Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr.

Terey Gil Gmez

II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

Make a TIMELINE of Jose Rizal's Education

a. Early Education in Calamba and Biñan
b. Education in Ateneo de Municipal
c. Education in University of Santo Tomas

Rizal’s first teacher was her own mother – a remarkable woman of good character and fine
culture. Rizal learned alphabet at the age of three.

As Jose grew older, his parents hired private tutors.

• Maestro Celestino – Rizal’s first tutor

• Maestro Lucas Padua – Rizal’s second tutor
• Leon Monroy – A former classmate of Rizal’s father and became Rizal’s tutor that
instructed Jose in Spanish and Latin. He died five months later.

1869

• Sunday afternoon in June – Rizal left Calamba to go to Biñan. He was accompanied by

his brother, Paciano.
• Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz – Rizal’s teacher in a private school in Biñan which
he described “He was thin, long-necked, with a sharp nose and a body slightly bent
forward.”

Pedro
- He was the teacher’s son who Rizal challenged to a fight.
- He was the naughtiest boy in class and was a few years older than Rizal.

Andres Salandanan
- He challenged Rizal to an arm wrestling match.

Juancho
- The father-in-law of the school teacher.
- An old painter who amused Rizal with his paintings.
- He gave Rizal free lessons in drawing and painting.
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

Jose Guevarra
- Rizal’s classmate who also loved painting.
- Jose Guevarra and Rizal were the “Fashionable painters” of the class.
- He was the favorite painter of the class because of his artistic talent.
- Jose Guevarra and Rizal was Juancho’s apprentice.

Daily life in Biñan

- Heard the four o’ clock mass then at ten o’ clock went home at once and went at
school at two and came out at five
- The day was unusual when Rizal was not laid out on a bench and given five or six
blows because of fighting.
Best student in School
- Rizal beat all the Biñan boys in Spanish, Latin, and other subjects.
- His classmates were all jealous of him and told lies to discredit him.
- As a result, the teacher had to punish Rizal.

1870

• Christmas in 1870 – Rizal received a letter from his sister, Saturnina, informing him of
the arrival of the steamer “Talim” which would take him from Biñan to Calamba.
• Saturday Afternoon, December 18, 1870 - Rizal left Biñan after one year and a half of
schooling.
• Arturo Camps – a Frenchman of Rizal’s father. Took care of Rizal on board.

1872

• June 10, 1872 – Rizal accompanied by Paciano went to Manila.

• Father Maagin Ferrando – was the registrar, refused to admit Rizal for two reasons;
1. He was late for registration
2. He was sickly and undersized of his age.
• Manuel Xerez Burgos – because of his intercession, nephew of Father Burgos, Rizal
was reluctantly admitted at the Ateneo.
• Jose was the first of his family to adopt the surname “Rizal”. He registered under
this name at Ateneo because their family name “Mercado” had come under the
suspicion of the Spanish authorities
• Rizal was first boarded in a house outside Intramuros, on Caraballo Street. This was
owned by a spinster named Titay who owed the Rizal family the amount of 300 pesos
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

1st year in Ateneo

1872-1873

• Father Jose Bech - Rizal’s first professor in Ateneo whom he described as a “tall thin
man, with a body slightly bent forward, a harried walk, an ascetic face, severe and
inspired, small deep-sunken eyes, a sharp nose that was almost Greek, and thin lips
forming an arc whose ends fell toward the chin.”
• A Religious picture- Rizal’s first prize for being the brightest pupil in the whole class.
• To improve his Spanish, Rizal took private lessons in Santa Isabel College during the
noon recesses. He paid three pesos for those extra Spanish lessons

1873

• At the end of the school year in March, 1873, Rizal returned to Calamba for summer
vacation
• When the summer vacation ended, Rizal returned to Manila for his second-year term in
Ateneo. This time he boarded inside Intramuros at No. 6 Magallanes Street. His landlady
was an old widow named Doña Pepay.

