Brasília, June 17, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - On Monday (16), the Ministry of Education initiated a seminar to discover new proposals for vocational training. Currently, there are 65 million Brazilians who did not complete secondary education. The majority are over 15 years old and have difficulties in adapting to traditional schooling.

In the view of specialists, vocational training is the best way to prepare these individuals for the challenges of the job market, since they have lost the inclination to study in a traditional school setting. Despite this evaluation, this type of instruction has lost ground in the country since 1997, when a decree made mandatory the completion of secondary school in order for students in vocational courses to receive their diplomas.

Changes in the legislation and new ways to finance vocational training are the main issues that will be discussed at the seminar. The event, which ends on Wednesday, is being attended by around one thousand professionals and specialists in education. (DAS)