Violence in Brazil interrupted classes in 669 schools – 7/20/2023 – Education

Classes in 669 public schools in the country were interrupted by episodes of violence in 2021. Shooting in the surroundings, theft, vandalism, threats and attacks are among the reasons why the units had to stop teaching activities.

The data are from the 17th Brazilian Public Security Yearbook, published this Thursday morning (20) by the Brazilian Public Security Forum. The information was obtained from a questionnaire answered by school directors for the Prova Brasil 2021, an evaluation carried out by the Ministry of Education.

The number of schools with classes interrupted due to violence represents 0.9% of the total. The researchers estimate that, even if it is a small proportion, the data brings an important warning about the seriousness of violence in the country.

“It is very alarming that 669 schools had to stop their activities, which means that thousands of students could not study due to the risk of being victims of violence. It is a very serious violation of the rights of these children and adolescents”, says Cauê Martins, consultant for the Forum.

He also highlights the tendency for the number of schools with interrupted classes to have increased in 2022 and 2023 due to the wave of attacks and threats registered in these two years.

In 2021, there were two attacks on schools. In 2022, there were six. And, in the first quarter of this year alone, there were six registrations.

“The 2021 data still does not reflect this violence that hit schools in the last few months in an unprecedented way. We saw a wave of threats, which disrupted the functioning of these establishments across the country. It is very likely that the number of schools with interrupted classes will be much higher in 2022”, says Martins.

The data indicate that the interruption of classes is a consequence of urban violence invading the school space. More than 40% of the affected schools are in Rio de Janeiro — the state recorded 269 stoppages of activities.

Rio de Janeiro is also the Brazilian state where schools were most affected by shootings or stray bullets. Of the 1,295 units that reported episodes of this type, 586 are from the Rio de Janeiro public network — more than 45% of the total.

“The school, in Rio de Janeiro, is an institution almost eight times more dangerous to attend and is a victim of crossfire between police and criminals than in the other states of Brazil”, highlights the Forum report.

The survey also points out that 7,156 schools were invaded, 11,991 had records of robberies or thefts and 14,544 were the target of vandalism.

The data also show the various situations of violence practiced within the school. “These are situations in percentages that are not consistent with the idea of ​​the school as a safe space and a protective environment. Anyone who thinks that violence is a limited problem is wrong”, says the report.

More than a third of public schools (37.6%) report dealing with bullying situations, 15% with cases of discrimination and 2.3% with sexual harassment.

Some units of the federation, such as the Federal District and Santa Catarina, have rates equivalent to more than twice the national average. They had reports of sexual harassment in 5.2% and 4.1% of schools, respectively.

Also, in 2.5% of the schools there was a record of people carrying weapons (fire or knives) and 5.6% recorded the presence of people under the influence of drugs.

“Violence is inside the school and it interferes with its functioning. The challenge is immense, but the data give indications of what are the priority demands for each region”, evaluates Martins.