Rizal's Secondary Education at Ateneo

Study Notes

Rizal attended the Colegio de San Juan de Letran, but he moved to the Ateneo Municipal as his secondary school.
The Jesuits had been expelled from the archipelago in 1768, but returned in 1859.
The Jesuit order was asked to take charge of the Ateneo School.
By 1865, the Ateneo de Manila offered rigorous courses almost equivalent to college academics.
The Ateneo was considered the finest school in the Philippines due to the rigorous intellectual standards of the Jesuits.

The Ateneo had a system of internal and external students.
Internos were students who lived inside the Ateneo grounds and were identified by a red flag.
Externos were students who lived outside the Ateneo grounds and were identified by a blue flag.
Father Francisco de Paula Sanchez ignited Rizal's passion for literature.
Rizal wrote his first poems at the Ateneo, including "Mi Primera Inspiracion," "Un Recuerdo a Mi Pueblo," "Por La Educacion Recibe Luestre la Patria," and "A La Juventud Filipina."

Rizal's mentors advised him to pursue farming or join the clergy.
Rizal initially decided to study Philosophy and Letters at the University of Santo Tomas because it was what his father wanted.
The University of Santo Tomas curriculum included Cosmology, Metaphysics, Theodicy, and History of Philosophy.
Rizal later switched to medicine after his mother developed failing eyesight.
Rizal felt unhappy at the university for several reasons: the Dominican professors were hostile to him, Filipino students faced discrimination, and the method of instruction was outdated.
Rizal struggled academically at the university for several reasons: he was dissatisfied with the education system, he was easily distracted, and medicine wasn't his true vocation.

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