Educação bancária S/A: o banco mundial e o negócio do desmonte educacional à luz de Paulo Freire.
This article examines the historical trajectory of Brazilian educational policies from the 1970s to the first Lula administration (2003–2006). It investigates how right-wing political forces orchestrated the dismantling of public education, shifting from the authoritarian technicism of the civil-military dictatorship to the neoliberal managerialism aligned with World Bank directives. Using Paulo Freire’s theoretical framework as an analytical lens, the study contrasts the market-driven logic that transforms students into “client-learners” with a pedagogy grounded in emancipation and critical consciousness. Methodologically, the research draws on qualitative analysis through bibliographic review and documentary examination of key legislation (Law 5.692/1971, the 1996 National Education Guidelines and Framework Law, and FUNDEF). The findings indicate that the dismantling of public education functioned as a deliberate political project aimed at adapting Brazil to the periphery of global capitalism, with Freire’s legacy intentionally targeted as an obstacle to be neutralized.