Annotations for Uncategorized: Scholarity

Carmen Andrea's Schooling (Part I)

Due to limited space in the only public school in the town, she received private lessons from her comadre Ana Graciela Francia (her future half-sister-in-law), paying two bolívares monthly.
She then attended classes with Ms. Blanca Lovera Houtman.
These facts suggest the limitation of the access to public school for all the population. (Quintero, 2002)

Carmen Andrea's Early Interests and Schooling (Part II)

She enjoyed whistling "like men" and singing songs she learned from family friends.
Throughout much of the 20th century, whistling by women was strongly discouraged and considered inappropriate or "unladylike" while it was widely accepted as a normal masculine behavior for men. The reason for this disparity was Gender Norms and Etiquette.
Voice and Power: Some feminist interpretations suggest that the interdiction was a way to keep women "voiceless," metaphorically and literally, reinforcing a paradigm of female silence and subservience.

Access to education in Yare was limited since there was only one teacher for boys and girls. Carmen' schooling was interrupted because she cried when separated from her mother.
She later received private instruction from Ana Graciela Francia while living in Los Añiles. Her school routine consisted of attending classes in the morning, returning home at midday to assist her mother with domestic tasks—such as pounding grain with a "pilón"—and then returning for afternoon lessons.
After several months, another teacher arrived at the school, but not all of the children got seats. So she took classes with Ms. Blanca Lovera Houtman for a time; but her schooling ended permanently when her father moved the family to Caracas.
Carmen learned half-writing, simple math, embroidery, and memorized national hymns (like those dedicated to Sucre and "Mi General") and received PE class, which had been incorporated into the Venezuelan school curriculum by 1919. She had good conduct and applied grades.

Pilón (Mortar and Pestle): In some cases, a mortar (a hollowed-out stone or tree stump) and heavy wooden pestle were used to pound the grain into a coarse meal.

Education History in Venezuela

Formal education in Venezuela emerged with the arrival of the Spaniards and developed under strong religious and elitist influence for much of the colonial period.
Andrés Bello and Parra León documented that in 1591, the first institution in Caracas taught reading, writing, and arithmetic.
Since the 17th century, Jesuits have promoted multi-class education with missionary objectives and clerical orientation. According to the Hispanic perspective, education should be provided to whites and white Creoles (blancos criollos); Indigenous people and mixed-race individuals ("pardos"), considered socially inferior, received an education focused on social skills to "civilize" them.
Until 1821, primary schools were private and religious.
In that year, the Escuelas de Primeras Letras para Niños y Niñas (Schools of First Letters for Boys and Girls) were decreed, making instruction compulsory for all children between the ages of six and twelve.
The successive struggles for independence and political conflicts of the 19th century prevented the real expansion of education.
By the middle of this century, the prestigious bachelor’s degree was awarded by the National Colleges. In primary schools, only one in every 114 children received an education.
Although public instruction for all levels, including primary, was decreed in 1863, no progress was evident until 1870 when funds were allocated to implement the decree.
The country's social (class-based) and economic structure—with limited urbanization, a predominantly rural population, agricultural dependence, and scarce public resources—profoundly conditioned access to and quality of education outside privileged contexts.
From the beginning of the 20th century until 1936, some progress was made in educational legislation, although it was limited. Mass public education was not yet consolidated, and significant inequalities in access persisted based on social class, race, or region.

Marriage to Jesús María

Jesús María had loved Carmen since she was a girl, his dream of getting married with her came true. She never needed to flirt with him. He often told her, "I saw you beautiful only once", likely the moment he fell in love, though she never asked when. They finally married in 1937, when Carmen Andrea was 24 and Jesús María was over 40. Father José Vicente Espejo gifted them the religious service because she was a member of the Hijas de María society (for nine years). In their religious marriage record, Jesús María's father and her wife are listed as the witnesses.
At the time, posting marriage banns—or edicts—was a legal requirement in Venezuela. These public notices, used until 1982, announced an upcoming marriage to allow third parties to raise objections if any legal impediment existed, such as a prior marriage.

Hijas de María (Enciclopedia Católica)
The Daughters of Mary Immaculate originated after the Church-approved apparition of the Virgin of the Miraculous Medal to Sister Catherine Labouré in Paris in 1830. In 1847, a decree authorized establishing pious associations for young girls in all houses of the Daughters of Charity, granting them the same spiritual privileges as major Jesuit confraternities.
Over time, the association expanded: in 1876 it opened to young women outside the schools of the Daughters of Charity, and later papal decrees reaffirmed its privileges.
Its insignia is the Miraculous Medal on a blue ribbon. By 1897 it had 100,000 active members worldwide, with 400,000 enrolled since its founding.

In San Francisco de Yare, this society was founded by Father Espejo, Gregoria Diaz Diaz, alongside other women. This humble woman lived like a hermit, dedicating her life to Christ and to prayer. Every afternoon she would leave her bahareque (wattle-and-daub) hut in the town center of Yare only to attend Holy Mass. A devoted follower of Saint Francis of Paola, she used to wear the same habit: a long brown habit with a matching cord at the waist. In her home, she also taught catechism classes.
She supported herself by teaching basic literacy to children using the Mantilla textbook, charging one Bolívar per week.
Regarded as spiritually pure, Gregoria remained celibate throughout her life and was known for her holiness, prayer, and dedication to teaching. She died in Yare on July 25, 1969.

The term "Mantilla Book" generally refers to the "Reading Book" (with numbers 1, 2, or 3) by Luis Felipe Mantilla (a Professor of Spanish Language and Literature). This historical school textbook was used for teaching reading and writing in several Latin American countries, and it was very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.