Public Prosecution’s Office extrajudicial performance and the right to early childhood education: ¹ a case study ²

Abstract

In this article we intend to analyze the extrajudicial performance of the Public Prosecution’s Office (PPO) regarding the right to early childhood education (ECE), through the Conduct Adjustment Terms (CATs), using the case of the municipality of Telêmaco Borba (Paraná). We seek to understand the ways in which the institution impacts the enforcement of the right to ECE in this municipality. We interviewed the stakeholedrs, who took part in the signing and implementation of the CATs, and analyzed the interviews along with enrollment data and documental sources – regarding the signing process and other related activities in the legislative branch. Using these sources, we try to understand causes and effects of the ECE judicialization process that took place in this town. We understand judicialization as the displacement of issues usually debated by elected officials to the justice system sphere, extrajudicial activities included. The results point to the intensification of disputes between the administration and the PPO, with alleged meddling between the administrative discretion and the activities of the prosecution. Moreover, we noticed the broadening of the discussion on the access to ECE, denoting the expansion of the entitlement of local citizens regarding their educational rights.

Judicialization of education; Public Prosecution’s Office; Early childhood education