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PROFESSIONAL TRAINING FOR TEACHERS IN POLAND IN THE 70’S AND 80’S OF THE 20th CENTURY -DETERMINANT FACTORS,
TRANSFORMATIONS, FORMS
E. Gorloff
In the 70’s and 80’s of the 20th century significant transformations of the professional training system for teachers were effected in Poland. They were conditioned on the social and political situation in the country, implementation of the new education system model promoted by the Polish United Worker’s Party (Pl. Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza - PZPR) and the idea of continuing education, which was becoming more popular at the time. As it was then substantiated by Stanistaw Krawcewicz, the idea of continuing education made it possible to encompass aims, content, forms and other issues connected with developing skills from the point of view of teachers’ integrated professional development process1. At the beginning of the 70’s of the 20th century, preparations for implementation of the education reform aimed at introducing 10 years of general education as the main link in the education process, reorganizing higher education system, including teacher training system, began in Poland. The main assumption of this reform - as it was maintained by political and education authorities - was to prepare young people for the changing living and working conditions “resulting from the third industrial revolution” and “educate aware and idealistic builders of socialism”2. The reform was spearheaded on the 4th Convention of PZPR in 1971 and confirmed by the resolution of the Sejm on 13th October 19733. The resolution on educating, training and developing professional skills pointed to the need to educate teachers and tutors in MA studies, supplementing education at courses offered by institutions of higher education as well as continuous development of professional skills among teachers. The system for improving teaching skills and schools was stabilized by the provisions included in other governmental documents. Also the Teacher’s Charter4 obliged teachers to continue to improve their teaching and educational skills and included accepted forms of professional improvement stating that it should be done through selfeducation, courses organized by school administrative bodies and institutions authorized by the bodies as well as at postgraduate studies5.
All teachers were to be included in the ideological and educational development process. The reorganization of the teaching process began in 1972
1 Krawcewicz S., Ksztatcenie ustawiczne nauczycieli, Warszawa 1976, p. 15-16.
2 O aktywny udziat mtodego pokolenia w budowie socjalistycznej Polski, “Nowe Drogi”, VII Plenum KC PZPR 27-28 November 1972, № 12.
3 “Monitor Polski”, 1973, № 44, item 260.
4 Charter of Teacher Rights and Responsibilities - a labour regulations act regulating the duties, rights and responsibilities of teachers.
5 Act of 27 April 1972, Charter of Teacher Rights and Responsibilities, Polish Journal of Laws, 1972, № 16, item 114.
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when a central unit called Institute for Teachers Training (Pl. Instytutu Ksztatcenia Nauczycieli - IKN) was established. The Institute was a department of the Ministry of Education and was responsible for implementing the ideas developed by the Ministry and PZPR in the field of teaching and professional development of teachers. It also conducted scientific research. Local offices of IKN, which were appointed in nineteen capital cities of Provinces, were called Institutes for Teachers Training And Educational Research (Pl. Instytut Ksztatcenia Nauczycieli i Badan Oswiatowych - IKNiBO) and Teacher Training Centres (Pl. Centrum Doskonalenia Nauczycieli - CDN). A substantial part of all activities undertaken by this centralized and highly bureaucratized system was connected with teacher training. IKNiBO dealt with organizing courses for teachers including mid-term and holiday courses for headmasters and teachers of basic school subjects, as well as preparing for higher education studies. CDN was responsible for training of teachers and teaching supervisors in postgraduate courses, higher education studies and supplemental courses. Moreover, their responsibilities included organizing advisory centres for teachers and other individuals employed in the education sector improving their skills, conducting scientific research and implementing new programmes 1.
The training system - according to the party’s assumptions - was also present in the media (radio, TV, the press). In 1974 decision was reflected in the appointing a Teachers’ Radio and Television University (Pl. Nauczycielski Uniwersytet Radiowo-Telewizyjny - NURT) which was a teaching institution of the Institutes for Teachers Training. Classes offered within the frames of NURT were compulsory for all teachers wishing to improve their professional skills at extramural and evening courses, and also included teachers of elementary mathematics education as part of the training preparing them to the new curriculums of the 10-year general education system. NURT broadcasted programmes on the radio and television throughout the school year, excluding 3 months of summer holidays. Texts of all radio and TV lectures, supplemented with a set of questions and bibliography, were published in a journal called “Education and Teaching”2.
