VOCATIONAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATION IN BRAZIL AND RIO GRANDE DO SUL: HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS, COMPETENCIES, AND WORK AS AN EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLE

Abstract

ocational and Technological Education (VTE) in Brazil is a strategic field for economic and social development, historically marked by the duality between technical and human education. This article aims to analyze the historical and conceptual foundations of VTE, highlighting the notion of homo faber and the centrality of practice, overcoming the dichotomy between technical and human formation, competence as praxis, and work as an educational principle. The study, of bibliographic and qualitative nature, draws on authors such as Saviani, Kuenzer, Frigotto, Vázquez, Arendt, and Bergson, as well as on legal documents and recent statistical data. The results indicate significant normative advances, such as the creation of the Federal Network of Vocational and Technological Education and the valorization of the integration between secondary and technical education, but also reveal persistent challenges, such as unequal access, the need for adequate infrastructure, and teacher training for interdisciplinary practices. It is concluded that VTE should be understood not only as a response to labor market demands but as an emancipatory social practice capable of articulating science, technique, and culture, contributing to integral and civic education.