APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110015-7
1. Educational policy
Schools were viewed by the incoming Communist government as having two functions: to train the specialists needed by the economy and to inculcate the young with the ideological orientation of a Socialist society. In order to accomplish these aims the system was restructured to conform to the Soviet model, and options as to the kind of education available were severely restricted. The matching of student and school in secondary and higher education was determined on the basis of economic needs and not by student preference. There was a major expansion of vocational education, especially in the industrial and agricultural fields. Vocational subjects and periods of practical work in factories or on farms were made compulsory in all schools. Textbooks and syllabuses were rewritten to make them conform to the ideology and objectives of the Communist Party. Only candidates with proven sympathies for the regime were considered for admission to secondary and higher education, and preference was given first to children of Communist Party members and then to children of working class and peasant origin regardless of academic qualifications. In order to reduce the time of study, emphasis was placed on occupational training and ideological origination, and so-called superfluous subjects were eliminated. The net result of these changes was narrow specialization and a lowering of the standards of education.
By 1960 it was evident that the new school system was not producing graduates of the kind and quality needed for the functioning of the society. The radical excision of much of the traditional liberal, or cultural, curriculum during the first Communist decade resulted in a graduate which came to be perceived as being without the intellectual depth and judgmental capabilities to man a modern economic and social system. Consequently, the early 1960's witnessed modifications in some of the fundamental constructs of the system in order to provide for a broader education for all and greater differentiation between pure vocational training and a higher level of general and technical education. Emphasis on exclusively Marxist ideological indoctrination was relaxed and a restricted study of alternative ideologies was tolerated. At the elementary level, criteria were established for grading the economic potential of students and those with the most promise were provided with training specifically designed to facilitate entry into the secondary school curriculum. "Hands-on" work was eliminated from the academic secondary school curriculum beginning in 1964/65 because it was found to be interfering with the college preparatory objectives of the school. At the same time, however, greater emphasis was put on the study of the theoretical aspects of new production technologies. In 1968 the secondary school curriculum was expanded from 3 to 4 years in order to provide a better foundation for those who would pursue college careers. The 1966 "law on universities" formally acknowledged the role of higher education in the development of society and granted more administrative and financial autonomy to the universities. For the first time since 1948, university scientific councils were permitted to elect high academic officials—rectors, prorectors, deans, and vice deans—from among their own professional staff. The Law of 1966 also prohibited the practice of numerus clausus (numerical restriction on enrollment) based on social and political criteria. Although this legislation did not basically alter party control over education, it did restore a measure of confidence to the entire scholastic community and encouraged the universities to push for additional reforms.
The liberalizing trends of the 1960's which culminated in the Dubcek regime, clearly showed the ineffectiveness of the political indoctrination in the schools. Students and teachers were strongly represented among those who exerted major pressure for political reform during the Dubcek interlude and who were most vocal in expressing unorthodox political and economic views. Major blame for the failure of indoctrination was placed on teachers, who became the target of a major purge when the orthodox forces regained control of events and launched a "normalization" drive during 1969 and 1970. Hundreds of liberal professors and administrators were removed from academic institutions, including a third of the faculty of Charles University, Czechoslovakia's most prestigious institution of higher learning. Up to 80% of all teachers in the country were reassigned to new schools in order to eliminate any undesirable ideological bonds they might have established with the student body.
The Husak regime has placed primary emphasis on political indoctrination for students and teachers alike. Strict state control of education was reimposed on 1 January 1970, when the government empowered Czech and Slovak Ministers of Education to appoint and recall administrators and educators and to create, abolish, or reorganize educational and scientific institutions. Directives in 1970 and 1971 defined the principal role of education as that of training specialists who have accepted Socialist ideological orientation and who display a willingness to use their talents to further the aims of socialism in all fields of
25
APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110015-7
