'The people need to be enlightened and taught'

This article explores the social, educational, and participatory practices during the revolutionary period in Portugal (1974-1976), a historical moment marked by a combination of political rupture and grassroots mobilisation. By focusing on four key initiatives – agrarian reform, popular education, the MFA’s Cultural Dynamization and Civic Action Campaign, and the Student Civic Service – this study sheds light on the diversity of popular educational experiences and social transformation movements of the time. It analyses how education and civic engagement were conceived and employed as tools for societal transformation. The results show that, during the revolutionary period, civil society, previously repressed under the dictatorship, played a crucial role in the democratisation of education. They also highlight the significant contribution of the popular classes and of popular education in the broader transformation of Portuguese society.