Coalition Strategies and Resources to Create and Oppose a Curricular Education Reform in Brazil

• In Event: The Implementation of Brazil's Base Nacional Comum Curricular: Promise and Challenge With Brazil's Common Core

Abstract

Although BNCC supporters often portray detractors as unidimensional and homogenous, our work thus far suggests there is actually considerable substantive and political diversity among BNCC opponents. Leveraging qualitative data from over 100 key stakeholder interviews and fieldwork from the first two years of implementation, this paper explores the spectrum of BNCC opposition, ranging from complete opposition to the very idea of standards, to a general support for standards, but dissatisfaction with the quality of the BNCC and the process by which it was created and is currently being implemented.

The paper begins with a review of the public perception help by some BNCC proponents that BNCC opposition consists solely of unions and university faculty with strictly ideological or political perspectives. Throughout our fieldwork, we learned that there certainly are faculty who hold ideological opposition to the standards, often rooted in a Freierean belief that curricula should be co-created with students and affirm all cultures, and that standards threaten teacher autonomy (Freire, 1970). We also heard from several professors who opposed any kind of standards and argued that curriculum itself iss undemocratic and seeks to “control students” and erase their differences. However, others were not altogether opposed to the idea of standards and some even recognized the value in standards, but held strong critiques of the BNCC, arguing that its focus was misdirected, its standards were weak, and it was being implemented in a top-down fashion. The most common critique we heard among study participants was the BNCC’s sole focus on standards rather than teaching and learning conditions, such as a lack of school infrastructure.

The paper then explores the nuances of opposition perspectives uncovered throughout our fieldwork and potential theories for why BNCC proponents insist upon a homogenous explanation of the opposition. One possible reason for this characterization is that a deliberate, overly simplistic view of the opposition serves the purpose of delegitimizing them. This could potentially marginalize dissenting opinions in a way that streamlines implementation of the policy. Another explanation for this perceived homogeneity by BNCC proponents is that a lack of collaboration and organization amongst opposing groups ultimately undermined the diversity of their perspectives, resulting in the mischaracterization of the opposition as simply ideologically opposed to standards and unwilling to participate in the policy formation and implementation process.

Authors

• Leana Cabral, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Isabel Linacre, Teachers College, Columbia University