Education System

Educational System

Preschool education aims to support all aspects of child development psychomotor, cognitive, socioaffective, and linguistic; it also aims at creating conditions for the acquisition of knowledge and its progressive systematization. It comprises a diversified pedagogical program on three forms of assistance: at day nurseries, for children up to 2 years of age; in kindergartens, for children from 2 to 3 years of age; and in preschool, for children from 4 to _ years of age. Attendance is optional.

Fundamental school, compulsory to 7 to 14 year olds, extends over eight grades, with an annual minimum of 800 hours of activities. To enrol in the first grade, the student must be 7 years old, although entrance at an earlier age is allowed, depending on rules and regulations of each educational system. Enrolment and attendance to fundamental education are allowed outside the appropriate age group. At 18 years of age, the student must attend supplementary education courses. The fundamental education curriculum is consists of a common core and a diversified part. The common core, as defined by the Federal Council of Education, is compulsory in the whole country, so as to ensure national unity, and it comprises: Portuguese, Social Studies, including History and Geography, Physics and Biology Science and Mathematics.

Intermediate schooling takes up 2,200 hours of effective school work, spread over at least three annual grades.  The requirement for entering intermediate school is to have finished fundamental school or the equivalent supplementary schooling. Also in intermediate school, after the regular age limit has been reached (21 years of age), the student may take supplementary courses or examinations. When the course includes professional training, it may last for 4 or 5 years, depending on the nature of course and the minimum content established by the Federal Educational Council for each area. Finishing intermediate education is one of the requirements for entering higher education.

Higher education in Brazil is organized in 2 levels: undergraduate and graduate. The latter may be understood lato sensu (updating, specializing and further studies courses) or  trict sensu (master and doctorate courses).