Secondary education in Brazil: persistent resistances and challenges

Abstract

The aim of this article is to present reflections on the (counter)reforms of upper secondary education in Brazil. To this end, it analyzes the changes undergone by this level of education since the late twentieth century, highlighting elements present in normative texts such as the LDB No. 9,394/1996, the 1998 National Curriculum Guidelines for Secondary Education (DCNEM), Law No. 13,415/2017, and the recent Law No. 14,945/2024. The research methodology is bibliographical and documentary. The theoretical approach is based on an analysis of the history of secondary education in the context of contradictions between capital and labor, reflecting the structural, economic, and cultural duality of society. The text addresses the historical duality between general academic education and preparation for work and vocational training, criticizing the categories of competence and employability for aiming to adapt individuals to the logic of the market. As results, the article concludes that recent legal instruments tend to accentuate the structural duality that has historically characterized secondary education. They deepen the division among students, particularly by preparing them to occupy precarious positions in the labor market.