Secondary education in Brazil has expanded increasingly in relative terms by means of adult education. This fact has risen fears of lower academic requirements. However, statistics do not confirm it, since most of the students stay at regular night schools much later than the age limit. A research project based on focal groups gathered data on students in both regular and adult education. Results show that adult education certificates are stigmatized so that night school students had chosen more demanding schooling, with better perspectives for work and higher education. Therefore, educational opportunities are stratified, similar to a menu composed of cheap and expensive alternatives, with corresponding benefits. The dual educational system and the adult education fragility makes the latter a neglected and underused alternative for democratization of educational opportunity.
DEMOCRATIZATION OF EDUCATION; SECUNDARY EDUCATION; EVENING COURSES
