The crisis in private higher education in Brazil: main causes and possible solutions

The aim of the article is to examine the main causes of the crisis in private higher education in Brazil since 2015, characterized by the mass dismissals of teachers, the reduction of salaries of those who remain in private higher education institutions, the overcrowding of classrooms and the greater adhesion of students to distance education in the light of the high costs of classroom-based courses. In addition, one of the objectives is also to offer recommendations for overcoming this situation. The research follows the methodological steps of Sécca & Souza (2009) for the analysis of private higher education in Brazil. The bibliographic research consisted of reading, selecting and organizing topics on the general causes of the crisis of the private higher education sector in Brazil since 2016. The next step was the research of information on specific private higher education institutions in Brazil, divided per region: Southeast, South, Midwest and North / Northeast. The central argument points out that the crisis is closely related to the financial crisis in the country, motivated by the adverse international economic situation and the political chaos caused by allegations of corruption and misappropriation of funds by politicians and businessmen. This forced the Brazilian government to reduce and limit access to student financing contracts drastically from 2015 on, and most students from low-income classes were excluded from entering higher education or had to stop studying. Besides, in the light of a higher number of unemployed people and lower salaries, students were less able to afford the tuition fees of a higher education course at a private institution. To overcome difficulties and attract new students, private higher education institutions can rely on multiple strategies, such as scholarships, alternative financing, discounts for those who pay the current monthly fees and the creation of academic endowments

Innovation in the ‘New Normal’ Interactions, the Urban Space, and the Low Touch Economy: The Case of Rio de Janeiro in the Context of the COVID-19 pandemic

The aim of this paper is to examine how innovation was implemented in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, regarding the “new normal” interactions, the urban space and the low touch economy. The main argument indicates that the use of new information and communication technologies to interact with others allowed people to develop social and emotional ties in the light of health precautions. Although many of these precautions were ignored by people using the urban space, some people made new uses of the open natural spaces in Rio de Janeiro to release anxiety and depressive feelings, but the city still faces problems regarding the privatization of public spaces. In the light of the development of the low touch economy, innovation was necessary for many companies to overcome obstacles such as broken relationships with customers, the instant drop in demand, the constraints in supply and production, the political instability and the cash-flow/financial constraints. These solutions included the improvement of the logistic process and alternative branding, the switch to a similar but digital/remote service and the creation of products for other needs of the existing clients

A relação dos jovens de classes baixas com política: Um estudo de caso com moradores da comunidade da Rocinha

O objetivo principal deste estudo é identificar a relação que os jovens adultos de classes econômicas baixas têm com política, a partir de um Estudo de Caso com moradores da comunidade da Rocinha, no Rio de Janeiro. A comunidade em questão apresenta uma série de problemas sociais, tendo, por exemplo, o sétimo pior Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano (IDH) entre os bairros do Rio de Janeiro (PNUD, 2013). Além de etapa teórica, foi realizada uma pesquisa empírica, com duas fases, sendo uma qualitativa com entrevistas em profundidade e outra quantitativa, com questionários aplicados via internet. Os resultados indicam que o interesse por política é limitado, o que se deve, de certo modo, à descrença em relação aos políticos. Os pesquisados reconhecem, no entanto, que, em maior ou menor nível, os políticos representam a população que os elegeu

A TEACHER EDUCATION PROJECT AND THE DIFFUSION OF E-LEARNING: A STUDY IN THE SEARCH FOR CHAMPIONS DOI:10.5585/rai.v6i2.366

