Since 1998, public funding for basic education in Brazil has been organized by the Fund for Maintenance and Development of Basic Education and Teaching Valorization (Fundef). One of the goals of this fund is to assure resources for basic education public funding, guaranteeing its quality and thus the improvement of student proficiency. This article analyzes the effects of Fundef in student performance utilizing public data from the fund and from Saeb (basic education statistics synopsis). The results suggest that financial support and teacher qualification are important for the improvement of public education.
Fundef; education funding; basic education
