In his recent visit to the Vatican, Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns, Cardinal-archbishop of S o Paulo, gave an unprecedented report, accusing the city's mayor, Paulo Maluf, of destroying the educational system in the city's schools, notably the adult literacy courses that were implemented by the previous city administration. These courses have been done away with by the present administration. Comparing the per capita Gross National Product of every country with the statistics on school truancy in the primary grades, Brazil ranks last. Paulo, a city with 15 million inhabitants, has over 77,000 elementary school teachers. The Brazilian Centre of Analysis and Planning, in a 1994 study, confirmed the poor formation of teachers due to a vicious circle.
Salaries are poor.
They are those who are dedicated to the ideals of the importance of education and the passing on of values of equality and justice, and the others are those who are unprepared to compete in other areas. A Carlos Chagas Foundation study showed that a majority of teachers stated that they would remain in their profession despite the obstacles because they view it as a vocation that plays a critical role in the formation of society. Those who stated that they would not remain, cited the lack of valorization of teachers and low salaries as the main reason for leaving their profession. The following are stories about two teachers who are or have been a part of the state public school system and a student who is studying in this system. Arlete Diogo, wife, mother and teacher, retired as a teacher after 26 years in the S o Paulo state school system.