Anísio Spínola Teixeira (July 12, 1900 – March 11, 1971) was a Brazilian educator, jurist, and writer. Teixeira was one of the reformers of Brazilian education of the early 20th century, being an advocate of

progressive education Progressive education, or educational progressivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. T ...

in the country. He was one of the co-founders of the University of the Federal District, in 1935, and of the

University of Brasília A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

in 1960.

Life and career

Teixeira was born in Caetité, in the state of Bahia, child of an influent landowner family. He studied at Jesuit schools in his hometown and in Salvador and graduated in law at the

Federal University of Rio de Janeiro The Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (, UFRJ) is a public university, public research university in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is the largest federal university in the country and is one of the Brazilian centers of excellence in teaching and r ...

in 1922. He started working as general-inspector of education of the state of Bahia in 1924, and visited Europe between 1925 and 1927, studying the educational system of several countries. In 1927 Teixeira went to the United States, studying at the Columbia University, where he came in touch with

John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and Education reform, educational reformer. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the first half of the twentieth century. The overridi ...

's pragmatism. Inspired by that philosophy, Teixeira came back to Brazil, where he went to be Rio de Janeiro (then

Federal District A federal district is a specific administrative division in one of various federations. These districts may be under the direct jurisdiction of a federation's national government, as in the case of federal territory (e.g., India, Malaysia), or the ...

) Director of Education. He believed that education should be public, free, and laicist, attuned to a developing industrialized society, not focusing in memorization, but allowing the student's development. He was one of the signatories of the Manifesto dos Pioneiros da Educação Nova (Pioneers for a New Education Manifesto), advocating changes in Brazilian education. Teixeira founded the Universidade do Distrito Federal in 1935, with basis on the New School tenets, which was met with a strong opposition of religious educators and sectors of the Getúlio Vargas government. Teixeira resigned of the Director of Education chair in 1939 and went back to Bahia, where he was invited by governor Octávio Mangabeira to work as State secretary of education. There he implemented the Escola Parque (park school) in the Salvador. In 1951, Teixeira was appointed director of Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas (INEP). After the Brazilian capital moving from Rio to Brasilia, Teixeira, together with Darcy Ribeiro and other people, planned a new university for the city. The University of Brasilia was founded in 1961, with Teixeira as its first rector. After the 1964 Brazilian coup d'état, Teixeira left office and went to the United States, teaching at the Universities of Columbia and California. Back in Brazil in 1966, he became a consultant for the Getúlio Vargas Foundation.

Death

Anísio Teixeira died in 1971, in circumstances considered obscure. His body was found in an elevator on Avenida Rui Barbosa, in Rio de Janeiro. Despite the accidental death report, there are suspicions that he was a victim of the repression forces of General Emílio Garrastazu Médici's government.

Selected works

* Aspectos americanos de educação. Salvador. Tip. De São Francisco, 1928, 166 p. * A educação e a crise brasileira. São Paulo: Cia. Editora Nacional, 1956, 355 p. * Educação é um direito. 2ª ed. Rio de Janeiro: Editora UFRJ, 1996, 221 p. * Educação e o mundo. 2ª ed. São Paulo: Cia. Editora Nacional, 1977, 245 p. * Educação e universidade. Rio de Janeiro: Editora UFRJ, 1998, 187 p. * Educação no Brasil. São Paulo: Cia. Editora Nacional 1969, 385 p. * Educação não é privilégio. 5ª ed. Rio de Janeiro.- Editora UFRJ, 1994, 250 p. * Educação para a democracia: introdução à administração educacional. 2ª ed. Rio de Janeiro: Editora UFRJ, 1997, 263 p. * Educação progressiva: uma introdução à filosofia da educação. 2ª ed. São Paulo: Cia. Editora Nacional, 1934, 210 p. * Em marcha para a democracia: à margem dos Estados Unidos. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Guanabara, s.d., 195 p. * Ensino superior no Brasil: análise e interpretação de sua evolução até 1969. Rio de Janeiro: Editora da Fundação Getúlio Vargas, 1989, 186 p. * Pequena introdução à filosofia da educação: an escola progressiva ou a transformação da escola. São Paulo: Cia. Editora Nacional, 1968, 150 p.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Teixeira, Anisio 1900 births 1971 deaths Brazilian educators Brazilian jurists People from Caetité Federal University of Rio de Janeiro alumni