Notes on Brazilian curriculum reforms from 1990 to 2018: Critical reflections

Abstract

The aim of this article was to develop critical reflections through descriptive notes on Brazilian curriculum reforms from 1990 to 2018. To this end, it considers neoliberal policy as the supporter of these curriculum reforms undertaken during the period. The methodological procedure of the text, based on a qualitative approach, was divided into two stages: 1 – The relationship between the Brazilian state and international organizations; and 2 – Notes on the Brazilian curriculum reform from 1990 to 2018, based on a bibliographic review of authors who assisted in the dialogue between the two stages. Furthermore, in the second stage, we used Bardin’s content analysis (2016) to extract historical interpretations contained in the official documents of the Brazilian curriculum reforms of the period. Based on the conceptual alternations between capacity, skills, competencies, and socioemotional competencies present in the official Brazilian curriculum proposals, it was possible to observe the centrality of establishing outcome-based curricula, which allowed us to codify what we call evaluative curricular standardization. Through these reflections, we found the integration of an educational pedagogical project oriented towards the ongoing socioeconomic and political purpose.