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A Comparative Review of Education Policy in Brazil and South Africa: Divergent Trends in Inequality

Authors :
David James De Villiers
Alethea Cassandra De Villiers
Source :
Athens Journal of Education. 10:323-344
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
Athens Institute for Education and Research ATINER, 2022.

Abstract

The literature identifies that education policies in Brazil are the backbone of their success in reducing inequality as measured by the GINI index. Since 1994, Brazil is the only BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) nation to achieve this. This article presents a comparative study of South Africa and Brazil, and the policies applied towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. Using the analytical framework of the SDG, the strategies of South Africa, and Brazil regarding education are considered in order to identify patterns and themes that can potentially explain the divergence of inequality trends of the two nations. The overarching finding is that subtle differences in education policies perpetuate inequality in South Africa, whereas analogous policies contribute to equality in Brazil. The main contribution of this study is that it locates faults in otherwise well-meaning education policies in South Africa. Keywords: comparative education, policies, Brazil, South Africa, inequality

Subjects

Subjects :
Education

Details

ISSN :
22417958
Volume :
10
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Athens Journal of Education
Accession number :
edsair.doi...........4e11831631e133daf67faa66024e48fe
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-2-8