Artificial intelligence is changing the way people access information, generate knowledge, and engage with learning. Today, the challenge for schools goes beyond simply incorporating new technologies: it involves educating individuals who are capable of thinking critically, maintaining their autonomy, and using these tools in an ethical and mindful manner.

Pedro Cortella, a futurist, digital strategist, and communicator specializing in education, artificial intelligence, and behavior, argues that teachers are no longer merely facilitators of access to information but are taking on an even more strategic role: prompting questions, fostering critical thinking, and inspiring students to fall in love with the learning process.

In this interview with the Bett Blog, Cortella discusses the impact of artificial intelligence on education, the challenges posed by information overload, the human skills that are becoming most valuable, and the role of schools in preparing citizens to navigate a constantly changing future.

Cortella is one of the guest speakers at the Bett Nordeste Conference, which will take place on August 19 and 20 at the Recife Expo Center in Recife (PE). Admission is free. You can register here.

Bett Blog: How has your career—which combines experience in education, technology, communication, and digital strategy—influenced the way you view the challenges schools face in an increasingly connected world driven by artificial intelligence?

Pedro Cortella: I often say that we live several lives within a single one, and it was this diversity of experiences that shaped my view of artificial intelligence. AI makes life easier for everyone, but it especially empowers those who already have a diverse skill set. I have a degree in journalism, and over the past 20 years, I’ve seen the profession change completely. The way we produce content, consume information, and communicate has been reinvented, and I’ve had to learn new ways to do my job.

It was in education that I found an even greater purpose: to inspire hope. I realized that, more than just conveying information, educating means transforming lives. This transition happened naturally. In fact, I believe that, in my own personal story, I was only able to become a teacher after gaining a variety of experiences—in other words, after living other lives.

Today, I see that the role of the teacher has also changed. For a long time, it was said that teachers needed to facilitate access to knowledge. Now that all information is available at our fingertips, their role has shifted: to spark intellectual debate. It is up to educators to present challenges, prompt reflection, and help students develop the ability to think for themselves. For me, this is the great challenge facing schools: to move beyond simply imparting content and become more reflective.

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Bett Blog: What stands out most to you about the way younger generations interact with emerging technologies?

Pedro Cortella: My concern isn’t limited to the younger generations. In elementary and secondary education, there is already a much greater understanding of the impacts of excessive screen time and early exposure to the digital environment. Schools have been making strides in this area, strengthening social-emotional skills, group work, and other experiences that go beyond the use of technology.

Of course, Brazil still faces significant social inequalities, and access to screens remains a privilege for many families. Even so, I believe we are rapidly moving toward a consensus that exposing children to cell phones, social media, and computers at too early an age can be detrimental to their development.

Gen Z youth have been overwhelmed by the speed at which the internet has evolved. A few years ago, it was common for parents to feel a certain sense of pride when they saw a child demonstrate ease with technology. Today, the sight of an entire family glued to their cell phones during a meal already triggers an almost spontaneous sense of unease. This shows that new behaviors are beginning to emerge.

That’s why the behavior of the younger generations isn’t what concerns me the most. My attention is also focused on the older generations. Millennials, Boomers, and other age groups are constantly connected, overwhelmed by information overload, and immersed in an increasingly fragmented reality.

At the same time, I also see significant efforts to reconnect with reading, with mindfulness, and with moments of deeper reflection. I believe this is a very promising path.

Bett Blog: How can schools and educators strike a balance in the use of artificial intelligence without sacrificing learning experiences that foster curiosity, reflection, and knowledge-building?

Pedro Cortella: As an educator, I believe that we teachers are agents of change when it comes to critical thinking. And today, fostering critical thinking means creating friction. Whereas teachers were once seen as facilitators of access to knowledge, our role now is to present challenges and encourage students to think for themselves.

I try to get my students to fall in love with the process, not the result. We live in a society that is heavily focused on delivery, performance, and the final product—a mindset inherited from the Industrial Revolution and what Paulo Freire called “banking education.” But this is precisely the time to build autonomy in a world where artificial intelligence and technology are making everything easier and easier.

The greatest challenge is to instill a love of the learning process. More important than the content or the ready-made answer is the journey taken to arrive at it. This has always been education’s most difficult role: ensuring that people do not develop an aversion to learning, but rather fall in love with knowledge.

I believe that artificial intelligence will make education more accessible, more personalized, and even more engaging. And that is precisely why a good teacher will have even more opportunities to make a difference.

Watch Pedro Cortella's interview on Conexão Bett:

Bett Blog: Which soft skills become even more important in a world of information overload and constant stimulation?

Pedro Cortella: Since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, I’ve delved even deeper into the study of artificial intelligence and futurism. At some point, I began to wonder what, after all, the role of humans would be in a world where AI seems capable of doing almost anything. This concern also led me to create the podcast “Inteligência Orgânica,” where I talk with people (in person) about the future of humanity in the face of artificial intelligence.

Today, I believe that the way forward is to develop precisely this kind of organic intelligence. Recently, I came across a framework developed by MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) that identifies five essentially human competencies that are unlikely to be replaced by artificial intelligence.

The first is empathy—our ability to understand others. Next comes presence, which is linked to focus and mindfulness. The third is creativity, because machines produce, but human beings create. The fourth is opinion, understood as in-depth knowledge and reflection, rather than the need to have an opinion on everything. Finally, there is hope, in the sense advocated by Paulo Freire: true hope comes from the verb “to hope” (esperançar), not from the verb “to wait” (esperar).

Bett Blog: What is the main message you hope to share with educators and administrators during the Bett Northeast Conference?

Pedro Cortella: It will be an honor to participate in the Bett Nordeste Conference for the first time. I have a deep affection for the education community. I am the son of a teacher, and I believe that educators are the true influencers in society.

The main message I want to share is that we need to learn to embrace change. I know this sounds counterintuitive. Human beings naturally seek out their comfort zone, but we are living in an era of exponential innovation, in which change is inevitable.

Every change brings new opportunities to learn, grow, and develop our organic intelligence. I like to think that we should fall in love with looking out the window along the way, and not just with the final destination.

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