EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS IN BULGARIA AND RUMANIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 23, 2011
• Sequence Number: 450
• Publication Date: September 24, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6 ~
. -
CLASSIFICATIO
~~~ ~~ ~~~++n ~~~?j- ~3191I
N
~
g
~ !
~
CENTRAL INTENCE t~ REPORT
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS CD NO.
DATE OF
INFORMATION 1953
HOW E DISTA2.~ Sep 1953
PUBLISHED Monthly period al CEMTAA!. I;ITEEIi~E!:.E AGEKC~
CLASSIFICA?I?4
WHERE Csnc:li:i ,, .; ~ ~.
PUBLISHED Eioscow ~ ' ~~~ ~~---N . OF PAGES ~~
DATE 0Y AU;K4~t:!Y ``-? ~'
PUBLISHED Feb 1952, Jan i 3 Rawl
Ollie PLEMENT TO
LANGUAGE Russian WU ORT NO.
COUNTRY Bulgaria, Ruminie
SUBJECT Sociological -Education
SOURCE Sovetskaya Fedagogika.
~Thls report presents information from two articles discussing
the educatiowl systems of Bulgaria and Rumania by Prof N. K. Gon-
charov, Corresponding Member, Acadecn;, of Pedagogical Scie-:cea RSFSR.
Tables referred to herein are appended]
Sovethkaya Pedagogika
Jan 1953
On 3 September 191~F,, the People's Assembly adopted the Iaw on People's
Education. In general, this law was based on the experience of the 3-year-old
new Bulgaria. The law also set the pattern for the development of education,
from preschool training to h;.I{her education.
A, Klndergartens (detski gradini) for children 3 to 7 years of age
B. Primary (nachal'nye) schools: first to fourth grades, for children
to 11 years of age
C. 1. Elementary (osnovnye) schools: first to seventh grades, for chil-
dren 7 to 14-15 years of age
2. Pre-gymnasiums (progimnazii): fifth ,:o seventh grades, for chil-
dren 11 to 11.-15 ;ears of a;e
D. 1. Secondary (srednie) sch~~ols: first to eleventh grades, for chil-
dren 7 to 1C years of age
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6 ~
^ -
2, Gymnasiums: eighth to eleventh grades, for children lt: to 18
years of age
3. Pre-gymnasiums and gymnasiums for working students
4. Nakhimov and Suvorov schools
5. Horkers' adult education school
E. Basic industrial training:
1. One-year factory or plant trainnnf; schools
2. Trade, railroad, and other schools havir>S a 2- to 3-year training
F. Intermediate industrial *.raining (~:-year term). Basic and intermediate
industrial training are designed to follow a 7-year trairin,~ program (primary
schools and pre-gyrm~asiums ):
1. Technical :;ch~ols
2. Schools
G. Higher education, having a 4- to 5-year prograr of instruction:
1. Universities
2. Academies
3. Institutes
A 3-ycnr term of educational tralning is Eivea the post~rnduate student
by the higher educational institutions.
'lraining is carried out in the native ton;ues of the population. The 7-
year educational program for boys and ;iris is compulsory regardless of the so-
cial bac}4;round or nationality o: the parents. State assistance ie given to
students in tits form of scholarsiiins be~inni:k; with the pre-gymnasium and end-
ing with hig'rer educational institutions.
In 1944 - 1945, there were 242 kindergartens in Hulgaria with a staff of
27t: teachers, handling 10,!+43 children.
Appropriations for preschool education increase each year, and the kinder-
garten system i~ grouirtg steadily, as can be seer. from the following table.
School Year
IIo cf
Aindergarteus
i7o of
L'hildren
iio of
Teachers
1944
- 1945
242
10,443
274
945
- 19L6
~t11
18,462
461
1946
- 1947
527
2G, 944
600
194'l
- 1948
7~3
28,736
832
1951
- 1952
1,570
66,320
2,648
STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6 ~
^
During the 8 yenta of the new regime, the number of kindergartens has in-
creased 6,5 times, the number of children attending them 6.3 times, and the
number of teachers 9.7 times. For the first time in the history of Bulgaria,
kindergartens have been established for children of non-Bu].~;arian nationality.
There are tea kindergartens for the Turkish population. It should be particu-
larly noted that seasonal kindergartens have been organized in rural areas.
Successful farming requires the establishment of kindergartens in the summer,
to allow the peasants to Participate more fully in cooperative farming. In
summer 1952, 3,750 seasonal kindergartens were opened, with 174,954 children
enrolled.
