Regional Disparities in Education and School Environment Quality in Brazil: A Data-Driven Analysis

Janaina Guiginski, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)
Marcia C. Castro, Harvard University
José Irineu Rigotti, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)
Renato Hadad, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais

This paper examines the relationship between school environment quality and educational performance across Brazilian municipalities in 2007 and 2019. Using a data-driven approach, the study focuses on two indicators: a novel multidimensional measure of school environment quality, derived from Grade of Membership (GoM) models, and the Basic Education Development Index (IDEB). The GoM model assesses 37 variables related to school location, access to basic services, physical spaces, pedagogical and administrative equipment, school size, accessibility, diversity, and inclusion, while the IDEB measures student performance and school flow. Despite overall improvements in both indicators over the study period, regional disparities persist, with municipalities in the North and Northeast concentrated in the lowest GoM and IDEB terciles, while those in the South-Central regions dominate the highest categories. These findings highlight the uneven distribution of educational quality across Brazil. By mapping the spatial distribution of these indicators, the study offers insights for targeted policies addressing educational inequalities. Further analysis with spatial correlation models will explore geographic patterns and temporal trends.

Keywords: Human Capital, Education, and Work, Children, Adolescents, and Youth, Census data, Spatial Demography

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