Impacts of the 2014 economic crisis on the profile of Brazilian students in technical professional education

Abstract

This article studies the impacts of the economic crisis, which began in 2014, on the profile of students in technical vocational secondary education (EPT) in Brazil, both in person and at distance. Its objective is to understand the relationship between the crisis, the gender and age of the students and the level of completion of the Technical course in Real Estate Transactions. The research uses a quantitative approach, with data provided by an educational institution involving 4,561 subjects of both modalities, for the period from 2012 to 2016. The data analysis used the SPSS software and performed the t test, Pearson's chi-square, and coefficient of variation. Started in mid-2014, the crisis involved a deep and lasting fall in the level of economic activity, with civil construction being one of the most affected sectors, a decisive factor for students, due to the fact that the analyzed course is part of this area. The results indicated that the economic crisis caused a considerable reduction in the number of enrollments, more significant in the face-to-face modality, and in the level of completion of the course in both modalities, besides a greater dispersion in several data. It also increased the percentage and decreased the average age of women studying at a distance. The article concludes that these changes in the profile of students in technical professional education were due to external phenomena, such as the economic crisis, which may have promoted the search for training or a secondary source of income.