The development cf preschool education has raised the problem of training
teF~'?ers. Up to September 1944, there was only one special educational institu-
tion in Bulgaria for training teachers. Only 51 teachers graduated from this
institution in 19tt4.
The compulsory 7-year educational program in Bulgaria is accomplished
through 7-year elementary schools, or a l+_year primary school and a 3-year nre-
gymnasium. The curriculum and. textbooks are the same for the fifth through
seventh grades of the elementary schools as for the pre-gymnasiums. AL1 chil-
dren are compelled to a':tend either the 7-year elementary school, or the 4-year
school and pre-gymnasium. In '.he past school year, less than one percent of
the children were not enrolled in the 7-year program, while in the 1952 - 1953
school year only a fa, childre? are not sttendi:~ schools. Measures are taken
to see that m children, remain out of school.
The boarding school system is being expanded. This year alone, additional
boarding schools nave bee^ organized to handle 1,500 children. More than
1,000 new school buildings have been erected during the past 8 years.
The following table compares the number of schools, students, and teachsrs
in 1943 - 1944 and 1951 - 1952:
School Year
',lo of Ceneral
Education Schools
flo of
Stud
t
:fo of
en
s
Teachers
1943
- 1914
5,9'i5
n00,721~
27,835
1951
- ;52
6,565
96:x,351
36,983
In the 1952 - 1953 school year, the enrollment in Bulgarian geraral educa-
tion schools is o?+er one million.
The network of general education evening schools, gymnasiums, and pre-
gymnasiuma in Bulgaria is being widely expanded. Previously, there were no
such schools. At present, 76 evening pre-gycuia^,iums and gymnasiums, with an
enrollment of 10,932, have been established for workers and employees.
"he Bulgarian Communist. Party and t};e governr,;ent are giving particular
attention to developing schools for Turkish, 6{acedoni.ar., Armenian, and other
national minorities. Iu the 1943 - ly4u school ;rear, t:88 such schools were
maintained at the expense of the local population. There were no secondary
schools for national minorities. Ilow there are 1,033 national minority schools
with an enrollment of 86,875 students and a staff of 3,11;, teachers. National
minority schools are maintained at government e:mense.
A considerable number of Turks reside in Bulgaria. Previously, only a
small number of elementary religious schools were maintained for them. There
were no secondary schools. At present, both elementary and secondary schools
are maiii~,ained for the Turlcish population. For training teachers, there are
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
three Turkish teachers' training schools, a teacher's institute with Turkish
divisions, a special teachers institute for women, and, at Sofia University,
there are Turkish departments training Turkish teachers for gymnasiums.
The educational agencies of Bulgaria are devoting much attention to chil-
dren with serious physical defects (blindness, deafness, etc.), At present,
there ase'~.3 special schools in which 1,463 lvirdicapned students are being
taught by 141 teachers,
The Bulgarian government, having achieved compulsory 7-year educational
training, is expanding ~econdery education each year. The number of gymnasiums
has increased threefold and a much larger nurioer of students are enrolled.
The gymnasiums and the 11-year schools serve as the main channel of supply
for the universities (two adult education schools for workers at Sofia and Sta-
lin supply a smaller number oi' students for I:igher educatiowl institutions).
The following sub,ects nre studied in the general education schools:
Bulgarian 1a:yuage and literature, Bulgarian and general 'ristory, geography,
physics, astronor~r, natural history, logic, psychology, Russian and one ad-
ditional 'oreign language, drawing, sir~i:u;, and music.
Great attention is devoted to the study of the Russian language. At
present, the Russian lacuuage is studied beginning wi+,h the fifth grade.
Ilosrever, in the cominf; .nchool year ti:e study of Russian will begin in the
second semester of the second gr&de.
Ti:ere are 5,990 school libraries is the country with a stock of 2,842,828
books. The 1952 budget appropriated 79,b70,000 leva for the purchase of cul-
tural, scientific, popular, and other literature for school libraries. Book
purchasing for school libraries is handled tl:rcu~:,h P special central book col-
lector, according to Lists worke3 out by the bLinistry of Education. hinny books
in t'.u s-aool libraries nre published by the Detgiz of the Idinistry of Educa-
tion RSFSR.
Extracurricular worl: has been actively developed, blotioa pictures are
used widely as an aid in the Cor?annist traininr, of children in school work,
and the pictures are discussed '_ater. So:iet motion pictures are also used
an4 are very popuiar with the student..
