Stručni rad
https://doi.org/10.21857/94kl4cxv7m
Assemblies of teachers in the Zadar District between 1873 and 1914
Šime Ljubičić
; Zadar, Hrvatska
Sažetak
This paper tackles some of the topics discussed at assemblies of teachers in the Zadar District in the period between 1873 and 1914. It is based on the original archival material (material of the District School Council at the State Archives in Zadar 1869–1920) and periodical publications. The state authority treated teachers and assemblies of teachers in Dalmatia in a dismal manner. In the official view, assemblies of teachers were of no use; they were merely seen as friendly meetings of teachers. Hence, suggestions and conclusions of assemblies of teachers were adopted only in exceptional cases. It was of no use to discuss new school buildings and equipment at assemblies, as it was well known that Dalmatian authority was not even in position to pay for the lease of private shacks (classrooms), premises in semi-derelict community houses, or completely dilapidated buildings to serve as school premises. Not even competent and advanced practitioner teachers were given a chance to hold lectures, since it was not before 1885 that the city of Zadar gave permission for the first school using Croatian as the teaching language to be opened. In fact, in the Zadar District, the schooling system with Croatian as the teaching language had not been present until 1869. Assemblies of teachers were for this reason of key importance. These were the first teachers educated at the school for teachers in Croatian language: people who had prior to enrolling the school for teachers finished only the first six school grades, who had insufficient pre-knowledge, who had themselves in the initial school grades been taught by village priests, or by teachers who either were half-illiterate or had no proper knowledge of Croatian language. Thus, the following conclusion imposes itself: assemblies of teachers should have been held much more frequently. Topics that were tackled at 24 assemblies of teachers are diverse, and were in connection with: organisation of classes; mother tongue (reading, writing, use of primer and reader; grammar lessons, written schoolwork); use of teaching tools; mathematics classes; realist classes; drawing and calligraphy. Attention was mostly paid to the children–school relationship (underdevelopment and poverty; lack of study books and school supplies; absence from classes; success-failure; etc.), teaching methods; reasons for problems regarding individual teachers’ performance; financial status of teachers; school and teachers’ libraries; teachers and collecting folk treasure. General topics were discussed too, for instance: cleanliness of the population; frequency of alcoholism among people; establishing village savings and loan associations; emigration; etc. Nevertheless, one of the key topics was introducing farming into the school curriculum. The authority believed that agriculture could be improved in rural areas by introducing farming and cultivating school gardens.
Ključne riječi
Zadar; school; teachers; assemblies of teachers
Hrčak ID:
191132
URI
Datum izdavanja:
20.12.2017.
Posjeta: 1.676 *