Theme Society- Education Flashcards
primary schools under the tsars
Pre-1864 education was limited. Just 7% of army recruits were literate. Schools focused on basic skills – literacy and maths. 1864 saw Alexander’s education reforms introduced. Schooling was put under the control of the Zemstva. By 1877 zemstva control had been limited and schooling was under the control of the Education Minister. Church primary schools were common and encouraged by Alexander III First Duma of 1906 promised the introduction of universal education by 1922. By 1914 51% attended – far below western levels. E.g. France had 100% in 1880s.
secondary schools under the communists
The Communists expanded state control over primary schooling by taking control of church schools in 1918. Stalin achieved the Duma’s aim of making primary schooling compulsory in 1930. Between 1929 and 1930, the number of kids in primary schooling increased from 8 million to 18 million. The communists adopted a ‘war on illiteracy’ policy which saw adults attend evening classes. 90% literacy rates had been achieved by the time of the 1939 census
secondary schools under the tsars
All of the Tsars preferred the ‘gymnasia’ [grammar schools], but modifications were made to curriculum and admissions. A2 introduced a ‘new code’ which split gymnasia into ‘traditional’ [teaching Russian plus the classics] and ‘real’ [teaching modern languages, sciences and maths]. The ‘real’ gymnasia were deemed to encourage revolutionary thought. Attendance doubled, 1855-1865, particularly benefiting the m/c Yet, Tolstoy [A2 Ed Minister] changed university entrance exams which effectively banned m/c from progressing to university Furthermore, A3 banned ‘lower classes’ from secondary schooling
secondary schools under the communists
Lenin banned gymnasia and replaced them with polytechnics, focusing on vocational education. 1930s saw a return to mixed polytechnic and gymnasia education The polytechnics played a role in providing workers for the Five-Year Plans. Numbers attending increased from 2.5 million in 1931 to 6.9 million in 1932 Khrushchev reverted to secondary schooling based on the polytechnic model. He scrapped school fees [introduced in 1939]
more change or contionuity with primary schools?
Change for the following reason: · The Tsars achieved only limited progress with regards to expanding primary school provision. Just 51% were in primary schools by 1914 when most other Western countries had done so in the 1880s. on the other hand, the Communists rapidly made progress on attendance [100% in 1930] and literacy [90% by 1939]. · Furthermore, control over schooling was more completely under state control in the Communist period. Under the Tsarist period, church schools were common.
more change or continuity with secondary schools?
Change for the following reasons: · The Tsars preferred restricting secondary education to the nobility in the form of traditional gymnasia. A3 even banned lower classes from schools. On the other hand, the communists tended to prefer vocational, such as to support the Five-Year Plans and increased provisions dramatically
university’s under the tsars
Tsars were concerned by university education since it was seen as a breeding ground for opposition. In 1861, the first attempt to assassinate A2 was carried out by a student. In response the regime accused many students of sedition. A statute of 1863 granted universities large degree of autonomy over their curriculum, but the Education Minister still had the final say over what was to be taught. Under Alexander III university autonomy was further restricted as university councils were no longer elected but appointed by the regime. Nine institutions providing for 16,500 students in 1900 Concerns about student radicals continued into Nicholas’ reign with Stolypin banning non-academic meetings at universities.
university’s under the communists
Universities were completely under state control in the Communist era. Whilst education was free, the number of available slots were determined by the Five-Year Plans. Entrance examinations were highly competitive due to the limited number of courses. Courses tended to be vocational. For instance, 50% of students in the Stalinist period were students of engineering. Other popular courses involved medicine, agriculture, and science. Courses did not encourage critical thought, but focused on technical skills. The humanities were highly ideological with a heavy focus on learning Marxist principles. By 1960 there were around 600,000 students.
more change or continuity with university’s
Bolsheviks focused on vocational education while education was broader under the Tsars. At Moscow University, for instance, there were four departments – law, medicine, physics and maths, history and philology · The number of students increased in the Bolshevik era. Students in 1900 was 16,500; increasing to 600,000 by 1960. · Whilst state control over what was taught continued, the Bolsheviks added Marxist ideology to courses
