Indigenous Education in Paraguay During the Late Colonial Period. Education Beyond Evangelization

Abstract

The history of colonial education in Paraguay has focused primarily on higher education and the educational work of religious orders. However, one issue that presents gaps revolves around the education of the indigenous population after the expulsion of the Jesuits, outside the scope of evangelization. The main objective is to demonstrate the existence of elementary schools that included the indigenous population outside the context of evangelization during the late colonial period in Paraguay. The type of research is historical, descriptive, and the analytical-synthetic method is used. The sources used were classic bibliographies of colonial Paraguay and the region; recent local and regional research; and documents from the National Archive of Asunción and the Archive of the Indies. The conclusions demonstrated the continuity of early literacy for the indigenous population at the end of the 18th century outside the context of evangelization.