YOUTH AND ADULT EDUCATION IN BRAZIL: INTERRUPTED PATHS AND POSSIBILITIES FOR RECONSTRUCTION

Abstract

Youth and Adult Education (EJA) is the central focus of this article, which analyzes its historical trajectory, structural challenges, and potential for consolidation as a public policy in Brazil. The study aimed to identify the main obstacles to implementing an inclusive, qualified, and sustainable EJA. The methodology was based on a critical bibliographic review with a qualitative approach, analyzing academic works published in databases such as Google Scholar, SciELO, and CAPES. The results revealed high dropout rates, precarious pedagogical and curricular conditions, inadequate teacher training, and the invisibility of ethnic-racial issues. Moreover, a gap between legal frameworks and school practices was observed, weakening students' engagement with the educational process. Nonetheless, the study identified successful pedagogical experiences grounded in Freirean principles of dialogue, listening, and emancipation, which offer feasible paths for a transformative EJA. It concludes that overcoming current challenges requires political commitment, recognition of learners as historical subjects, and curricular restructuring aimed at promoting social justice, reaffirming EJA as a human right and a strategic component of the Brazilian educational system.