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Dossiê - Educação de pessoas jovens, adultas e idosas em diversos contextos brasileiros e moçambicanos

The Amazon region and the rural areas of Mozambique (Africa) are characterized by vast socio-biodiversity and a complex web of sociocultural relationships. They stand out as territories where multiple rationalities, epistemologies, and educational practices coexist. The peoples of the Amazon and rural Mozambique—particularly youth, adults, and the elderly—construct their learning through an ongoing dialogue with the natural environment, community ways of life, and cultural traditions that span generations.

Education is a plural phenomenon that unfolds across multiple spaces and practices; this resonates deeply with the realities of the Amazon and parts of Mozambique, where learning is a communal, place-based process linked to cultural practices. In this context, Youth and Adult Education (EJA) plays a vital social role for these two peoples—geographically distant yet culturally close—as it specifically targets individuals whose schooling was interrupted or denied for various reasons. To engage effectively with the region's sociocultural diversity, this educational modality must take into account the learners' specific circumstances: their work schedules, travel along rivers and roads, family responsibilities, traditional knowledge, and expectations regarding formal education. Consequently, public policies for EJA must genuinely incorporate the unique characteristics of each territory, recognizing that educational provision cannot be divorced from the socio-environmental and cultural conditions that shape life in these regions. Promoting education that is contextualized and socially grounded requires integrating curriculum, teacher training, efficient school management, and community participation, thereby strengthening pedagogical practices that align with local challenges and potential.

However, in recent decades, Youth and Adult Education (EJA) in Brazil—and particularly in the Amazon and rural regions of Mozambique—has undergone significant transformations driven by shifts in educational policies, demographic dynamics, and social demands. In Brazil, there have been important advances, such as the expansion of literacy programs, the integration of basic education with vocational training, and the consolidation of legal frameworks reaffirming EJA as a right. Mozambique has also experienced profound transformations that have impacted the pedagogical, administrative, and political implementation of EJA. Nevertheless, these advances have occurred unevenly across the country's regions, and both the Amazon and rural Mozambique present specific characteristics regarding EJA.

In the Amazon region, in particular, recent transformations have brought greater visibility to traditional populations and their educational needs, spurring initiatives focused on curricular flexibility, service provision in hard-to-reach areas, and the valuing of local knowledge. Programs linking formal schooling with community practices, as well as teacher training experiences centered on interculturality, have sought to address regional demands. Nevertheless, structural challenges persist: a lack of adequate infrastructure, difficulties in teacher retention, the lack of continuity in government policies, and geographical barriers that impact student access and retention.

Given the specificities and diversity of the Amazon region—and considering the changes imposed on the education of youth, adults, and the elderly over the last decade (notably the approval of new National Curriculum Guidelines, the alignment of Youth and Adult Education [EJA] with the new high school model, the trend of closing classes and schools alongside declining enrollment, the expectations surrounding the National Pact to Overcome Illiteracy, and social movements' advocacy for changes in EJA educator training)—this dossier invites researchers and other key figures in the intellectual and educational fields to share experiences, critical reflections, and scientific findings from diverse epistemological perspectives. We seek contributions that engage with themes contextualizing and critically examining policies, training practices, school management, curricula, and educator training within EJA across a wide range of territories.