On the Assertion of Equality of Opportunity Upheld by the Federal Education Law: Comments on a Case (II)

Abstract

Does equality of opportunity in education actually exist, as proposed in our country in the statements of the Federal Education Law (Law 24195, 14/04/93, Title II, Chapter I, Article 5, Paragraph f)?

When analyzing the complex network of exogenous and endogenous factors, it can be affirmed, at least with regard to the school realities studied, that situations of social inequality and the unjust distribution of goods have a significant impact on students’ learning and on the transformation that should take place through the educational process. We therefore conclude, always with reference to the known cases, that school failure is not produced solely by the internal functioning of the system, but is rather the product of prevailing social patterns; that is, of factors arising from the broader socioeconomic context that generate the situations experienced by students.

Thus, equality of opportunity in education cannot be sustained in a society in which social groups exist under conditions of inequality.

The field study was carried out through teaching practices in 8th and 9th grade rural classrooms, in the area of Language. The interpretation takes two aspects into account: the prescribed curriculum and its realization in school practices, that is, the hidden curriculum.