EAD is preferred by 72% of higher education students

Seven out of ten higher education students preferred distance learning (EAD) last year. The information is part of data from the 2022 Higher Education Census, released this Tuesday (10), by the National Institute of Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira (Inep).

According to the study, in 2022, 72% of students approved for higher education opted for the remote learning format. Another alarming conclusion is that one in five young people, aged 18 to 24, did not complete secondary education and abandoned studies.

In the case of degrees, the preference for distance learning is even greater, reaching a rate of 93.2%

A trend present in recent years, the growth of EAD ‘fashion’, is a cause for concern among experts, who point out that this type of teaching has weak regulation, not to mention the difficulty in measuring the quality of these graduations.

One of the critical points surrounding EAD concerns the fact that current course evaluation mechanisms do not take into account the type of platform online classes used by educational institutions, not counting the time dedicated to “synchronous” classes, through which students interact in real time with the teachers. In addition to these procedures of questionable effectiveness, it is a recurrent practice for faculties to record the teaching material, just once, and then sell it to an increasing number of interested parties.

“The role of the MEC is to regulate this. It is a red light for us to take important measures in this scenario”, warns Education Minister Camilo Santana, upon learning of the Census data. He adds that, by decision of the federal government, 16 higher education courses cannot be taken remotely: four of them have already were suspended (nursing, law, dentistry and psychology) and another 12 remain under analysis, through consultation public.

But why, after all, does there be such an absolute preference for EAD? For the executive director of Semesp – an entity that represents higher education providers in Brazil – Rodrigo Capelato, the distance learning modality “has been more attractive because it brings flexibility in terms of place and time [for the student to study], but mainly because it is offered with much, much higher monthly fees cockroaches".

Another argument raised by Capelato is that “80% of Brazilian students have a per capita income of up to three minimum wages, that is, they are unable to pay monthly fees [for face-to-face courses]. Prouni and Fies coverage is low, and so is the number of places in public education.”