EDUCATION
The educational system in Bulgaria, as in the Balkans generally, began
to develop in a real sense only in the nineteenth century, principally
because Bulgaria had been under Turkish rule for 500 years. As education
was of little concern to the Turks and an educated Bulgarian population
would only represent a threat to their regime, the advancement of a
formal educational system was either openly repressed or neglected by
the Turks. As a result, the literacy rate in Bulgaria was one of the
lowest in Europe at the time of liberation in 1878. During the six
decades between liberation and World War II, the educational system had
made great progress in providing basic education to young people, but
there remained a hard core of illiterates in the adult population. After
the Communists took over in 1944, a massive drive in adult education
virtually eliminated the problem of illiteracy within a decade.
The educational system under the Communists was essentially patterned on
that of the Soviet Union, and the desire on the part of Bulgarian
authorities to stay within that pattern brought about a general
cautiousness as they restructured the system to make it coincide with
the newly imposed ideology. Although educational reforms have been
enacted with great frequency, they have often dealt with matters of form
rather than of substance. The basic adherence to Soviet guidelines has
remained intact throughout the years of communist rule.
As in most Eastern European countries, the major objectives of the
Bulgarian educational system have been premised on both ideological
issues and the demands of the national economy. One of the primary goals
of the system--both stated and implicit--is the production of the ideal
communist citizen who will work for the realization of "socialist
construction" and the betterment of the socialist society. A second
major premise of the system is that the demands of the economy must be
met; this goal is to be achieved by educating skilled personnel to fill
the specific needs of its various sectors. Because of the trend toward
industrialization that obtains in all communist countries, a corollary
policy is that the study of science and technology must be emphasized
over the study of the humanities.
According to established principles, therefore, certain policies are
carried out in the process of education. People of worker or peasant
origin, who the Communists perceive as having been deprived of their
basic rights to an education in the past, are allowed to enter the
higher levels of the educational system without the usual prerequisite
examination if the necessary places are available. They generally
represent between 30 and 40 percent of the total higher education
population as compared with 80 percent of the population as a whole.
Certain communist principles form the backbone of the curriculum. Work
is perceived to be an integral part of education as are directed
extracurricular activities, and a sizable percentage of formal education
is allotted for practical and vocational training. Religious education,
which was a legacy from the past, has been dismissed as superstitious
and archaic, and virtually all religious schools have been banned. The
curriculum from the earliest years of schooling to the upper levels of
higher education is filled with such courses as Marxism-Leninism, the
history of the communist party of the Soviet Union, and the history of
the Bulgarian Communist Party (BKP--see Glossary).
Under the many and varied educational reforms legislated under the
Communists, the pendulum has swung between relative emphasis on science
and technology on the one hand and the humanities on the other. Although
overall emphasis has always been on the sciences, that emphasis has
increased and decreased at various times since the communist takeover.
Between 1944 and 1948, for example, there was little overall emphasis on
technology in the curriculum. Between 1948 and 1967, however, these
subjects were emphasized to a large degree. Beginning in 1967 some
weight was again placed on the humanities. As of 1973 there had been
some manifestation of rededication to technology and science, but the
latest proposed reform regarding secondary education represented a
desire on the part of the government to fuse general education--which of
course includes the humanities--and specialized training into one
system.
In mid-1973 problems inherent in the educational system of Bulgaria
continued to exist. One of the most serious was the inadequacy of funds
for education generally but particularly for higher education where the
need was the greatest. Another problem was that of overcrowding.
Although there was virtually no problem of teacher shortage, there were
far too many students in proportion to the number of schools. A third
problem lay in the area of foreign student exchange where relatively few
foreign students studied in Bulgarian universities and institutes and
few Bulgarian students were allowed to study abroad. Another problem on
the higher educational level was the discrepancy between students'
preference regarding their fields of specialization and government
dictates in this area. Although many students at the university level
were interested in the arts and social sciences, the government, feeling
the weight of the economy's demands, very often preempted their choices
and allocated many more places to the sciences than to the arts. The
most serious problem, however, in terms of higher education, was that
owing to a shortage of places at the university level only 20 percent of
the secondary students who applied for admission were accepted. This
shortage of places in higher education, coupled with the fact that
extremely few Bulgarian students were permitted to study abroad, meant
that a large proportion of potential students capable of serious work
were turned away from higher education altogether.
