Considering of the foundations and purposes of a democratic state as set forth by the Brazilian Constitution, this paper deals with the problem from the viewpoint of the right to education and its links to the principles and goals of this country's educational system. Highlighting the historical importance of the decentralization of elementary education, it exposes the paradox of the formulation power, concentrated within the Federal sphere. The hypertrophy of both the Brazilian Institute for Educational Studies and Research (INEP) and its evaluation instruments, together with the results of the Brazilian System for Elementary Education Assessment (SAEB) are synthetically analyzed through the prism of the "The II Portrait of School" survey.
Evaluation; Elementary education; Evaluation system; Brazilian assessment system; Assessment of elementary education