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The Cuban regime turned the start of the school year this Monday into a new exercise in political propaganda, presenting the reopening of classrooms as a victory of the socialist model despite the growing shortages faced by students, families, and teachers.
In a message on the social network X (formerly Twitter), the leader Miguel Díaz-Canel described education as “one of the most beautiful and vital achievements of the Revolution,” insisting on a discourse that overlooks the daily problems facing the educational sector: teacher shortages, low salaries, deterioration of infrastructure, and scarcity of basic materials.
The central ceremony marking the beginning of the 2025-2026 academic year took place at the 'Tania la Guerrillera' pedagogical school in Pinar del Río, which was inaugurated 50 years ago by the dictator Fidel Castro.
The Minister of Education, Naima Trujillo Barreto, recalled the words spoken by the dictator in 1975 and called to “uphold universal, inclusive, and free education as the foundation for any national endeavor.” She also acknowledged that the school year begins under “difficult conditions,” although she framed that adversity as a testament to the resilience of the system.
The Prime Minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz, toured the History room of the school center and praised the figure of Castro, urging to "cherish" the memory of the leader and keep it alive. The script of the event, marked by references to the revolutionary past, once again placed education in the realm of political propaganda rather than in the realistic analysis of the urgencies faced by students and teachers.
According to official data, more than 1.53 million students attended classes this Monday across all levels of education. However, Cuban families experienced a reality that differed from what was portrayed in official speeches and state media.
The press from the Palace described the "silent endeavor" of parents in their search for backpacks, uniforms, and school supplies with an epic tone, yet it refrained from mentioning the high cost of these items in a context of rampant inflation and black market.
The official newspaper Granma spoke of “joy” and “river of innocence” in the streets of Cuba, while overlooking the economic struggle involved in equipping children for the new school year. The official narrative transformed hardship into an epic tale and presented overcoming obstacles as a collective achievement, reinforcing the idea of a permanent sacrifice that underpins the regime's story.
Far from acknowledging the structural crisis facing the Cuban education system, the authorities once again took refuge in the exaltation of Castro and the notion of "revolutionary conquest." The contrast between triumphant rhetoric and the actual difficulties faced by families marks the beginning of another school year on the island.
Cuban Families Facing a New School Year: Between Propaganda and Scarcity
While the Cuban regime insists on presenting each school year as a “conquest of the Revolution,” families on the island experience a very different reality, marked by material hardship and uncertainty.
The return to school, which should be a source of enthusiasm, has become an obstacle course for many parents, exposing the deep cracks in the educational system.
In secondary school classrooms, a notebook must be used for two subjects. This practice, officially termed “adjusted norm,” requires students to either split the notebooks in half or divide their pages, a measure aimed at masking the shortage of supplies and ultimately impacting the students' learning directly.
Those who cannot afford the nearly 200 pesos that a notebook costs on the black market must resign themselves to this makeshift measure.
The issue of uniforms is significant. The state has only managed to produce 2.3 million of the 3.6 million required pieces, meaning that barely 20 percent of students will be wearing new clothes this school year.
The rest will have to reuse inherited uniforms, patched-up ones, or buy them at exorbitant prices: in the informal market, a complete set can exceed 5,000 pesos, a figure that far exceeds the budget of most households.
The school infrastructure is not exempt from the crisis. Thousands of schools opened their doors under deplorable conditions, with roofs that leak water, broken windows, and insufficient furniture.
There are plenty of scenes of students sitting on the floor due to a lack of desks, or classes being interrupted by power outages, with teachers and students forced to conduct lessons in dim light or to wait for the arrival of a generator.
The shortage of teachers further worsens the situation. Matanzas, for example, started the school year with over 2,000 vacant positions, and nationally, there is a shortage of about 24,000 teachers, which means one in every eight positions is unfilled.
Low salaries, professional burnout, and migration to other sectors have left classrooms in the hands of insufficient staff and, in many cases, without adequate training.
The so-called "free education" has become a heavy burden for families. A primary school notebook can cost up to 1,400 pesos at a private store, an unaffordable amount for most. This is in addition to backpacks, shoes, snacks, and other expenses that turn every school year into a financial struggle.
Between the regime's triumphalist rhetoric and the epic narrative crafted by state media, which speaks of "rivers of innocence" and "silent deeds," lies the true story of September: that of parents struggling against inflation and scarcity so their children can attend school with the bare essentials.
This is the other side of the school year start in Cuba, the one that propaganda never shows.
The "vital conquest" as an instrument of indoctrination
By describing education as “one of the most beautiful and vital achievements of the Revolution,” Díaz-Canel not only seeks to highlight a historical accomplishment of the regime, but also reveals the ideological core upon which the Cuban educational system has been built: indoctrination as a guarantee of political permanence.
Since 1959, education on the island has been closely tied to the development of a citizen shaped by the values and doctrines of socialism.
The so-called "vital conquest" has, in practice, resulted in a framework of subjects, manuals, programs, and pedagogical practices aimed at glorifying the figure of Castro, the revolutionary process, and its leaders, while marginalizing or delegitimizing any critical or independent line of thought.
The centrality of ideology in education is reflected in the mandatory political events, patriotic morning assemblies, and school campaigns where the regime's rhetoric is repeated.
From the earliest grades, students are exposed to directives and a narrative that leaves no room for questioning or plurality. This model turns classrooms into an extension of the social control apparatus and a laboratory for legitimizing power.
When speaking of "vital conquest," Díaz-Canel conceals that education, far from being an open space for thought and academic training, has served as a pillar of political hegemony.
The persistence of that epic narrative—the notion that without the "revolution" there would be no schools, no teachers, and no future—becomes a mechanism to shape the perceptions of several generations and prevent the emergence of dissenting voices.
It is here that Díaz-Canel's phrase reveals its true meaning: education not as a citizen's right, but as a strategic tool to support the regime.
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