HISTORY OF EDUCATION
Until the late eighteenth century education made virtually no progress
in the country. Although schools did exist during the period of Turkish
rule, the Turks had no interest in furthering education among their
subjects, except insofar as it would benefit themselves. From the
fourteenth through the seventeenth centuries education remained at a
standstill. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Turks
allowed the Greek Orthodox Church to become predominant among Christians
in the area, and an intense hellenization campaign ensued with the
seeming purpose of assimilating the Bulgarians as a people into the
Greek society that surrounded them. The campaign, which was particularly
virulent in the 1750s, was successful in the schools, and the Bulgarian
language and customs were supplanted by those of the Greek.
By the late eighteenth century, however, a national revival grew in
force, stimulated in large part by Father Paisi, a monk who wrote the
first Bulgarian history, _The Slav-Bulgarian History_. This work and
Father Paisi's teachings provided an incentive for the development of
education in the country. From 1762 until liberation from Turkish rule
in 1878, education made great strides. As the churches began to throw
off the domination of the Greek Orthodox Church, more church schools
staffed by monks and priests were established within the Bulgarian
Orthodox Church framework.
Although the Greek educational system still predominated in the early
part of the nineteenth century, complemented by a rising move toward the
establishment of Bulgarian Orthodox Church schools, a movement toward
secular education was initiated at this time. Secular subjects were
introduced in the church schools, and communal schools were established.
By 1834 the first primer in Bulgarian was written, based on a western
European model, which established the basis for secondary education. In
1835 a wealthy merchant founded the first Bulgarian high school, and
within the next ten years some fifty schools had been established.
At the time of liberation, however, over 90 percent of the population
over school age was still illiterate. Only a small proportion--some 30
percent--of school-age children, those from seven to fourteen years of
age, were actually attending schools. After the Turnovo Constitution
(1879), however, which was enacted shortly after liberation, the
educational system was revitalized (see ch. 8). Elementary education
was made both free and compulsory. The state, the monarchy, and private
individuals contributed to the goal of making education as nearly
universal as possible.
In 1879 the three-year compulsory elementary school was introduced. By
1880 the period of compulsory education had been extended to four years.
In 1888 the University of Sofia was founded. The university initially
had seven faculties: history and philosophy; physics and mathematics;
law; medicine; agronomy; theology; and veterinary medicine.
In 1910 the school system, which covered a twelve-year period, consisted
of a four-year elementary school for children aged seven to eleven, a
three-year _progymnasium_ for children from eleven to fourteen, and a
five-year gymnasium for children from fourteen to eighteen. This system
continued with only slight modification until the Communists took over
in 1944. Also by 1910 both professional and vocational schools had been
established providing a relatively high quality of education in such
fields as agriculture, engineering, theology, commerce, art, and music.
Although there were many students of higher education at the University
of Sofia, about 10,000 students annually attended foreign universities,
principally in Austria and Germany.
By the end of World War I, many villages that had more than twenty
families had their own primary school. Larger settlements in more urban
areas often had their own _progymnasia_ and gymnasiums. In towns that
had 20,000 or more citizens, there were kindergartens for children from
three to seven years of age. Both religious and linguistic minorities
had their own schools, which functioned within the public school system.
Foreign schools coexisted with the public school system. Although the
curricula of the foreign schools were similar to those of the public
secondary schools, subjects were taught in western European languages,
forming a link between Bulgaria and the West.
By 1921 a three-tiered system of education--consisting of the four-year
elementary school, the three-year _progymnasium_, and the five-year
gymnasium--became officially compulsory in the first two stages. Many
children failed to attend school, however, and many villages, despite
the official policy, were without school facilities. The entire
educational system was controlled by the government through the Ministry
of Public Education, which regulated the contents of texts and courses
and the administration of exams. The model for the educational system
was essentially European, with a particularly strong emphasis on German
and Russian patterns.
In 1921 the Law of Public Instruction brought an increase in emphasis on
vocational training. Orders were issued to bring about a transition to
"vocational education and respect for labor." Eventually, schoolchildren
were forced to spend two weeks of their studies in "compulsory labor,"
a concept that was the precursor of the Bulgarian communist philosophy
of the integration of work with education. During this period the
students worked in such projects as cleaning school facilities, binding
texts, and cultivating school gardens.
In 1934 a so-called modern school was established to give the student an
alternative to the academically and socially elitist gymnasium, but
there were still a number of deficiencies in the Bulgarian educational
system. The literacy rate had greatly increased, but between 20 and 30
percent of the population was still illiterate. Although schooling was
officially compulsory, it was in fact inaccessible in smaller villages,
and many school-age children were not able to attend. Humanities were
emphasized to the virtual exclusion of technical-vocational subjects,
which were developed to only a very slight degree. Only one of five
secondary students studied technical subjects. Adult education was
virtually nonexistent.
