Original scientific paper

From Reformist to Alternative Pedagogy Attempts at a Different School in Croatia in the 20th Century

Štefka Batinić ; Croatian School Museum
Igor Radeka ; University of Zadar, Department of Pedagogy

Abstract

The processes of modernisation evident at all levels, which reflected on everyday life and were the key factors of lifestyle changes and of social, cultural and pedagogical movements at the fin de siècle in Europe, reflected also upon Croatia, particularly its urban areas. European reformist pedagogy, with its key representatives and concepts, reached Croatian teachers as well, at least in the form of general awareness. The reformist pedagogy in Croatia was established by two teachers from Zagreb, Vjekoslav Koščević and Ivan Tomašić. Their reformist attempts were evident in their stands against Herbart’s pedagogy, in gathering experience of and insights in the reformist pedagogy movements in Central European countries and the implementation of those insights in their own pedagogical practice, as well as in their attempts of organised promotion of reformist ideas through the Croatian Society for the Improvement of Edification and the Preporod journal. Numerous teachers were waiting to see how the “century of the child” was going to develop, adjusting discretely their pedagogical practice to the new spirit. After the First World War, in the new Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kingdom of Yugoslavia after 1929), Croatian teachers were active in the area of practical school reform, or didactical-methodical renewal, which meant a continuation of the pre-World War I process. The working school, as the main goal of the didactical-methodical renewal, became an official pedagogical trend in the 1930s, under the strong influence of educational policy and ideology of Yugoslavia of the time. From the mid-1930s, the state model schools took over the task of working school training courses for teachers as a model of professional development of teachers for the new school. The main representatives of the working school movement in Croatia included Ante Defrančeski, Josip Demarin, Mate Demarin, Salih Ljubunčić, Marijan Markovac, Zlatko Špoljar and Stjepan Zaninović, among others. Academically educated pedagogues and theoretical scholars, who addressed the key issues of pedagogy as a spiritual-scientific or philosophical discipline, appeared in Croatia during the two decades between the two wars: Stjepan Matičević, Pavao Vuk-Pavlović, Stjepan Pataki, Vladimir Petz and others. At the same time, they were also staying in touch with the then current pedagogic reality and critiquing certain negative phenomena in the practice of the new school. The reformist pedagogy was also reflected in other areas of educational work, such as adult education, mass health education, social care and child care, children’s and youth organisations, collaboration between parents and schools and various forms of cultural and artistic activities with and for children. The alternative concepts of pedagogy opened the door towards pedagogy and school pluralism in Croatia in the 1990s, but two decades later, it is still in its initial phase of development.

Keywords

reformist pedagogy; alternative pedagogy; school; Croatia; 20th century

Hrčak ID:

190034

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/190034

Publication date:

15.11.2017.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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