English Language Learning In Brazil

Mar 15 2023

Author(s)

Sarah Stanton
Thaiane Pereira

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This post is also available in: Português

Education and the way schools are structured has been advancing over the past few years. Global trends, such as globalization, the use of technology in schools, digitalization, and the increased importance of developing social and emotional competencies, have driven a transition movement in the educational model in recent decades. The recent Covid-19 pandemic has also contributed to the acceleration of some of those trends and shed light on the urgent need to modernize traditional education systems. In this context, the mastery of English as a global language capable of connecting people and cultures and a skill that is highly valued in the labor market, makes high-quality instruction in the language particularly important for education systems.

In the case of Brazil, English instruction has been gaining more importance in recent years, especially with the inclusion of the subject as compulsory at the secondary level (beginning in 6th grade) in all public and private schools. There is then, a window of opportunity that is opening to improve English instruction in Brazilian education and a chance to modernize the way school is structured in the country. Important reforms are underway in Brazil, such as the curriculum reform proposed for the new Common National Curricular Base (BNCC) and the New Upper Secondary School (Novo Ensino Médio), which have the potential to be the first steps to ensuring a more effective English instruction for Brazilian students.

The report presents an overview of English teaching in Brazil, examining the main national policies that regulate and inform English language learning and how they have been implemented. In addition, the study aims to exemplify how English teaching is guided from the national level to the state and municipal level, looking particularly at the states of Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso. The case studies in these two states examine state policies related to English, with a particular focus on teachers and their careers, from training to work routine and classroom pedagogical practices.

Based on an in-depth analysis of these two Brazilian states and the results of questionnaires conducted with universities and with teachers, this report offers a set of recommendations for improving English teaching in these two states, which can also be applied to other states or federal entities in Brazil. The aim is to consolidate these recommendations into workable and meaningful propositions with the ultimate goal of improving English teaching in Brazil through better quality education led by qualified teachers.