and Results).
The LDB emphasizes the main goal of education as to produce citizens that are active participants of their social environment, and for that end to be prepared with the appropriate intellectual means and ethical values. The school has the role, according to the law, to promote the development of a critical mind, which considered to be the foundation for citizenship in a democratic society (PRASEM II, p. 121).
A. The LDB on promoting in-service teacher training
Some of the reasons behind the LDB law’s emphasis on promoting in-service training for teachers and other education professionals[4] are the government’s recognition of professional development as a right (given the importance that incentives and motivation have for professional development), and the recognition that the government has an obligation toward its citizens to formulate policies that promote quality education.[5]
The LDB law allocated resources for in-service teacher training from the FUNDEF (Fund for Maintenance and Development of Primary Education and Teacher Valorization).[6] For five years since FUNDEF's implementation, schools will be allowed to use part of the 60% they receive (up to 40%) for teacher's salaries to also pay for teacher training. The next section will further explore the challenge that lies ahead for the teachers in Brazil to reach the levels required by the LDB Law.
B. Definition of "lay" teachers and route to qualification
In Brazil, the term "lay" teacher refers to an individual who is currently teaching without being certified to teach that particular grade. Teacher are also considered to be "lay" teachers when they have not completed the first four grades of primary school; not finished secondary education; completed secondary education but without obtaining a teacher certification; and, while having a higher education degree, do not have a teacher certificate ("licenciatura"). According to the Secretariat of Distance Education of the Ministry of Education in Brazil, there were 89,000 teachers without qualifications to teach primary school in 1999.
There are various routes to certification of "lay" teachers. For instance, teachers can attend regular attendance courses, where teachers need to attend classes part time, based on modules; they can also enroll in distance learning. Regardless of the route chosen, the training institutions should be duly accredited to provide the certification. After 2007, the LDB law requires that all teachers should have a higher education degree, implying that, to continue to work as teachers, "lay" teachers now have to obtain certification in a relatively short period of time (PRASEMII, 1999). Specific exceptions have been made for those municipalities and states that will have difficulties to fulfill these requirements.
This paper focuses on the certification process of in-service teacher training of primary school "lay" teachers who are teaching the first four grades of public primary schools, particularly in the North, Northeast and Center-West regions where the challenge to certify these teachers is the greatest. According to a World Bank (Report 19228-BR,1999), in these regions out of a total of 572,000 primary school teachers, approximately 41,000 have not completed primary school and about 96,000 have an incomplete secondary school education or are not certified.[7]
To fulfill the demand for teacher training, the LDB law has given strategies to create teacher training institutions but they are not yet in place. It can be argued that alternatives such as distance learning can be effective in accelerating the certification of "lay" teachers as well as at the same time improving teacher quality in the process as it will be further discussed. The next part of the paper will first define the concept of distance learning to contextualize the example of Proformação as an alternative approach to teacher certification in the form of a distance learning program for in-service teachers.
IV. DISTANCE LEARNING EDUCATION
Distance learning differs from traditional teaching and training in many ways. It can be defined as "planned learning that normally occurs in a different place from teaching and as a result requires special techniques of course design, special instruction techniques, special methods of communication by electronic and other technology, as well as special organization and administrative arrangements" (More & Kearsley, 1996, p.2). Distance learning in Brazil within the context of the LDB law is discussed by Maria Christina Zentgraf, currently working as a professor associated with a television education program at the Castelo Branco University. She defines distance education as “a technological system that can be directed to a large population and replaces the personal interaction teacher-student in the classroom as the referential means of education for a systematic and joint action of various educational resources supported by an organization and tutors that promote the student's independent learning” (Zentgraf: 2001, p.2).
Regarding the student’s perspective, distance learning requires skills that, according to Zentgraft (2001), would not be as important in a regular teacher-student interaction: students in distance learning courses have to be autonomous, have a capacity to learn by themselves, and have self-discipline. These qualities are necessary for instance when the learners have to organize their studies around their professional and personal schedule. In contrast to traditional education, distance education is not confined to the walls of a classroom. The traditional ideas about student contact hours, learning activities, teaching strategies, and student evaluation take on a new meaning (Zentgraft, 2001).
Planning such programs, as discussed by Dooley et al. (1998), requires not only an instructor to serve as content specialist but additional expertise provided by instructional designers, media specialists, support staff, site facilitators and producers. Among the many tasks in building distance education programs are materials that needed to be converted for a computer monitor or TV display, more active teaching strategies need to be implemented and developed, so that students do not feel bored or isolated; instructors need to access students through electronic media; schedules have to be coordinated and on-site personnel/site coordinators be informed about the activities. Education technology experts are also needed to see that electronic media are used most effectively. Dooley & al.(1998) recommend that distance learning should be learner-focused, with instructors creating an environment for active learning.