impacts of the exams on Brazil-Argentina relations (original) (raw)

Language and Education in Brazil: Linguistic Structural Problems and Their Historical Origins

2022

In this article I offer an extended socio-historical overview of the Portuguese language in Brazil from independence to modern times in order to establish why there is such a gulf between the written official standard and actual linguistic usage. I reflect on how language is often regarded as a problem within educational contexts and how the response of academics in both linguistics and education studies has largely been focused on combating linguistic prejudice against non-standard varieties of Portuguese. I identify this as a recognition-oriented strategy aimed at changing attitudes towards non-standard forms of the language and its speakers and I question the effectiveness of such strategies. I argue that there are more fundamental structural problems with language and education in Brazil. These are identified as (a) the linguistic distance between the speech of the great majority of Brazilians and the official standard norm and (b) the uncertainty whether the education system is designed to teach this standard norm or, paradoxically, to assess the extent to which it is acquired. I conclude with an analysis of modern education policy documents where I find no strong emphasis for ensuring that students achieve active, advanced proficiency in the standard norm. I argue that recognition-orientated strategies need to be accompanied by strategies that advocate for structural changes in (a) the standard language to make it more readily resemble the actual speech of Brazilians and (b) how this standard is used as a means of instruction and assessment.

Reflecting on the english(es) taught in Brazil

Revista Crop, 2008

The objective of this paper is to present a reflection on the nature of the English taught in Brazil as perceived by two teachers working in different institutions and contexts. With that aim, the paper opens with a panoramic view of English taught in different countries revising current issues in language policy concerning the status of English as a global language. In reflecting about the status of English in Brazil we suggest possible answers to Jordão's (2004) three questions of 1) why we are teaching English in Brazil, 2) what the goals of private and public schools for English might be and, 3) whether we should teach cultures in language classes and if so, which ones. Suggestions of how this new status of English may or may not be relevant to the present scenario in Brazil are made and the paper concludes with the suggestion that the answer to most of the questions raised by Jordão lies in critical action and reflection.

English Language Teaching in Brazil: A gap in policy, problems in practice

English Language Teaching, 2020

Only three percent of Brazilians are estimated to speak English despite the status of this language as a mandatory subject in grades 10 to 12 of basic education and preferred foreign language in grades 5 to 9. This paper will analyse possible reasons for this fact. The widespread concept in the Brazilian society that speaking English is beneficial to individuals because it provides access to the globalised world does not seem to be enough to promote the actual learning of the language by the majority of the population, and it is argued here that this fact has to do with a gap in the foreign language teaching policy documents: the 2015 National Education Guidelines and Framework Law (LDB 2015), the Brazilian National Curriculum Parameters for Primary Education (PCN-EF), and the Brazilian National Curriculum Parameters for Secondary Education (PCN-EM). These documents do not prescribe the necessary conditions for English Language Teaching (ELT) to take place effectively, but, instead, provide suggestions for teachers on how to adapt to the status quo, which means focusing on reading to the detriment of the other aspects of the English language due to a number of factors ranging from a lack of resources to a large number of students per class.

The teaching of English as a foreign language in the context of Brazilian regular schools: a retrospective and prospective view of policies and practices

Revista Brasileira de Linguística Aplicada

This paper discusses government policies for the teaching of English as a foreign language in Brazilian regular schools, in relation to the practices and identities developed by the teachers working in this context. Starting with an historical analysis of the practices, propositions, and policies, since the second half of the last century, the article evaluates the impact of official documents upon the process of teaching English in Brazil. The tension between resistance and willingness to change, as well as between the identities of the teacher as either educator or instructor underlies the analysis, which also aims to point out possible paths for the future of our profession in regular schools.

On the Urgent Social Relevance of Linguistics: Teaching Portuguese y Citizenship Education in Brazil

2009

Djana Antonucci Correa, linguist and professor at the State University of Ponta Grossa (Parana), organized a provocative, disturbing, and uncomfortable book, that seeks effective answers regarding the teaching of Portuguese language and the practice of linguists. In articles originated in events that took place in this university over the past few years, permeated by questions about language policy, Carlos Alberto Faraco, Maria do Rosario Gregolin, Gilvan Muller de Oliveira, Telma Gimenez and Luiz Carlos Travaglia – each located in their own theoretical and practical experience – reveal, directly or indirectly, the "crisis of purpose" that linguistics is undergoing in Brazil (perhaps, in the world, if we could expand our perspective). In return, they suggest ways for implementing the teaching of Portuguese, and the relationship between research and society. For these and other reasons that we will try to highlight, The Social Relevance of Linguistics, has become “the book ...

English in Brazil: Insights from the Analysis of Language Policies, Internationalization Programs and the CLIL Approach

Education and Linguistics Research, 2016

The paper proposes a reflection on the role of English in the globalized world and its teaching/learning in Brazil. With that aim, the study reviews language policies and internationalization programs in Brazil regarding the role of foreign languages in general and of English in particular. The theoretical framework includes a review of an English language teaching (ELT) approach used mainly in Europe, as a result of globalization and internationalization, the Content and Language Integrated Approach (CLIL). In order to support this reflection, a case study was carried out to examine pre-service English teachers' beliefs on the use of CLIL in Brazil. The results of study show that pre-service English teachers understand the importance of the CLIL approach though they are aware of the various Education and Linguistics Research 55 obstacles to its implementation in that context. The study suggests a review of language policies in Brazil so as to ensure a convergence between them and internationalization policies and approaches, at all levels of education. Regarding the ELT approach analyzed, the study concludes that despite the difficulties associated with the implementation of CLIL in Brazil, it represents a relevant alternative in that context.

Bilingual Education in Brazil

Policy Development in TESOL and Multilingualism, 2021

Brazil does not currently have an approved education policy for Portuguese-English bilingual programs, which is problematic in terms of considering the discourse of bilingual education in the country today. We start the chapter with an overview of current laws and guidelines for bilingual programs for other languages, namely Brazilian sign language, border schools, and indigenous schools. We then review some education laws related to the teaching of foreign languages. We present information about typical bilingual education program models to show the affordances and focus of each model. The main section of the chapter includes a discussion of new guidelines for bilingual education in Brazil which are currently being reviewed. Based on current bilingual education practices that are additive and focus on multilingualism, we propose some principles of plurilingual pedagogies for bilingual education programs in Brazil, since an absence of policies leaves the country with little information about how to structure these programs. 1 Overview of Brazil Brazil is the largest Portuguese-speaking nation in the world. Within the context of predominantly Spanish-speaking Latin America, this provides a significant and intriguing linguistic profile for Brazil. The English language has had a strong presence in Brazil since the 1940s. In the school curriculum, the presence of French and English as foreign languages has been substantial, along with classical languages (Latin and Greek) since the early nineteenth century. The teaching of English in Brazil started with the decree of June 22, 1809, signed by D. João VI, a Portuguese Prince who ruled Brazil at the time, which stipulated the creation of a school of French and a school of English. Until then, only Greek and Latin had been taught as school subjects. At