The purpose of this article is to expand on the relevant debate proposed in Marília Matoso's piece, titled We Need to Rethink Architecture Programs, published on ArchDaily in January 2023. Indeed, rethinking architecture education is a task that is not only necessary but also urgent. However, I believe this discussion is inseparable from debates about the profession itself and how we educate future professionals. Rather than simply attempting to formulate definitive answers, I think it is important to raise further questions that contribute to our collective reflection.
Analyzing the Brazilian case, data collected by the Datafolha Institute, commissioned by CAU/BR, indicates that around 93% of construction projects in the country are carried out without hiring architects. Conversely, the main areas of practice for architects and urban planners, based on the 2020 CAU Census, were “Interior Architecture,” “Architectural and Urban Design,” and “Architectural and Urban Execution,” in that order. This raises two questions: how to ensure that architects master the activities that currently constitute the core of professional practice, and, above all, how education can help architecture reach more people.
In this regard, I believe that introducing new topics is necessary, but insufficient for a genuine update of architecture curricula. This is especially true if these topics are detached from a clear understanding of conception and intentionality. Is there any coherence, for example, in including the debate on decoloniality without changing our colonized approaches to teaching and our ways of thinking about and producing space? Or is it possible to discuss the environment or sustainability without addressing economic inequalities and ethnic and racial issues? We can no longer pretend that architecture has nothing to do with this.
