THE EXPANSION OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE MODALITY OF DISTANCE EDUCATION (DE): A SOCIO-CULTURAL PORTRAIT OF THE ACTIONS DEVELOPED BY THE FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF PIAUÍ (UFPI)

Abstract

The expansion of Higher Education in Brazil has occurred in a very expressive way through the Distance Education modality (EaD), especially from the beginning of the 21st century, with the advancement of Information and Communication Technologies (TDIC) and the process of globalization, greatly influencing the educational scenario. In this context, new methodological proposals have set the tone and pace of political and pedagogical changes in this teaching modality. Along the way, several scholars have worked on the conceptualization of this teaching modality, contributing to its visibility in legal instruments. Based on these guidelines, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have offered courses through distance education. The Federal University of Piauí (UFPI), for example, implemented this teaching modality from the beginning of the 21st century. Thus, in this study, a spatial geographic analysis was carried out, regarding the advancement of the centers and the offer of courses promoted by the Open and Distance Education Center (CEAD/UFPI), in the states of Piauí and Bahia. The study takes a qualitative and exploratory approach, carried out through bibliographic research, from the most classic authors, from the end of the 20th century; and more contemporary authors, from these first two decades of the 21st century; as well as documental research, through the analysis of institutional data from CEAD/UFPI, governed by the concept of distance education in Brazilian legislation. The analysis focused on the expansion of the offer poles of undergraduate courses. The results reveal that the number of blended learning centers increased by 256%, from 2012 to 2016. Likewise, there was a significant increase in the diversity of courses offered, from 11 (eleven) options in 2012 to 14 (fourteen) options in 2016. The same is true for the number of vacancies offered from 3,125 (three thousand, one hundred and twenty-five) in 2012 to 9,310 (nine thousand, three hundred and ten) in 2016.