Review article
The Slovenes and the Teacher Training College in Zagreb
Edvard Protner
orcid.org/0009-0007-7599-3624
; Univerza v Mariboru, Pedagoška fakulteta, Maribor, Slovenija
Abstract
The Teacher Training College (TTC) in Zagreb was undoubtedly a demanding, high–quality school. It formed numerous highly skilled and well–versed pedagogues and teachers who significantly shaped the image of school and pedagogy of that time. However, the status of the school triggered controversy and discontent since its establishement; it was related to the concept of teacher training which was not sufficiently defined in theory. The ordinance with which TTC in Zagreb was formally established (15 November 1919) determined a two–year study programme to qualify teachers of “civic schools” (a tipe of 4–year lower secondary school for middle class children after four years of primary school). A year later in Belgrade a law introducing three–year study programmes for school inspectors and normal school teachers came into force. The management and the students of TTC (partly supported by the professionals) tried to prolong the study to four years and thus make it equal to faculty study. This was realized in academic years 1926/27 and 1927/28 (only two generations of students enrolled). Consequently a polemic was launched which disunited the experts thoroughly. An underrating attitude towards the scientifi c level of TTC in Zagreb could be traced in Slovene professional press alredy before that. It was based on lack of information and envy. The polemic culminated in 1928 when the first graduates of TTC were appointed to the posts of teachers at normal school. Secondary school teachers firmly opposed to these appointments, claiming that only teachers with degrees from university should teach at secondary schools and that TTC was not of the same level. They demanded the abolishment of the third and fourth year of study. The TTC graduates proved that TTC had a formal faculty character (by listing their academic activities and successes) and that normal schools needed pedagogically trained teachers. Primary school teachers were involved in the polemic, pointing out that TTC introduced inexcusable ranking, selection and disunion. They supported the idea that all teachers should be given the opportunity to study at college level or even at university level. The polemic dealt with in this article enables us to extract numerous current questions related to teacher training.
Keywords
The Teacher Training College (Zagreb); the Slovenes; the education of teachers; the history of teacher training schools, from 1922 until 1929
Hrčak ID:
334762
URI
Publication date:
31.12.2003.
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