THE STATE EDUCATION ISSUE IN RELATION TO THE UKRAINIAN MINORITY IN POLAND IN EDUCATIONAL REFORMS OF THE INTERWAR PERIOD (1924-1939)
Journal Title: Професіоналізм педагога: теоретичні й методичні аспекти - Year 2017, Vol 5, Issue 1
Abstract
The notion of the state education appeared in Poland after 1926 and became the symbol of the educational ideology of the Sanation camp, associated with the personality of Józef Piłsudski. The need for the state education was widely appreciated because the idea of the identification of citizens with their state did not function so far in consciousness of several generations of Poles. In the Second Republic national problems were very complicated. There are various estimates of the national structure of pre-war Poland. The data from the statistical yearboook for the year 1931 are considered to be the most reliable, however, we should bear in mind that the number of minority representatives may in fact be somewhat higher. According to the data, only 69% of citizens were of Polish nationality. The most numerous minority, which we are interested in as a subject matter, were Ukrainians – 14%. Such large social differentiation was exerted on the internal policy adopted by the authorities, aimed at mitigating internal divisions on both the national, political and social levels. Hence, the ultimate aim was to create a state of class harmony and transnational character where all the citizens were supposed to work for the good of their homeland as the state interest was to be an individual priority in each individual’s activity. The idea of the state education also became a cornerstone of national minorities’ policy and set the direction of educational reforms of that time. This text, as included in the title, shows the education system and legal regulations concerning state education with reference to the Ukrainian minority. It contains legal provisions concerning the functioning of national minorities in Poland starting with the treaty of protection of minorities from 1919 to the Treaty of Riga and the provisions of 1921 and 1935 constitutions. However, the main focus of the author was to discuss provisions presenting solutions to the problem of national minorities in respect with contemporary education system. We have already found such a solution in the so-called “Grabski Law” (Prawo Grabskiego) of 1924, reflecting the educational policy towards ethnic minorities predominantly inhabiting Eastern Borderlands. However, the greatest attention has been devoted to the guidelines contained in the legal act of March 11 1932, known as Jędrzejewicz Law (Ustawa Jędrzejewicza), in which new directives, curricula and textbooks were elaborated. The reforms of private schools, most often established by Ukrainian cultural and educational organizations (e.g. Proswita and Ridna Szkoła) have also been taken into account. The ideological assumptions presented by the author demonstrate the complexity of the situation of the system of education functioning in the realities of multinational and multicultural mosaic of Poland during the interwar period. The adopted ideology of state education on social, national and political divisions was justified, above all it gave hope of finding a level of agreement for all citizens of the Second Polish Republic, but in practice such differences proved to be a difficult problem to solve. The historical reflection on the patriotic education in the interwar period can be helpful in better understanding the affairs of today and foster the growth of historical culture of the society. Especially nowadays, when it is necessary for modern Europe to form the basis of national consciousness of societies and social culture. This is extremely important because of the new challenges of civilization, in which, as a result of the integration process of European countries, we must reconcile our cultural heritage with European universalism. Under new conditions the content of civic education should be tailored to the needs of individual states and united Europe. For that, there is a need for a deep reflection on a civic education and the protection of national values, especially in culturally diverse societies.
Authors and Affiliations
Michał Stolarczyk, Katarzyna Szewczuk
Keywords
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