In 1937 there were eight institutions of higher education in addition to
the University of Sofia, the country's leading educational facility. Six
of these--the Free University, the Academy of Art, the Academy of Music,
the Military Academy, the Theological Seminary, and the School of
Physical Education--were also located in Sofia. The remaining two were
business schools located in Varna and Svishtov. A large number of
Bulgarian students also chose to continue their education abroad. One of
the major problems at the time concerned the absorption of graduates
into the various fields for which they were eligible. The country was
still predominantly agricultural, and there were simply too few
positions available for the annual influx of graduates, a situation that
caused alienation and disaffection.
COMMUNIST EDUCATIONAL POLICIES
When the Communists came to power in 1944 they were determined to change
the system of education in Bulgaria. Not only did they seek to eradicate
certain elements--such as religion and social elitism--from the
educational system, but they also were determined to make education
universal and, insofar as possible, to create an entirely literate
society. As the educational system developed under communist tutelage,
however, governmental statements on the subject displayed an increasing
tendency to link the system with ideology and principles to the point
where the ultimate goal was the creation of the ideal Communist.
When the 1947 Constitution was formulated, it established universality
and state control over the school system as the two main policies of
education. It stated: "Every citizen has the right to education.
Education is secular, democratic and progressive in spirit. Ethnic
minorities have the right to instruction in their mother tongue; they
also have the right to develop their national culture, although study of
the Bulgarian language is compulsory.... Schools belong to the State.
Private schools can be established only by the passage of a law; such
schools are placed under State control...."
Statements in subsequent constitutions indicated an increased emphasis
on the socialist content of education and its close ties with the Soviet
model on which it was based. In 1949 the government issued a statement
declaring that education would be "in the spirit of socialism,
proletarian internationalism, and indissoluble brotherly friendship with
the Soviet Union." Two years later the government stated that "the
people's school is a powerful weapon in the hands of the Communist Party
and the people's democratic state for education and Communist
indoctrination of the people." In the present-day period both Todor
Zhivkov, who is the first secretary of the party, and the minister of
national education (formerly known as the minister of public education)
have reinforced the purpose and function of education in a socialist
society. In 1966 the minister of national education stated: "The work of
the school, its major and minor tasks--everything for which it
exists--must be subordinated to its fundamental objective: training and
educating the new man of communist society."
Certain distinctive principles form the basis for communist policies of
education in Bulgaria. Chief among these is the close patterning of the
system on the Soviet model. For this reason Bulgaria tends to be
somewhat cautious in its approach to education and reluctant to make
sweeping reforms unless the Soviets provide a model for change.
The principle of a universally accessible system of education has top
priority, and in fact the near-universal nature of education in Bulgaria
has brought about almost complete literacy. Whereas before 1944 many
Bulgarians had never attended school, in mid-1973 almost every Bulgarian
was able to attend some form of school. In some areas of the educational
system, particularly in institutions of higher education, the number of
students has increased as much as eightfold.
Another principle of communist education in Bulgaria is the concept of
socially useful work, which must be performed by all students at all
levels of education. The principle of work in education is initiated at
the very lowest levels of the system; it progresses into increasingly
longer periods as the student advances in the school system. In the
higher grades, students work for significant periods of time in
agriculture, industry, and construction. In the higher levels of
education the student must sign a document that obligates him to accept
a working assignment, which should be related to his field of
specialization, for a period of three to five years.
Another facet of the system is the eradication of old values and their
replacement with new socialist values (see ch. 4). One of the first
tasks of Bulgarian educators was to eliminate religious teachings and
practices in the schools. Religion, as a subject, was eliminated in the
early years as was the history of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
Students are taught that atheism is both reasonable and scientific;
religion is dismissed as a relic of a superstitious and undesirable
past. By the same token, students are indoctrinated strongly by
teachers, directors of extracurricular activities, and colleagues to
revere and swear allegiance to the government.
Another guiding principle of the educational system in Bulgaria, which
was initiated at the time of the takeover and still obtained to some
degree in 1973, is the concept that sons and daughters of the worker and
peasant classes should be favored in terms of their preference of access
to education, particularly at the higher levels. This policy was clearly
motivated by a desire to compensate for the exclusion of this class from
such institutions in the past. In the early communist years institutions
of higher education charged tuition, but children of the worker-peasant
classes were exempted. By 1954 this class constituted 20 percent of the
higher education population, a figure that by 1970 had risen to 78
percent. In 1973 the government was still maintaining a preferential
clause for these students in higher education and reserved 10 percent of
the places in such institutions for them.