2nd year in Ateneo

1873-1874

• At the end of the school year, Rizal received excellent grades in all subjects and a
gold medal
• The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas - the first favorite novel of Rizal
which made a deep impression on him
• Universal History by Cesar Cantu - Rizal persuaded his father to buy him this set
of historical work that was a great aid in his studies
• Dr. Feodor Jagor - a German scientist-traveler who visited the Philippines in 1859-
1860 who wrote Travels in the Philippines
• Rizal was impressed in this book because of (1) Jagor’s keen observations of the
defects of Spanish colonization (2) his prophecy that someday Spain would lose the
Philippines and that America would come to succeed her as colonizer

1874

3rd year in Ateneo

1874-1875

• Rizal grades remained excellent in all subjects but he won only one medal—in Latin
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
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- It was Doña Teodora who was first discovered the poetic genius of her son, and it
was also she who first encouraged him to write poems. However, it was Father
Sanchez who inspired Rizal to make full use of his God-given gift in poetry
• Mi Primera Inspiracion (My First Inspiration), 1874 - the first poem Rizal probably
wrote during his days in Ateneo which was dedicated to his mother on her birthday;
Rizal wrote it before he was 14 years old.

1875

• March 1875 - At the end of the school year, Rizal returned to Calamba for the summer
vacation. He himself was not impressed by his scholastic work

4th year in Ateneo

1875-1876

• June 16, 1875 - Rizal became an interno in the Ateneo

• Padre Francisco de Paula Sanchez - a great educator and scholar, one of Rizal’s
professors who inspired him to study harder and to write poetry
• Rizal described this Jesuiot professor as “model of uprightness, earnestness, and
love for the advancement of his pupils”
• Rizal topped all his classmates in all subjects and won five medals at the end of the
school term

- In 1875, inspired by Father Sanchez, Rizal wrote more poems, as such:

1. Felicitacion (Felicitationi)
2. El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de Magallanes (The Departure: Hymn to Magellan’s
Fleet)
3. Y Es Espanol; Elcano, el Primero en dar la Vuelta al Mundo (And He is Spanish:
Elcano, the First to Circumnavigate the World)
4. El Combate: Urbiztondo, Terror de Jolo (The Battle: Urbiztondo, Terror of Jolo)

• Al Niño Jesus (To the Child Jesus) - this poem was written in 1875 when Rizal was 14
years old; it was a brief ode

1876
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

Last year in Ateneo

1876-1877
- Rizal’s studies continued to fare well. As a matter-of-fact, he excelled in all subjects.
The most brilliant Atenean of his time, he was truly “the pride of the Jesuits”

- In 1876, Rizal wrote poems on various topics-religion, education, childhood

memories and war. They were as follows:
1. Un Recuerdo a Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town) - a tender poem in
honor of Calamba, the hero’s natal town
2. Alianza Intima Entre la Religion y la Buena Educacion (Intimate Alliance
Between Religion and Good Education) - Rizal showed the importance of
religion in education
3. Por la Educacion Recibe Lustre la Patria (Through Education the Country
Receives Light) - Rizal believed in the significant role which education plays in
the progress and welfare of a nation
4. El Cautiverio y el Triunfo: Batalla de Lucena y Prision de Boabdil (The
Captivity and the Triumph: Battle of Lucena and the Imprisonment of
Boabdil) - this martial poem describes the defeat and capture of Boabdil, last
Moorish sultan of Granada
5. La Entrada Triunfal de los Reyes Catolices en Granada (The Triumphal
Entry of the Catholic Monarchs into Granada) - this poem relates the
victorious entry of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel into Granada, last Moorish
stronghold in Spain

• San Eustacio, Martir (St. Eustace, the Martyr) - a drama based on the prose story of
St. Eustace which he wrote in poetic verses during the summer vacation of 1876 and
finished it on June 2, 1876
• A La Virgen Maria (To the Virgin Mary) - another religious poem which doesn’t have
exact date when it was written

1877

• March 23, 1877- Commencement Day, Rizal, who was 16 years old, received from his
Alma Mater, Ateneo Municipal, the degree of Bachelor of Arts, with highest honors
• Marian Congregation - a religious society wherein Rizal was an active member and
later became the secretary.
• Rizal cultivated his literary talent under the guidance of Father Sanchez
• Father Jose Vilaclara - advised Rizal to stop communing with the Muse and pay more
attention to more practical studies
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

