Paper short abstract

The paper aims to present the Brazilian situation in the first half of the twentieth century and discuss how some intellectuals promoted reforms in order to "democratize" access to the education system through the creation of public, secular, free and mandatory schools.

Paper long abstract

The paper aims to present the Brazilian situation in the first half of the twentieth century and discuss how some intellectuals, known for their liberal positions, promoted reforms in order to "democratize" access to the education system through the creation of public, secular, free and mandatory schools. Having as a parameter the "Reforma Fernando de Azevedo", implemented in the Federal District in 1927, many other intellectuals sought to reform the local educational system, designing a system of public schools for a growing urban population. I will discuss this paradigmatic case drawing on archival research, and explore the concepts of "democracy" and "liberalism" presented in the books of Fernando de Azevedo primarily the "Manifesto dos Pioneiros da Educação Nova" (1932).