This empirical study presents a teacher education project for the use of technology in the teaching-learning environment of a Business School in a higher education institution (HEI) in Rio de Janeiro, in order to spread e-learning as an innovation within the organization. First, the history of distance education in that institution is presented, from its initial implementation to the present time, as well as the motivation for the project. Within the scope of the project, the aim is to prepare teachers for e-learning and to identify individuals that could play the role of Champions in the process (ROGERS, 1995), i.e. e-learning multipliers in the organization. At this stage of the project (1st phase), the position of lecturers as to beliefs about the use of technology in the teaching process was mapped. Data were generated by means of discussions in forums and were submitted to content analysis. It was clear that lecturers who participated in the program identified the need for innovation in the education environment, with the appropriate infrastructure. They also recognize the importance of institutional support. Finally recommendations are made for innovation diffusion programs in HEIs.Neste estudo empírico, apresenta-se a concepção de um projeto de capacitação docente para o uso de tecnologia no ambiente de ensino-aprendizagem em uma escola de administração de uma Instituição de Ensino Superior (IES), no Rio de Janeiro, com o intuito de difundir o e-learning como uma inovação dentro da organização. Inicialmente apresenta-se a trajetória da educação a distância (EAD) na IES, desde a sua implantação até o momento atual, e as causas que motivaram a proposta do projeto. Dentro do escopo do projeto o objetivo é preparar os docentes para a inovação (e-learning) e identificar possíveis elementos que atuarão no processo como Champions (ROGERS, 1995), ou seja, como multiplicadores e responsáveis pela catequização do e-learning dentro da organização. Nessa etapa do projeto (1ª fase), mapeou-se o posicionamento dos docentes em relação ao que pensam sobre o uso de tecnologia no ambiente de ensino. Os dados foram gerados por meio de debates em fóruns de discussão e analisados pelo método de análise de conteúdo. Ficou explícito que os docentes participantes do programa identificaram a necessidade de inovação no ambiente de ensino e para tal desejam infraestrutura e reconhecem a importância do apoio institucional. Finalmente apresentam-se recomendações para programas de difusão de inovação em IES

Empregabilidade dos jovens administradores: uma questão meritocrática ou aristocrática ?

The article aims to discuss the relevance of two assumptions about the impact of education on the employability of degree holders: the study of Bourdieu (1988), who questions the relationship between vocational training and integration into the labor market and the human capital theory (SCHULTZ, 1967), which postulates that education increases productivity and employability of individuals. To achieve this goal we carried out a survey to map the employability of trainees in administration at a university in Rio de Janeiro. Students of this institution have different economic backgrounds, which allowed a comparison of their economic position and their access to professional opportunities. Taking in account the graduates’ current conditions of employability, separating them in groups according to their origin, it was not possible to identify differences in the quality of jobs obtained, for both individuals from more privileged families and those less favored,  endorsing Schultz's assumption about the importance of education.O artigo teve como objetivo discutir a pertinência de duas suposições acerca do impacto da educação na inserção profissional de seus possuidores: o estudo de Bourdieu (1988), que questiona a relação entre qualificação profissional e inserção no mercado de trabalho, e a teoria do capital humano (SCHULTZ,1967), que postula que a educação aumenta a produtividade e a empregabilidade dos indivíduos.Para lograr o objetivo realizou-se um levantamento visando mapear a inserção profissional de formandos em Administração de uma universidade do Rio de Janeiro. Os alunos dessa instituição têm origens econômicas diferentes, o que permitiu uma comparação entre seu posicionamento econômico e seu acesso a oportunidades profissionais. Observadas as condições atuais de inserção profissional dos formandos, separados em grupos em função de sua origem, não foi possível identificar diferenças na qualidade das ocupações obtidas, pois tanto os indivíduos oriundos de famílias mais favorecidas quanto os menos favorecidos obtiveram empregos de qualidade, endossando o pressuposto de Schultz sobre a importância da educação

Measurement of the F2 structure function in deep inelastic e+^{+}p scattering using 1994 data from the ZEUS detector at HERA

We present measurements of the structure function \Ft\ in e^+p scattering at HERA in the range 3.5\;\Gevsq < \qsd < 5000\;\Gevsq. A new reconstruction method has allowed a significant improvement in the resolution of the kinematic variables and an extension of the kinematic region covered by the experiment. At \qsd < 35 \;\Gevsq the range in x now spans 6.3\cdot 10^{-5} < x < 0.08 providing overlap with measurements from fixed target experiments. At values of Q^2 above 1000 GeV^2 the x range extends to 0.5. Systematic errors below 5\perc\ have been achieved for most of the kinematic urray, W

Marriage is not a safe place: Heterosexual marriage and HIV-related vulnerability in Indonesia

This paper examines the link between heterosexual marriage and women's vulnerability to HIV in Indonesia. In this country, gender relations are currently dominated by traditional beliefs and practices and by religious morality. Data for the current study were collected by means of documentary analysis and archival research as well as by means of expert informant interviews. Findings suggest that traditional practices such as polygamy, early marriage and contract marriage (mut'a) play an important role in enhancing women's likelihood of acquiring HIV within the Indonesian context