“Professor?” asked the policeman when he saw the university card after he had stopped me for riding my bicycle on the sidewalk, something liable to a fine. “Yes,” I replied in my broken Chinese. “Hmm…Please don’t do that anymore, but you can go.” In China, being a teacher gives privileges, because no other profession is so respected; after all, it is an honor to follow the career of Confucius.
Respect translates into economic development. It is no wonder that South Korea, Japan and China, all poorer countries than Brazil in the 1950s, are today richer, safer and more developed. The education systems in these countries are far better than the world average, teachers are relatively well paid, and families are passionate about ensuring that their children get into the best schools.
In Brazil, we live a paradox. In the country where studying makes more money, no layer of society fights for a first-world education system. And yes, in Brazil, the return on education is very high, the result of decades of strangling access to the system.
The income of a Brazilian who finishes high school is 148% (that is, 48% higher) than the average of those who do not complete it. Worse, this percentage for those who graduate from higher education reaches 394%. For comparison, in Europe, these percentages are 126% and 192%, respectively. Even in Mexico, education doesn’t pay that much. There, finishing high school results, on average, in 133% of the income of those who do not finish and, for those who complete university, the values ​​reach 217%. In the OECD report on the education system of the world’s leading countries, in none of the other 36 countries studied is there such an expectation of gain.
It is common to complain about the Brazilian education system. Everything is lacking: from respect for professionals to the basic structure for teaching; and that’s even when politicians don’t steal the lunch. But our problems start at home. We place little value on education, whether in the richest or poorest strata. In fact, a poor family not valuing education is rational, although not the best choice: as investments in education take decades to generate a return, the pressure of everyday life is a barrier for the poorest to focus on studies.
The same cannot be said of the richest families. For many, education itself has no value and only the diploma matters. Instrumentally, the reason is clear: the historical difficulty of access increases the relative gain of the few who manage to graduate. In Brazil, we also have a sui generis situation: faculties that want to sell diplomas, students that want to buy them, and professors that try to get in the way of negotiation. In Brazil, it is also illegal to sell diplomas; in cash. Already on time?
On this teachers’ day, we need to ask ourselves: which of the two candidates can get us out of this terrible balance, in which teachers’ conditions are bad and families don’t value teaching? Education systems don’t change overnight, but the answer is clear. Between a government that tried to greatly expand the system, even with several measures that wasted resources, and another that considers doctrinaire professors and whose MEC is being dismantled, the answer is clear: Lula, despite his flaws, took Brazilian education seriously. . And without education, we have no future.
Chad-98Weaver, a distinguished author at NewsBulletin247, excels in the craft of article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a penchant for storytelling, Chad delivers informative and engaging content that resonates with readers across various subjects. His contributions are a testament to his dedication and expertise in the field of journalism.
