On May 15 we have the opportunity to celebrate Teacher’s Day in Mexico. Without a doubt, it is a relevant date since many of us have had the opportunity to learn and live with teachers who left a mark on our lives.
As background to this commemoration, I want to retrieve information presented by the UNAM University Gazette, which refers to the fact that once a year we Mexicans celebrate our teachers. This has been done since 1918, the year in which Teacher’s Day was first celebrated on May 15 in Mexico. The date had been chosen a year earlier, when in Congress a group of legislators began to discuss the idea of honoring the teachers of our country.
It was the deputies Benito Ramírez (Veracruz) and Enrique Viesca Lobatón (Coahuila), who presented on September 27, 1917 in the plenary session of the Constituent Assembly – a few months ago the Constitution that currently governs us had been approved – a project for the celebration.
Once the project was approved by the Senate, it was ratified by President Venustiano Carranza. The decree was officially published on December 3, 1917 and in May of the following year the commemoration was held for the first time in the Federal District, over the years the rest of the states joined the ephemeris.
The purpose was to raise awareness of the great importance of teachers in the education system and in society in general. Therefore, school work had to be suspended that day; In addition, activities had to be organized in all schools to highlight the work of teachers.
According to information available on the Internet, reference is also made to the fact that teachers are celebrated on May 15 to commemorate the taking of Querétaro in 1867, when the Mexican army managed to defeat the Second Empire of Mexico.
In addition, this date does not only celebrate a battle, but also a character in the history of the Catholic Church: Saint John Baptist de La Salle. Saint John de la Salle was a French priest and pedagogue, who devoted his life to training teachers for the education of children of artisans and poor children of the time.
As it happens with other dates destined to certain anniversaries, in Latin America and in other parts of the planet the dates to commemorate teachers vary month by month, mainly in February, May, September and October.
I am certain that the teaching work carried out by women and men is essential to generate better living conditions through education. My appreciation to the teachers on this your day, thank you for being a fundamental part of the training of thousands of students, who are the present and will be the future of our country.
Teachers and teachers, congratulations on your day!
And you, what else can you tell us about Teacher’s Day? I invite you to leave your message on my Facebook page David Villanueva Lomelí. With the hashtags #Puebla and #VívelaBien.
As the Chinese philosopher Confucius noted: “Education breeds trust. Trust breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.”
Facebook: David Villanueva Lomeli
www.davidvillanueva.mx
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