From Las Tunas to Villa Clara: the pedagogical legacy of Mercedes Isabel Piñón Jareño

Abstract

The study of Cuban pedagogical traditions forms the foundation for constructing a distinct educational theory and demands rigorous research into the lives and works of educators who have become paradigms for new generations. Based on these premises, this paper presents a historical-pedagogical study whose central objective is to evaluate the educational work and leadership of the distinguished Cuban educator Mercedes Isabel Piñón Jareño. The study employs historical-logical, analytical-synthetic, inductive-deductive, hypothetical-deductive, systematization, and hermeneutic-dialectical methods, as well as the analysis of personal and historical documents, interviews, testimonies, and anecdotal accounts. Qualitative research techniques are also used, enabling a systematic approach to the legacy of the educator under analysis. The research includes an analysis of the historical, social, and educational context in which her career unfolded, and is organized through a chronology and periodization that allows for the identification of the course of her life and work, while highlighting the most significant milestones that shaped her pedagogical and administrative practice in each setting. The study has made it possible to recover a pedagogical trajectory characterized by a profound commitment to values education, educational excellence, and institutional strengthening.