Moreover, all teachers were included in universal self-education process. The process was exercised in the form of seminars at teaching staff meetings. The self-education process oriented at ideological and teaching training was the responsibility of the Union of Polish Teachers (Pl. Zwiqzek Nauczycielstwa Polskiego - ZNP) during theoretical and pedagogical conferences. It should be stressed that the assumptions of subject and methodological self-education, in accordance with previous division of tasks, were developed by IKN3. The solution was aimed at unifying the entire professional teacher training system. Also its programmes concentrated on familiarizing teachers with the latest theory in the field of education and enabling them to carry out the ideals and goals of socialist
1 Przegl^d form doskonalenia nauczycieli w okresie 40-lecia, “Nowa Szkota”, Ratajek Z., 1984, № 10, p. 440-441; Krawcewicz S., op. cit., p. 127-128 and 140-142.
2 Krawcewicz S., op. cit., p. 143-154.
3 Kahl E., Zwi^zkowe doskonalenie nauczycieli w Polsce (1944-1989). Uwarunkowania. Przejawy. Konsekwencje, Krakow, 2008, p. 137-140; P^cherski M., System oswiatowy w Polsce Ludowej na tle porownawczym, Wroctw-Warszwa-Krakow-Gdansk, 1981, p. 310.
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education effectively. For instance, self-education programmes above all included issues connected with ideology, education, world view, education policies and social policy of the state and the party. The programmes broadcasted by NURT contained far more issues concerning Marxist philosophy, social development theory and the rudiments of political science with elements of political economy of socialism than educational and psychological contents1.
Subsequent changes in the teacher training system took place in the 80’s of the 20th century. They were provoked by social, political and economical situation in Poland which were reflected in the growing discontent with the functioning in the country. When education is concerned, the entire education system, as well as the state’s attitude to education and teaching, were strongly criticized. Social pressure led to abandonment of further attempts to introduce the 10-year general education system. Due to the difficult situation (shortage of teachers) also employment procedures and teacher education system were changed to allow employment of individuals without proper educational background. Demands of the teacher circles lead to modification of the teacher training system. However, it should be stressed here that actions undertaken by the government in this field were mainly aimed at changing its structure while still retaining the ideological axis. As a result, in 1981 IKN was reorganised and Teacher Training Centres were transformed into provincial and intra-provincial teacher training units. However, the scope of their activity, when compared with CDN, was not changed. In addition to that, also forms of self-education offered by the Union of Polish Teachers were changed at the time. Local conferences were re-established and replaced theoretical and pedagogical conferences which were strongly criticized by teachers2. A novelty in the teacher training system was introduction of degrees of professional development which were supposed to stimulate teachers to self-education by way of lateral promotion3. To sum up, we need to stress that the entire period of professional training of teachers subject to our research was centralized and formalized. The process was subordinated to the ideas of socialism and indoctrinated all teachers in Poland.
System of educating, training and developing professional skills among teachers was criticised at the end of the 80’s. A report on the condition and development direction in the Polish education system published by a Committee of Experts stated that it was necessary to expand the offer of postgraduate courses aimed at raising qualifications of active teachers so that they can gain knowledge and skills enabling them to teach another subject. The report also mentioned the need to develop a new conception of continuing education of teachers in term of its legal and organizational structure4.
1 Krawcewicz S., op. cit., pp. 148-150; P^cherski M., op. cit. p. 311.
2 Kahl E., op. cit., p. 170-175.
3 Directive of the Minister of Education dated 30th July 1982, Official Journal of the Ministry of Education from 1982, № 10, item. 92.
4 Education as National Priority. Report on the Condition and Development Directions of Polish National Education in the People’s Republic of Poland, Warszawa-Krakow 1989, p. 411 -414.
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