The inadequacy of public schools:

challenges faced by adult education students in ensuring the right to learning

Abstract

This study investigates how the inadequacy of public schools compromises the guarantee of the right to learning and citizenship for students in the Youth and Adult Education (EJA) program in the Federal District and how these challenges contribute to school dropout. The research is qualitative and dialectical, employing deep hermeneutics for data analysis. It was conducted in a public school in Riacho Fundo II, a peripheral area of Brasília, DF, with data collected through in-depth interviews and group meetings with the students. The results highlight various factors that exacerbate the issues of learning and citizenship in public schools, such as power relations, inadequate educational policies for EJA, lack of appropriate teaching materials, insufficient teacher training, and teachers' difficulties in addressing students' learning and citizenship when their own situations in these aspects are compromised. The study points out that the Federal District fails to provide quality education for EJA, favoring mechanical learning over critical and autonomous thinking, with unmotivated professionals and precarious working conditions. The study proposes solutions to strengthen a school capable of educating emancipated citizens, emphasizing the importance of collective mobilization for quality public education and valuing teachers in this process. Theoretical foundations were drawn from renowned authors in the fields of human rights and education, such as Paulo Freire, Pedro Demo, Arroyo, Gadotti, Di Pierro, Haddad, among others.