Men and Teaching in the 19th Century: Trajectories of Graduates from Ouro Preto Normal School (Minas Gerais, Brazil, 1877-1889)

in this article we analyze the schooling and professional trajectory of 14 men who studied in Ouro Preto Normal School, Minas Gerais (Brazil) between 1877 and 1889. They were a minority that attended and graduated in the course in a period which women started to be the majority amongst Normal school students. Through a micro-historic perspective of onomastic analysis, we tried to identify the profile of those subjects, particularly the professional activities they held after graduating. We discovered that four subjects did not work in professions related to teaching, but most of them were teachers in elementary and high schools. Despite the interruption in some trajectories, five of those teachers were exclusively dedicated to elementary teaching, a data that helps us to problematize the scenario in the late 19th century: as the rate of female teachers in elementary schools increased, the men who entered in the profession started the career when they were young, having the official education and gradually substituting the figure of the schoolmaster. Besides the generational issue, being a man has notably formed these trajectories, marked by the conciliation of the profession with raising a family, the broad array of work possibilities, and career progress.

Automated summary

In this article, we analyze the schooling and professional trajectory of 14 men who studied at Ouro Preto Normal School in Minas Gerais, Brazil between 1877 and 1889. Most of them became teachers in elementary and high schools, although a few did not pursue teaching-related professions. The data shows that five of these teachers were exclusively dedicated to elementary teaching, which helps us to understand the situation in the late 19th century.