O desafio da permanência estudantil em tempos de crise

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of the challenges faced by student assistance in Federal Institutions of Higher Education (FIHE), with the onset of the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and, consequently, the suspension of all face-to-face activities. This is a basic qualitative theoretical research supported by authors who address educational policies for access to federal universities and the democratization of higher education. It analyzes legal instruments and public policies on the subject, with emphasis on the National Student Assistance Program, which has allowed the digital inclusion of university students in a situation of socioeconomic vulnerability. It discusses remote learning, adopted as a strategy for the continuation of academic semesters. It points to the need to deepen discussions regarding the effective democratization of public universities, the importance of expanding student assistance, as well as the attention that should be given to social inequalities that affect students and their families. It also defends the transformation of Decree No. 7,234/2010 into law, as a strategy to carry out a project for the democratization of higher education based on the reduction of social inequalities within universities and on the permanence of students from the subordinate layers, with quality, until the diploma.