Events
Seminar: 40 years of the Basic Law of the Education System
Lusófona University, Lisbon, October 14 and 15, 2026
Four decades after the approval of the Portuguese Framework Law of the Education System, a moment of reflection is necessary. Between celebration and debate, between evoking the past and problematizing the present, there are choices to be made. In a context where public debate on education tends to be fragmented, technocratic, or subordinated to short-term agendas, it becomes essential to refocus the discussion on major political options and their foundations. This seminar aims, therefore, to constitute a broad, plural, and participatory forum, involving researchers, teachers, students, education system professionals, and institutional leaders.
The central question guiding the seminar is: What kind of Framework Law do we need today, not just as a legal instrument, but as a political, social, and educational project to respond to the contemporary challenges of education?
More than marking a historical milestone, the seminar aims to create a space for public discussion about education policies in Portugal. The Framework Law should not only be remembered as a founding reference, but questioned in light of the social, economic, cultural, and technological transformations that have marked the last 40 years and, above all, those that shape our future.
The seminar aims to value the contribution of new generations of researchers to the analysis and understanding of the Portuguese education system. Thus, it encourages the participation of young researchers through the submission of works based on completed or ongoing master's dissertations and doctoral theses.
Programme
Wednesday, 14 October
- 09:30
- Reception of participants and invited authorities.
- 10:00
- Musical performance – Orquestra Geração.
- 10:15
-
Opening Session
- António Teodoro, Director of CeiED, Lusófona University
- Amélia Lopes, President of SPCE
- José de Bragança Miranda, Rector of Lusófona University
- Presidency of the Republic (to be confirmed)
- 11:15
-
Tribute
Tribute to the Members of Parliament who participated in the Subcommittee that drafted the Framework Law, appointed by the Education, Science and Culture Committee of the Parliament (1985–1987 Legislature). - 12:00
-
Keynote
Process and Results of the Drafting of the Basic Law of the Education System of 1986Bártolo Paiva Campos, Emeritus Full Professor at the University of Porto, rapporteur of the Parliament subcommittee that prepared the Basic Law of the Education System.
- 13:00
- Lunch break.
- 14:30
-
Panel I – Weaving the Common Ground: The Democratic Promise of Education
- Isabel Menezes, Full Professor at the University of Porto
- David Rodrigues, University of Lisbon and Lusófona University. Member of the National Education Council
- Maria João Cardona, Coordinating Professor, Polytechnic Institute of Santarém
- 16:00
- Coffee break.
- 16:30
- Presentations.
- 18:00
- Closing of the first day.
Thursday, 15 October
- 09:00
- Presentations.
- 10:30
- Coffee break.
- 11:00
-
Panel II – Paths Without Walls: Continuity and Justice in Compulsory Education
- Nuno Mantas, Director of the Boa Água School Group
- Jesus Maria Vaz Fernandes, Full Professor at the University of Madeira and Member of the National Education Council
- Manuela Mendonça, National Federation of Teachers
- 13:00
- Lunch break.
- 14:30
-
Panel III – The Whole University: Diversity, Mission and Future
- Alexandra Teodósio, Rector of the University of Algarve
- Manuel José Damásio, Full Professor, Lusófona University
- Paulo Pereira, Rector of NOVA University Lisbon
- Ricardo Vieira, Full Professor, University of Leiria and Oeste
- 16:00
- Coffee break.
- 16:30
- Presentations.
- 18:00
- Closing remarks.
We invite the submission of communication proposals that address the following themes:
1) The Framework Law as a democratic project: purposes, citizenship, and the common good
The purposes of education today in a context of polarization, inequalities, and transitions (climate, digital, labor): democracy, rights, pluralism, the common good, sustainability.
Topics:
- school as a public space;
- democratic citizenship (participation, debate, critical thinking);
- global citizenship/sustainability;
- education and decent work;
- tensions between neutrality, pluralism, and public controversy;
- the public role of the university and its relationship with society.
2) Reconfiguration of the education system and territorial equity
System architecture and coherence between cycles, purposes and organization of education.
Topics:
- integration of 0-3-year-olds into the education system;
- universalization of preschool (Law No. 22/2025) and expansion/partnerships;
- articulation between preschool, basic and secondary education;
- reorganization of cycles (including the merging of 1st/2nd cycles);
- differentiation, convergence and mission of higher education;
- reconfiguration of the architecture of levels;
- territorial inequalities and capacity of the public network.
3) Curriculum, knowledge and assessment: regulation and autonomy
Curriculum as a cultural and political construct. What counts as knowledge and how it is assessed, direct impact on equity.
Topics:
- Essential learning (regulation vs. autonomy);
- general education vs. vocationalism and early specialization;
- integration of academic and professional knowledge;
- interdisciplinarity;
- external assessment, regulation and quality;
- alternative models (formative, participatory, democratic).
4) Inclusion, diversity and educational justice changing
Intersection between school, territory and rights.
Topics:
- review of Decree-Law No. 54/2018 and new public policy scenarios;
- effective inclusion vs. formal inclusion;
- cultural/linguistic diversity;
- social inequalities;
- trajectories of risk and exclusion;
- NEET youth: characterization, causes and public policies;
- curricular justice and recognition;
- organizational conditions and resources for inclusion;
- inequalities in access to higher education.
5) Teaching profession and governance of educational work
Regulation and reconfiguration of the teaching profession.
Topics:
- identity, mission and conditions of practice;
- professional qualification and entry into the profession;
- Teaching careers: attractiveness, progression and recognition;
- Educational teams: from individual work to collaborative work;
- co-teaching: models, possibilities and constraints;
- Organization of pedagogical work: time, spaces and professional cultures;
- Articulation between teaching, research and innovation.
6) Digital transformation: Rights, learning, and democracy
Recent policies in the face of current challenges (AI, data, autonomy, well-being, and participation).
Topics:
- digital technologies and pedagogical practices;
- AI in assessment, curriculum, and teaching work;
- Impacts on learning, cognition, and autonomy;
- prohibition/restrictions on the use of mobile phones and their effects;
- ethics, privacy, and surveillance;
- digital inequalities;
- media literacy and democracy;
- technology as control vs. emancipation.
Proposal Submission
- Submission deadline: extended until July 21, 2026
- Format: Abstract up to 500 words
- Language: Portuguese
- Notification of acceptance: September 8, 2026
- Registration deadline: September 22, 2026
Submissions must be made through the Event3 platform:
Participation Costs
Participants with communication
| Students | 20€ |
| Researchers from the organizing centers or researchers associated with entities that support the event | 60€ |
| Remaining researchers | 120€ |
Participants without communication
| Students | 10€ |
| Researchers from the organizing centers or researchers associated with entities that support the event | 20€ |
| Remaining researchers | 30€ |
Organization
- CeiED – Interdisciplinary Research Center on Education and Development, Lusófona University
- CIE-UMa – Education Research Centre, University of Madeira
- CIEP – Research Center on Education and Psychology, University of Évora
With the support of
- Associação Portuguesa de Sociologia (APS)
- Sociedade Portuguesa de Ciências da Educação (SPCE)
- Associação de História da Educação de Portugal (HISTEDUP)
- Fórum Português de Administração Educacional (FPAE)
- Associação Nacional de Docentes de Educação Especial (Pró-Inclusão)
Contacts
For further information, please contact:
