HIGHER EDUCATION IN BRAZIL: A VIEW ON ITS CHALLENGES AND EXPECTATIONS OF BEGINING TEACHERS

Abstract

Brazil faces historical and complex problems such as economic and social inequality; crime; and corruption, among others. It is a consensus that in order to solve these problems, the quality of education in all levels must be achieved. An analysis of the current panorama of Brazilian higher education shows that we are still far from consolidating access to the graduate courses; and the necessary quality of knowledge production and vocational training. Higher Education Institutions deal with challenges such as the high rate of evasion and a teaching-learning process crystallized in practices that reproduce without considering the technological advances. Teacher education for higher education can be a strategic factor to build quality education. With this assumption, a research with a qualitative approach was carried out, whose objective was to know the challenges and the expectations of higher education beginning teachers in two institutions, one public and one community. The bibliographical review, the documentary analysis, the telematized research (MORESI, 2003) and the field study with interviews answered by teachers with up to three years of teaching were part of the methodology. The content analysis (FRANCO, 2008) of the answers indicated that, most of the interviewees, chose the profession motivated by pleasure and by example; that their expectations are focused on professional achievement and that they perceive the need to improve their pedagogical training. In the final considerations, elements are brought to support proposals for programs for the professional development of higher education teachers.