Abstract:

In last years distance education has been gaining recognition as a type of education suitable for the achievement of objectives of public policy. Through the Universidade Aberta do Brasil (UAB), the Ministério da Educação (MEC), since 2005, has been offering thousands of vacancies in upper-level courses free of charge, through public institutions of higher education, relying on municipal institutions presence, allowing the expansion , expansion, democratization and internalization of public education, free and quality in the country. Data from the Instituto Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa (INEP) in Brazil indicate that there is a deficit of about 350 000 teachers. This problem is due to the high dropout in the courses, as some two-thirds of students who enroll in these courses do not graduate. This article aims to propose a discussion on quality training in higher education. Discusses that concept of educational quality must be present in the debates, forums and seminars, not only of representatives of education, but also with the participation of civil society, to be defined public policies that advance the development and privilege the well-being human. The understanding is that education is reshaped to the extent that education is based on relations of democracy and justice, putting the quality of education directly related to social responsibility. Realizing that the quality of higher education will take from academic processes equitative and that the role of the university is to promote access and knowledge to improve human development, social, economic and environmental development for all peoples, it is possible to believe education in a lively and dynamic, able to create in students an awareness of their citizenship and their capability to face the professional competent and socially responsible. It was part of research studies on quality and equity, that words are a guide for setting up a higher education accountable and committed to human and social development, but, of course, still requires profound paradigm shifts in relation to education, research, management, to educational projects and acting as educators and leaders of Brazilian universities that are committed to the establishment of a more just, humane and caring. The interpretation of the results of research indicates that these federal government initiatives to improve quality of basic education in Brazil and to promote equality of opportunity, with the combined distance education, taking the areas with poor access to education, covering a portion of the population who have difficulty in accessing university education. The prospects for improvement in teaching quality and equity of higher education, given the proposals of international organizations and the public policy of the Ministry of Education for the Institucions of Higher Education, are encouraging in view of the discussions and agreements signed in relation to social responsibility, fairness and human development. Finally, it is clear that further progress is needed in areas that relate to resources and investments for the feasibility of an education system competent and qualified for the country's growth.

Keywords:

Quality of Education, Distance Education, Higher Education, Equity.