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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol. 10, No. 7
Publication Date: July 25, 2023
DOI:10.14738/assrj.107.15200
Wolffenbüttel, C. R. (2023). Research on Music Teachers' Competitions in Brazil. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal,
10(7). 443-456.
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
Research on Music Teachers' Competitions in Brazil
Cristina Rolim Wolffenbüttel
Rio Grande do Sul State University,
Litoral Norte Campus, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
ABSTRACT
This article presents a state-of-the-art investigation concerning research related to
public competitions for music teachers in Brazil. Data collection focused on
research conducted and published until the year 2021, with no specific start date,
based on internet-based sources. After collection, the data underwent content
analysis. The results revealed four articles, each published in a different journal,
with three related to Music and one to Education.
Keywords: Music Education, Music, Public Calls, Policies, Laws.
INTRODUCTION
The organization of public competitions in Brazil has been subject to study in various fields,
such as Health, Administration, and Law. In the Health sector, for instance, discussions
frequently arise regarding the shortage of health workers in municipalities. In Law, recent
surveys like those conducted by Fontainha et al. (2014/2015) stand out, shedding light on
selection processes for hiring public servants. The authors assert that there is a delay in
"addressing this issue in the institutional research agenda of the Law field, one of the most
affected by the reflexive recruitment through public exams within its own professional ranks"
(Fontainha et al., 2014/2015, p. 673). Similarly, in the field of Administration, the demand for
professionals is recurrent due to the exigencies of this area, which presents not only an issue in
education but also in various sectors of society.
Consequently, academic theses, dissertations, and scientific journals across diverse segments
have gained relevance as they reinforce, within the context of public policies, textual
productions that foster improvements in the ways professionals are integrated and hired
within their respective fields.
Regarding Music Education and the inclusion of Music in school settings, despite existing laws
concerning competitions, it is observed that actions to promote the presence of Music in public
educational networks do not effectively align with what is mandated by legislation. Norms and
regulations, by themselves, do not guarantee a meaningful change in the reintroduction of
Music in these spaces; however, they must be adhered to.
The presence and absence of Music in Brazilian schools have followed a long trajectory
characterized by both advancements and setbacks. Understanding this process requires
knowledge of this historical trajectory.
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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol. 10, Issue 7, July-2023
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
LEGISLATION FOR SCHOOL MUSIC EDUCATION IN BRAZIL
The historical presence of Music in Brazilian schools has experienced moments of peak and
decline in national education. With the arrival of the Royal Family in Brazil in 1808, Music was
implemented in schools based on Decree Law No. 1,331-A, dated February 17, 1854 (Brasil,
1854), which approved the regulations for the reform of primary and secondary education in
the Brazilian capital, Rio de Janeiro. By the late 19th century, Music education in schools started
to have the presence of a teacher with specific training in the field to teach this subject (Brasil,
1890).
The early 20th century marked the height of Music Education in the curriculum documents with
the inclusion of Orpheonic Singing, through Decree No. 19.890, dated 1931 (Brasil, 1931). The
decree addressed the organization of secondary education. Article 1 of the law officially
recognized secondary education being provided at the Colégio Pedro II in Rio de Janeiro and at
establishments under official inspection. There were three mentions of Music education in
articles 32, 57, and 75 of the decree. Article 32 specified the weekly workload (20 to 28 hours),
which should include Music along with Physical Education exercises. Article 57 addressed the
inspections related to Article 32 and dealt with the conditions of the school's material and
didactic installations for Music and Physical Education activities. Lastly, Article 75 indicated the
hiring of a Music teacher. Notably, during this time, the composer and conductor Heitor Villa- Lobos played a significant role in proposing music education for the broader population,
advocating for musical practice based on national folklore. With the "Escola Nova" (New School)
movement, Music education became integrated into the educational system of the time,
encompassing both primary and secondary education.
In the second half of the 20th century, Orpheonic Singing was replaced by Music Education
(Brasil, 1961). Nevertheless, to some extent, the work continued to be developed as it had been
before because the teachers who started teaching Music Education were the same ones who
had previously worked with Orpheonic Singing and used similar teaching methodologies. Music
Education in schools lasted for about ten years before being replaced by Art Education with the
enactment of the National Education Guidelines and Bases Law No. 5,692, dated August 11,
1971 (LDB 5.692/1971), which established guidelines and bases for primary and secondary
education and took measures to implement them (Brasil, 1971). As a result of the implications
of this law and the requirements for the training of teachers who should act in this area, there
was a reduction in the effective presence of Music in schools, as the same subject had to
incorporate Visual Arts and Performing Arts – as they were called at the time – in addition to
Music. This led to what became known as a versatile role for Art Education teachers, who were
expected to be multitasking individuals, taking on roles that, based on knowledge and training,
should have been filled by graduates in Visual Arts and Performing Arts. According to historical
data, this period was marked by many profound changes in the country, which were reflected
in Education and another reform in the educational system.
