Luciano Ramos, Luiza Tanuri, Priscila Pereira, Promundo

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“I plan my future now. I won't just wait for tomorrow. Now is now”,

(CE Maria de Nazareth student and project participant) 

 

In Brazil, 11 million young people, almost a quarter of the population between 15 and 29 years old, neither study nor work . This phenomenon of young people outside the job market and out of school, also known as “neither-nor” youth, is a phenomenon that has serious consequences both from an economic development perspective and the worsening of economic and gender inequalities.  

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The term “neither-nor” is a limiting and pejorative term, which suggests blaming young people who are out of school and out of the job market. Our aspirations and dreams are often conditioned by our social class, our gender identity and the region of the world in which we were born and, therefore, it is of fundamental importance to know the reality experienced by these young people.

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In Latin America and the Caribbean, 66% of disengaged young people are women, the vast majority of whom are mothers and in situations of poverty. The region also has the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the world and Brazil is in fourth place in the ranking of countries with the highest number of child marriages . The rigid gender norms produced by our society prevent young women from aspiring to think about a professional career beyond being housewives or mothers. 

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In 2018, the World Bank published a study “If it’s already difficult, imagine for me… – A qualitative perspective on young people out of school” (Machado and Muller 2018 ) that explores the challenges, causes and consequences of young people being without work and study. The study, carried out in rural and urban areas of the state of Pernambuco, provides a portrait of these young people and points to the main barriers that lead these young people to not study or work. 

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According to the study, the first barrier that these young people face is related to building aspirations and internal motivation to return to school or work. This category includes mainly young married women with children, who, conditioned by oppressive gender norms, cannot see a future beyond their role as caregivers and wives. 

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The second barrier identified by the study is the barrier to action: even expressing motivation to return to school or work, they are unable to overcome obstacles. They are often young people who do not have any person in their lives as a reference to dream of a professional career or the presence of mentors who can help them establish a sense of belonging and the self-efficacy necessary to overcome difficult times, especially in the case of young women. . The lack of quality information about access to opportunities is another barrier identified in this second dimension, as well as the lack of concrete tools to implement choices, especially among young women. 

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Finally, the study brings up a third category of young people who, no matter how much they try to return to work or school, and try continually, face external barriers that they cannot overcome, such as the lack of public transport to get to school, lack of opportunities to employment in the city where they live, discrimination in the job market for young women and mothers, among other obstacles.

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Based on the aforementioned research, the World Bank Brazil and the Promundo Institute developed the project “Projecting Futures: from information to action” to implement the study's recommendations through intervention activities in high schools. In the first half of 2019, Promundo's team of experts held meetings with educators from Complexo da Maré with the purpose of identifying and testing strategies for tackling internal barriers and barriers to action identified by the research, with the aim of encouraging people to stay in school and the search for a working and/or academic future. These experiences culminated in the creation of a toolbook composed of educational activities and with the aim of providing tools for the school community to act in overcoming internal and action barriers, seeking to ensure that the young people involved remain interested in student life, learning how to access the world of work and/or education with better conditions and qualifications. 

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Based on the development of the notebook and with the support of SEEDUC-RJ, the pilot period of the project began in September 2019. Two state schools were selected for testing: Colégio Estadual Jornalista Tim Lopes and Colégio Estadual Prof. Maria de Nazareth Cavalcanti Silva. Fifteen educators were the pioneers in participating in the project and ten facilitators supported this implementation.

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The pilot phase of the project ended at the end of the 2019 school year and brought positive results and powerful reports from participating educators, students and school managers. Educators and managers reported a decrease in absenteeism in classes participating in the project and a feeling of belonging among students in the school community. An educator reported that with the implementation of the project “ Relationships improved, students improved on their tests and their interest in studying increased.”

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During the course of the project, it was possible to verify changes in the students' behavior regarding their gender attitudes: it was possible to perceive a collective clarification regarding the difference between normative gender standards and the existence of non-binaryism. 

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Regarding attitudes about school, an evolution in the union between teachers and their classes was also noticed, as well as greater unity among colleagues among themselves, in addition to a multiplication of learning by other classes in the school. The students felt heard. In a statement collected, a student stated that “The project is like a psychologist. He listens, gives you advice.”

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Among young people, there was an increase in increasingly intense questions about the job market and the way to get advice, outlining new strategies for the future. A student's statement collected after the project demonstrates this: “Well, it was a very good experience because sometimes our minds close. Every now and then our mind closes and we end up forgetting our purpose at school. But when the project started, it reminded me of the dream I always wanted, you know? To continue, to continue studying. And this project helped me a lot so I could remember and not forget that I have a focus, that I have a purpose to get far, understand?”

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There were many doubts about career choices. Many insecurities were discussed in the project's conversations – over time, young people felt comfortable discussing their job projections. There were many practical questions about the world of work, with a lot of information sharing.

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The project was important to encourage schools to continue and seek new activities that could reflect the issues proposed by the action. Even in the short execution time in both schools, the themes and stimuli touched sensitive subjectivities of the students' complex realities – their individual (and collective) desires and dreams.

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The trajectory of a young person who manages to overcome the various barriers imposed to build a professional future is often guided by the figure of educators and school managers who believed in them. “Projecting Futures - from information to action” teaches us that through the implementation of a methodology that addresses transformative discussions about gender, race, identity and inequality, which stimulates critical thinking and equips young people to think about possibilities for a professional future It is essential to break down the barriers that make it impossible for young people, especially young women, to understand themselves as agents of action in their own lives.

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Luiza Tanuri

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Field Coordinator of the Projecting Futures Project

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