Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade Federal de Alagoas1, Hospital Universitário Professor Alberto Antunes- Universidade Federal de

Background: Despite being recommended as a compulsory part of the school curriculum, the teaching of basic life support (BLS) has yet to be implemented in high schools in most countries. Objectives: To compare prior knowledge and degree of immediate and delayed learning between students of one public and one private high school after these students received BLS training. Methods: Thirty students from each school initially answered a questionnaire on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of the automated external defibrillator (AED). They then received theoretical-practical BLS training, after which they were given two theory assessments: one immediately after the course and the other six months later. Results: The overall success rates in the prior, immediate, and delayed assessments were significantly different between groups, with better performance shown overall by private school students than by public school students: 42 % ± 14