Subsequently, in the late 1980s, the country underwent a process of redemocratization,
resulting in a series of changes, including the enactment of the National Education Guidelines
and Bases Law No. 9,394 on December 20, 1996 (LDB 9.394/1996). In this law, the term "Artes"
(Arts) was used, representing the expectation for the reconfiguration of education, with the
separation of the Arts into Visual Arts, Dance, Music, and Theater (Brasil, 1996). According to
the law at the time, Arts education was mandatory, and any of the artistic areas could be taught.
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Wolffenbüttel, C. R. (2023). Research on Music Teachers' Competitions in Brazil. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 10(7). 443-456.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.107.15200
Years passed, and in the 21st century, two new laws were introduced. On August 18, 2008, with
Law No. 11,769 (Law 11,769/2008), the scenario seemed to become effective with the
establishment of the mandatory teaching of music in Brazilian schools (Brasil, 2008). This
change in § 6 of Article 26 of LDB 9.394/1996 (Brasil, 1996), which dealt with the obligation to
teach Music in basic education, was seen as a significant advancement. According to the legal
text, Music should be a mandatory content but not exclusive to the curricular component
mentioned in § 2 of the same article (Brasil, 2008). The document specified that educational
networks in the country had a three-year period to comply with the guidelines. It is worth
noting that although Article 2, sole paragraph of the law stated that Music education should be
taught by teachers with specific training in the area, this item was vetoed by the then-President
of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In Message No. 622, dated August 18, 2008, the
President, through the Ministry of Education, presented the reasons for the veto:
Rxegarding the sole paragraph of Article 62, it is essential to have a clear understanding of what
"specific training in the area" means. It is worth noting that music is a social practice, and in
Brazil, there are numerous professionals active in this field without academic or official music
training who are nationally recognized. These professionals would be unable to teach such
content as proposed by this provision. Additionally, this requirement goes beyond defining a
curricular guideline and establishes, unprecedentedly, specific training for the transfer of
content. It is important to note that there is no requirement for specific training in subjects such
as Mathematics, Physics, Biology, etc. Even when the National Education Guidelines and Bases
Law defines more specific content related to different cultures and ethnicities (Article 26, § 4),
and foreign language education (Article 26, § 5), it does not establish the minimum training for
those who would teach these contents.
Years passed, and Law 11,769/2008 was not regulated. It is important for laws to undergo a
regulation process, depending on the type of law. Not all laws, however, require this procedure,
but all can be regulated (Meirelles, 1958). However, many times, without regulation, laws can
go unnoticed or be considered unimportant; hence, the relevance of this procedure, especially
in the present time. Therefore, this progress can be achieved through a resolution.
Concerning Law 11,769/2008, the regulation process took approximately eight years from the
date of its enactment until its implementation through homologation, which occurred on May
10, 2016. This resulted in Resolution No. 2 of 2016 (Resolution CNE/CEB No. 2), issued by the
National Council of Education/Chamber of Basic Education (Brasil, 2016b). According to the
heading of the law, it "Defines National Guidelines for the implementation of Music education
in Basic Education." In its structure, it presents two articles. The first one states its purpose to
guide "schools, Education Secretariats, music professionals and teachers' training institutions,
the Ministry of Education, and Education Councils in the implementation of Music education in
Basic Education," as per Law No. 11,769, 2008 (Brasil, 2016b, p. 1). Of particular relevance to
this research is Article 1, which includes the responsibilities of Education Secretariats.
Specifically, item VII of § 2 stipulates the organization of "specific competitions for the hiring of
licensed Music teachers" (Brasil, 2016b, p. 2). Finally, Article 2 specifies that the resolution shall
come into force upon its publication, and it revokes all previous contradictory provisions.
As Resolution CNE/CEB No. 2 has not been revoked, it is presumed to be in force. However, the
national public policy landscape can be complex, presenting itself as an arena of disputes (Bowe,