Various internal and external determinants influence an education system. External determinants include language, demographics, geography, technology, politics, and financial and economic trends. Religion is also one of these external determinants that can influence an education system, as well as the education systems of the. The BRICS member…

The university aims to form professionals through transmission and dissemination of knowledge, therefore, the Extension, as a tool of the universities, has a major role contributing to improvements in the learning and teaching process. The Extension projects are extremely important for The Federal Technological University of Paraná (UTFPR), since…

Considering current public policies for teacher education, recent educational reforms, and the renewed discussion of the teacher's role within contemporaneous approaches in the field of education, it is essential to discuss how teacher identity is gradually constructed in teacher education programs. This paper discusses processes of teacher…

The Crao are an indigenous group of Tocantins in Brazil who speak a Je language of the Timbira group. In the Aldeias, Crao students often use the same materials as other Brazilian students. The Indians often do not consider these educational materials good because textbook content does not pertain to their culture and they cannot make sense out of…

The consolidation of the theoretical concepts as well as the use and learning of experimental techniques that are compatible with the technological evolution has been the main goals in Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer and Thermal Systems Laboratories at Escola Politecnica of University of Sao Paulo. The infra-structure and experimental benches in…

This paper attempts to clarify some of the principal obstacles Brazil will have to overcome in order for its educational system to reach the levels of efficiency, equity, and quality demanded by society. It presents a brief analysis of the Brazilian educational system, highlighting the major changes that have taken place over the last 10 years and…

A study examined the conception of educational transfer, considering the foreign influence in Brazilian curriculum throughout the 1990s. The study criticizes the literature on educational transfer produced in the 1970s, mainly the works of Martin Carnoy (1974) and Philip Altbach and Gail Kelly (1984), arguing that their two theories understress…

Two presentations at the 1981 International Conference on Chemical Education are summarized: (1) issues related to chemistry curriculum development in Brazil and (2) types of knowledge "sub-cultures" (for example, theorists, empirists, applicists, pedagogists, or epistemologists) would foster in chemistry curricula. (JN)

This paper discusses accountability in Brazil's education system. The first section presents facts about Brazil's size, population, geographical features, and culture, and it briefly outlines Brazil's educational system. In Brazil, basic education through junior high school is compulsory. There are enforcement laws to keep children in school. All…

This paper explains how undergraduate student teaching programs in Brazil, and relationships between universities and local public schools, depend on the dominant theoretical view of teacher education. This dominant theoretical view is determined by the sociopolitical context and involves power relations. When this theoretical view changes,…

This paper discusses the development and use of student self-study centers in language programs, focusing on the experiences of a language teacher in developing such a center at Cultura Inglesia in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Self-study centers may be defined as a set of facilities aimed at providing students with the opportunity of learning…

The literature discussing professional practices of school psychology in South America is very meager. This study attempted to identify demographic characteristics of school psychologists in four South American countries, their typical responsibilities, significant problems, and threats that jeopardize the delivery of psychological services within…

A discussion of the two legal traditions illuminates this comparison of student rights in common and civil law nations. The United States is among a minority of nations that use common law, a complex system cluttered with processes difficult to explain and loaded with protections for defendents in both criminal and civil cases. In American common…

This research employs an ethnographic approach in the examination of the effects that computers in schools have on student learning in the United States. It is argued that emphasis on technology, science, and mathematics is not enough to meet educational needs in America. The enthusiasm fostered by technological innovation often overshadows…

This research forum addresses the question: what is the nature of the mathematical knowledge that is needed for secondary teaching? Six international contributors: (1) Australia (Kaye Stacey); (2) Brazil (Marcelo Borba); (3) Israel (Ruhama Even); (4) Norway (Bodil Kleve and Barbara Jaworski); (5) Taiwan (Fou-Lai Lin); and (6) USA (Helen Doerr)…