The National Association of Private Universities (Anup) defended quality criteria for distance learning (EAD), but demands balance in regulation to ensure inclusion and innovation in the sector.
Despite recognizing advances, Anup has shown caution, especially since the full text of the new rules has not yet been released in the Federal Official Gazette (DOU). In a technical note, the entity defends a regulatory framework that ensures quality, values the faculty and place the student at the center of the learning process.
However, it warns that any new regulation needs to consider the reality of millions as the only form of access to higher education.
“We are favorable to a regulatory framework that induces the quality […]But we understand that it is necessary to consider the role of technology and different methodologies in the educational process and access to education, ”says the statement, referring especially to the populations of small towns and regions with limited infrastructure.
Rigidity
The entity also appealed for operational decisions – such as the proportion between tutors and students – not to be defined rigidly or genericly, but from data, good practices and continuous dialogue between.
“We will continue to follow the publication of complementary rules and reiterate the importance that operational definitions are the subject of continuous assessment, based on evidence,” points out Anup.
Congress
For the president of the Mixed Parliamentary Front of Education, Deputy Rafael Brito, says he understands the argument that EAD promotes inclusion, but points out that the logistics difficulty does not come from today.
“The logistics difficulty of higher education for those with a small town, has long existed. It is an important argument, but it should not be central. It may not be that makes the country form doctors and nurses for distance learning. This is not the solution,” he said in conversation with CNN.
The parliamentarian also argues that the measure comes with delay. “We were seeing higher -level courses far short of what we expect from Brazil. This was supposed to have been done in the first half of the government. Glad it came to this measure. It was a sector that everyone asked for regulation. It was OAB itself that asked the MEC to prohibit distance training,” he said.
Brito assessed that it was a “very malleable, very correct” measure, and that it reverberated well among the parliamentarians of the front.
Decree
This Monday (19), the President of the Republic Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) signed the decree that establishes the new regulatory framework for EAD, in an attempt to reorganize and harden the rules for the modality in higher education.
During the official ceremony, structural changes were announced in the format of higher education courses, with the definition of three modalities: face -to -face, semi -presential and EAD (100% online). The Ministry of Education (MEC) also proposed the standardization of the concepts of face -to -face and distance activities, as well as restricting the supply of EAD for certain courses and suggesting new pedagogical models that intensify the interaction between students and teachers.
