Promoting inclusion and equity in Higher Education: Is this the role of distance learning in Brazil?

• Autor(a) principal: Mello, Sidney L. M.
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Meriño, Marcelo J., Filho, Walter Leal, Sampaio, Thaís N. da R.
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por; eng; spa
• Título da fonte: Ensaio (Rio de Janeiro. Online)
• Texto Completo: https://revistas.cesgranrio.org.br/index.php/ensaio/article/view/3736
• topic: Educação; Sustainable Development; Brazilian Higher Education; Distance Learning; SDG 4; Massification of Higher Education; Desarrollo Sostenible; Educación Superior Brasileña; La Educación a Distancia; ODS 4; Masificación de la Educación Superior; Desenvolvimento Sustentável; Ensino Superior Brasileiro; Ensino a Distância; SDG 4; Massificação da Educação Superior

This study aims to investigate how enrollments have reached a rapid increase in distance learning Higher Education (DLHE) in Brazil and consider whether it promotes inclusion, equity, and quality as disseminated by the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) and the Brazilian Plan of Education (PNE). The methodological procedures were based on documentary research. For this analysis, three goals of DLHE were investigated: access, quality, and equity by looking at variables such as enrollments, the regulatory framework, the quality assessment, the cost of Education, the student income, gender, and ethnicity. The analysis showed increased enrollments in Higher Education (HE) in the last decade, particularly distance Education. This growth was accompanied by greater inclusion and equity in access to HE. But there are issues in the quantity and content of courses and the concentration of enrollments in a few for-profit private institutions, which affect the quality of Education. This paper provides a unique view of whether DLHE promotes inclusion and equity in tertiary Education in Brazil and whether it has been valuable in public policy.