The presentation of the book Mestres de Mestres: 150 anys de formació de mestres valencianes (Teacher of Teachers: 150 years of the Valencian teachers training) of the professors Carmen Agulló and Blanca Juan took place on 2 March in the Muralla Hall of the Peset Hall of Residence, which used to be the former Normal School of Teachers in Valencia.

Edited by the editorial Publicacions de la Universitat de València (PUV), the book revives the history of an institution that, ever since its establishment 150 years ago, has played a fundamental role in the training of teachers educating women in Valencian schools.

The book presentation touched upon the history of the modern Faculty of Teacher Training of the Universitat de València and explained how the female teachers of Valencia were tackling educational challenges since 1867 to date.

During the event, the authors highlighted the importance of the university archives in reconstructing history and focused on a few key moments: definition of professional identity of the teachers, excellence of the School at 1936, cleansing during the regime of Franco and its further recovery from the 1980s till now.

The principal of the Universitat de València, María Vicenta Mestre, pointed out that the book contributes to the revival of historical memory, which is essential nowadays. She also evaluated the work as an “epic story of progress of our society from the establishment of the school and its evolution during various historical periods of the country.”

Meanwhile, the book takes a reader on a journey through the evolution of the Valencian society and the produced tensions between the progressive and traditional models of women. In conclusion, the history of the Valencian education was unknown before; yet, women were an indisputable part of it.

The presentation opened a week of International Women's Day celebration that would last until 8 March and involved the participation of the principal of the Universitat de València, Mª Vicenta Mestre, who also contributed to the book foreword; a minister of Culture at the Valencian Provincial Council, Francesc Xavier Rius; a director of the Servei de Publicacions de la Universitat de València, Teresa Ferrer; and the authors Carmen Agulló y Blanca Juan.

Carmen Agulló, an associate professor of Comparative Education and History of Education at the Faculty of Teacher Training, is a leading researcher on history of women education and focuses specifically on study of the republican teachers.