This article examines the position that the Liberal school reform of 1870 bestowed upon the school teacher. For radical Liberalism, the school teacher became the model citizen and lay intellect with which it could oppose the traditional influence of the Catholic priest. This conviction of the radical Liberal elite stemmed from a redefinition of its relationship with the artisans following their traumatic mid-century political association. Based on the official press regarding education from this period, we try to demonstrate that the Liberal leadership who directed the education reform attempted to promote an ideal type of citizen in the figure of the school teacher who was emerging from the incipient national system of normal schools.