A historical-critical perspective on neoliberalism and its impacts on Brazilian education

The present study aims to critically analyze the impacts of neoliberal educational policies in Brazil from the perspective of political metabolism, identifying their implications for the universalization of education and the critical formation of individuals. It is based on the premise that education, historically structured as an instrument for social reproduction and the maintenance of inequalities, is intensified in the neoliberal context through processes of commodification, the precarization of teaching labor, and the curricular subordination to market demands. The research is characterized as a qualitative bibliographic review, developed within the scope of an interdisciplinary investigation and supported by a theoretical-critical approach and by the concepts of neoliberal State, expanded State, and political metabolism, as outlined by Alves. The systematic review includes books, scientific articles, dissertations, and official documents, prioritizing works that articulate historical analysis, critical reflection, and empirical evidence regarding neoliberal educational policies in Brazil. The results indicate that, since the colonial period, education has played a structuring role in maintaining social inequalities. In the contemporary context, neoliberal policies intensify management practices oriented by goals and indicators, standardize curricula, and consolidate the commodification of education, compromising its emancipatory potential. Political metabolism articulates economic interests and governmental agendas to reproduce these practices and ensure the maintenance of the prevailing social order. It is concluded that understanding political metabolism is essential to identify structural mechanisms of inequality, guide public policy formulation, and enable alternatives that promote a public, critical, democratic, and socially just education, emphasizing the centrality of teacher valorization, pedagogical autonomy, and the comprehensive formation of individuals to realize the right to education.