The most widespread ty_,e of cork outside the classroom is the circle
study group, During the 19j1 - 1?5~ :cl:ool year there were 3,300 suck: groups,
in which 95,230 stuu_nts took Hart, '!^iie r~o,t popular circles are in literature,
history, geography, pnysics, and the naxtiu?a1 sciences, Amateur performances
are also widespread in the general education schools of Bulgaria, In the last
school year, there were choir, dramatis, and dance orouns in 6,000 schools. In
rural areas, amateur cP,ildren's ^rorn- -?~i?form ve'.'y successfully among the popu-
lation,
Tl:e organizations for childrer. and your; people are an inalien:.ble and in-
tegral part of sci~ool life. A Pioneer organization, the G. I?I. DiuLitrov "Sep-
temvriyche," exists in the schools. Almost n11 students 9 to 14 years of age
belong to this organization, while students 14 years of age and older are in
the DSN61 (Dimitrov 1Jrion of People's Youth). The purpose of these organizations
is to assist tk:e teachers in the educational work of the school, to strengthen
organizational discipline, and to develop nonclass and nonschool worY., thereby
assisting in the a11-around development of the student, The Pioneer orga::iza-
tion and the DSiQ?1 are the true aids of the teac`?.ers in their complicated task
of training the new generation to the builders of socialist Dulgaria,
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6 ~
In accordance with a party and government resolution, medical supervision
has been established to guard the students' health. Doctors and nurses are at-
tached to each school. There are medical consultation rooms in the secondary
schools and pre-gymna::iums. 1.ledical inspections are held twice a year in schools
and three tines a year in children's homes. Particular attention is devoted to
sanitation during tihe summer. Almost 100 percent of the city students go to
summer camps. In 1950, 484 camps, where 9,223 students vacationed, were built
on the shores of the Black Sea and in mountain valleys. In addition, 3,000
schools had their own camps. In 1952, 509 camps were built for 10E,636 chil-
dren. The 1952 government budget included 32 million leva for camps alone.
Camps are organized in cities for student.: who are unable to lease hoca.
During the sumwr, there is wide travel through.;ut Bulgaria and area studies
are made. A Pioneers' town has been created in Sofia, where student pro3ects
are carried out.
At present, basic industrial training is directed by the ;.zip Administra-
tion of Labor Reserves under the Council of Ministers, sad intermediate in-
dustrial educational institutions are directed by the appropriate ministries.
Serious attention is devoted to the study of both special and general subjects
in the industrial insti~utions.
At present, there are 2','9 technical, industrial, factory, and slant
schools in Bul~arin with an enrollment of 76,000 students and s staff of more
than 4,000 teach^rs.
before 1941+, the higher educational system was such that, students could
study for an indefinite period, and a large nurcber of those entering the uni-
versities were unable to complete their courses.
Professor G. D. Pirov, in P?sshe?c ebrazovani e i problems kndrov
(Higher Education and the Problem of Personnel Sofia, 1950 , cites inter-
esting facts in this respect. brom tl:e founding of ofia University in 1dE&
up to 1944, 42,503 students were enrolled, but, pal;; 1~~,~26, or 34.E percent,
graduated. Consequently, 65.2 percent of those admitted left the university
before completing the course of study.
In 1944, there were eight universities in Bulgaria with almost 13,000
students. After the liberation on 9 Septeuioer 1944, the Duigari.an government
made a general cleanup of the teachi:~s, staffs of higher educational institu-
tions.
The laws of 194?, 191:3, and 1949 on higher education resulted in a radical
reorganization of the universities. These laws stressed the necessity of elimi-
nating the gap between student kno?.cLedge anu ti,e people's knowledge; higher
.tcation was placed at the disposal. of the nakiou J'ar economic and cultural
construction.
Idea higher ed~ccatiorai instit~c+.ons ue_e founded, and the n?inciples of
tarxi~m-Leninism are bei!y; used i:, the philosonlc;; sad political e,:.onou~/ de-
partments. Energetic measures were undertaken to modify the social cotrcposi-
tion of the students. Workers' and peasants' children gained access to higher
educational institutions. i+Iore than 30 percent of the student body receives
government scholarships.
The Committee for Science, Art, and Culture Lnow headed by Ruben Lev
directs all. hi?~her educational institutions.
At present, there are llF higi:er educational institutions in Bulgaria
(excludir~, teachers' collegee), with an enrollment of almost 40,000 students.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08: CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/08 :CIA-RDP80-00809A000700130450-6
The training of teaching personnel for universities is u.ccomalished
through a 3-year postgraduate course. Those completing the course and the
dissertation receive the degree of Candidate of Sciences. 17:e nest higher
degree is Doctor of Sciences.
The growth of education in Bulgaria has necPss?tated au i.rcrease in
funds. The governcsent generously finances pui,L r educ:aion. It is sufficient
to rrention that, in 1951, expenditures for educating v