At 101, Marcial Martínez has learned how to read

June 16, 2018

Marcial Martínez: back to school at 101.

He’s 101 years old but Marcial Martínez Martínez has decided it’s time to go back to school.

The Mexico City man has just finished a course in which he learned how to read and is now planning to pursue further studies.

Even as an illiterate young man and father Martínez knew how important it was to be able to read and write.

“I put my children in school, I tried to get them all in, I decided that my children had to learn, it didn’t matter that I didn’t. Thank God my children know how to read. I didn’t want them to be like me . . .” he told the newspaper Milenio.

Martínez is one of 133,126 people enrolled at the National Institute for the Education of Adults (INEA) in a program that targets people 15 or older with gaps in their education.

While people of all ages are welcome in the program, INEA pays special attention to younger students, providing them with counseling and family planning courses.

INEA offers courses up to the preparatory school level, but Martínez has his sights set a bit lower than that, at least for now. His next step is to finish primary school.