• Rizal studied painting under the famous Spanish painter, Agustin Saez, and sculpture
under Romualdo de Jesus, noted Filipino sculptor
• Rizal carved an image of the Virgin Mary on a piece of batikuling (Philippine
hardwood) with his pocket-knife
• Father Lleonart - impressed by Rizal’s sculptural talent, requested him to carve for him
an image of Sacred Heart of Jesus

In 1877, Rizal wrote more poems. It was his last years in Ateneo. Among the poems written
that year were:
1. El Heroismo de Colon (The Heroism of Columbus) - this poem praises Columbus,
the discoverer of America
2. Colon y Juan II (Columbus and John II) - this poem relates how King Kohn II of
Portugal missed fame and riches by his failure to finance the projected expedition of
Columbus to the New World
3. Gran Consuelo en la Mayor Desdicha (Great Solace in Great Misfortune) - this is
a legend in verse of the tragic life of Columbus
4. Un Dialogo Aluviso a la Despedida de los Colegiales (A Farewell Dialogue of the
Students) - this was the last poem written by Rizal in Ateneo; it is a poignant poem of
farewell to his classmate

MEDICAL STUDIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS

1877-1882
- After finishing the first year of a course in Philosophy and Letters (1877-1878), Rizal
transferred to the medical course
- “Don’t send him to Manila again; he knows enough. If he gets to know more, the
Spaniards will cut off his head.”- Doña Teodora, vigorously opposed the idea that
Rizal pursue higher learning in the university

• April 1877 - Rizal who was then nearly 16 years old, matriculated in the University of
Santo Tomas, taking the course on Philosophy and Letters because (1) his father like it
(2) he was “still uncertain as to what career to pursue”
• Father Pablo Ramon - Rector of Ateneo, who had been good to him during his student
days in that college, asking for advice on the choice of a career but unfortunately, he was
in Mindanao

1878
 Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
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• It was during the following term (1878-1879) that Rizal, having received the Ateneo
Rector’s advice to study medicine
• During Rizal’s first school term in the University of Santo Tomas, Rizal also studied in
Ateneo. He took the vocational course leading to the title of perito agrimensor (expert
surveyor)

• Rizal excelled in all subjects in the surveying course in Ateneo, obtaining gold medals in
agriculture and topography

• Abd-el-Azis y Mahoma - Rizal composed a poem in 1879 which was declaimed by an

Atenean, Manuel
• Fernandez, on the night of December 8, 1879, in honor of the Ateneo’s Patroness

1880

• El Consejo de los Dioses (The Councils of the Gods) - an allegorical drama written by
Rizal which he entered in the literary contest of Artistic-Literary Lyceum in 1880 to
commemorate the fourth centennial of the death of Cervantes was a literary masterpiece
based on the Greek classics
• The prize was awarded to Rizal, a gold ring on which was engraved the bust of
Cervantes

• Junto al Pasig (Beside the Pasig) - a zarzuela which was staged by the Ateneans on
December 8, 1880, on the occasion of the annual celebration of the Feats Day of the
Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the Ateneo
- Rizal wrote it as President of the Academy of Spanish Literature in Ateneo

• Compañerismo (Comradeship )- Rizal founded a secret society of Filipino students in

University of Santo Tomas in 1880
• Companions of Jehu - members of the society who’s after the valiant Hebrew general
• Galicano Apacible - Rizal’s cousin from Batangas who is the secretary of the society

1881

• Al M.R.P. Pablo Ramon - Rizal composed a poem in 1881, as an expression of affection

to Father Pablo Ramon, the Ateneo rector, who had been so kind and helpful to him
Kristine Joy A. Resuento Mr. Terey Gil Gmez
II – BSMT MW 9:30-11:00 AM
The Life & Works of Rizal 03230

PRELIMS ASYNCHRONOUS ACTIVITY 3

UNHAPPY DAYS AT THE UST

• Rizal found the atmosphere at the University of Santo Tomas suffocating to his
sensitive spirit. He was unhappy at this Dominican institution of higher learning
because
(1) the Dominican professors were hostile to him
(2) the Filipino students were racially discriminated against by the Spaniards
(3) the method of instruction was obsolete and repressive
• In Rizal’s novel, El Filibusterismo, he described how the Filipino students were
humiliated and insulted by their Dominican professors and how backward the method
of instruction was, especially in the teaching of the natural sciences. He related in
Chapter XIII, “The Class in Physics”