Pedro Santa Clara, founder of TUMO Lisboa and Escola 42, has sparked controversy with his vision for education in Portugal. In a recent interview, the economist and “super-liberal” attacked public schooling as obsolete and rigid, comparing it to Soviet-style central planning. His proposed alternative? A system without traditional teachers, relying instead on learning coaches and workshop leaders—often young, precariously employed university students—to guide students in practical, AI-assisted tasks.
TUMO, originally from Armenia, serves nearly 5,000 students in Portugal and claims to be privately funded, though municipal contributions in Coimbra, Porto, Matosinhos, and Gaia reveal public money involvement. Santa Clara’s model emphasizes vocational skills over general knowledge, critical thinking, or deep learning, and positions AI tools as more valuable than traditional education content. Critics note this mirrors Teach for Portugal’s high-turnover “mentor” system and risks undermining teacher professionalism.
While advocating privatization and market-driven education solutions, Santa Clara sidesteps the broader debate on public education quality. His approach may work in controlled, well-funded environments but struggles to scale, leaving teachers, public schools, and the education system vulnerable to further precarization and commercialization.
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