Another principle of the educational system is the promotion of
technical or vocational education and the simultaneous downgrading of
the humanities. Academic studies were quantitatively reduced in order to
place greater emphasis on practical work. When a student has completed
his formal education in the school system, he will have at the time
spent at least one-third of his school hours working on a farm, in a
factory, or at some other enterprise. In the curriculum itself technical
subjects are given a place of greater importance than the humanities.
Although studies have indicated that a great many students seeking
admission to institutions of higher education aspire to the study of the
humanities, governmental policies have limited the number of places
available in these areas in order to train technical-vocational
specialists to meet the needs of the economy (see ch. 12).
The last important principle of Bulgarian education is the
nationalization and secularization of the school system. When the
Communists took power in the 1940s, they quickly closed all foreign and
private schools with the exception of schools for the children of Soviet
officials and diplomats. Schools of ethnic minorities fell under the
aegis of the government and thereby lost all autonomy. Ironically, in
1973 the only private school that existed was related to the Bulgarian
Orthodox Church. As the church is subservient to and dependent upon the
state, however, the existence of such a school undoubtedly represented
little threat to the government.
EDUCATIONAL REFORMS
Between the years 1944 and 1948 the Communists set about eradicating the
prewar educational system. By 1947, when the constitution (also called
the Dimitrov Constitution) was enacted, all prewar textbooks had been
replaced by communist texts; all schoolteachers and university
professors who were considered reactionary or fascist had been replaced
by persons loyal to the Fatherland Front (Otechestven Front) government;
and all institutions of higher education had been opened to workers and
their children, whereas students thought to have fascist or reactionary
tendencies were denied admittance.
The Dimitrov Constitution stipulated further that all schools, including
those that had previously been private, would be the property of the
state; that all foreign schools would be closed for the academic year
1948-49; and that religious schools would be discontinued. Ironically,
the only denominational schools that were allowed to continue were those
that trained priests, but these schools had to have special permission
from the state in order to continue their operations.
In 1948 and 1949 another series of reforms was initiated, which,
although less sweeping than the original reforms, tended to pattern the
Bulgarian school system more closely on that of the Soviet Union. In
August 1949 a joint resolution of the BKP Central Committee and the
Council of Ministers declared that education would be carried out in the
spirit of socialism, based both on the teachings of Karl Marx and
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and on Bulgarian friendship with the Soviet Union.
The ideological studies introduced into the curriculum consisted of the
fundamental principles of Marx and Lenin, the history of the communist
party of the Soviet Union, and the history of the BKP. All of these
subjects became obligatory from kindergarten.
The second initiative in the 1948-49 reforms was the declaration that
all universities and institutions of higher education as well as the
Academy of Sciences were no longer autonomous. A third reform during
this period was the reduction from five to four years of the gymnasium,
which in turn reduced the total schooling from twelve to eleven years.
The fourth reform was the redesigning of polytechnic education to
greatly increase the number of trained graduates to fill the rapidly
escalating demands of the economy.
In statistical terms the results of the various communist reforms were
mixed. Although the number of primary and secondary schools increased
slightly overall from 1938 to 1948, there was hardly any appreciable
growth in primary schools, whereas secondary schools nearly doubled. The
number of students, similarly, barely changed in the same ten-year
period; the number of primary students actually declined, but the number
of secondary students grew appreciably (see table 6; table 7).
Higher education, on the other hand, made great strides after the
communist takeover as the number of universities and other institutions
of higher education increased by one-third. Despite the emphasis on
technical and vocational education, such schools dropped in terms of
facilities, students, and teachers during the early communist years. The
number of teachers of polytechnic subjects also declined during the
period (see table 8).
_Table 6. Number of Schools in Bulgaria, Selected Years, 1938-70_
--------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------
Level | 1938/39 | 1948/49 | 1960/61 | 1970/71
--------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------
Kindergarten | 254 | n.a. | 6,570 | 8,037
Primary | 7,291 | 7,872 | * | *
Secondary | 133 | 253 | * | *
| ------ | ------ | ------- | -------
Total primary-secondary | 7,424 | 8,125 | 5,877 | 4,197
Vocational technical | n.a. | n.a. | 236 | 132
Secondary vocational | n.a. | n.a. | 0 | 190
Technical | n.a. | n.a. | 231 | 246
| ------ | ------ | ------- | ------
Total technical | 384 | 159 | 467 | 568
Teacher training | 5 | n.a. | 18 | 20
Higher education | 12 | 19 | 20 | 26
--------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------
n.a.--not available.
* In 1960 the primary and secondary levels were unified under one system.
_Table 7. Number of Students in Bulgaria, Selected School Years,
1938-70_
--------------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------
Level | 1938/39 | 1948/49 | 1960/61 | 1970/71
--------------------------+-----------|-----------+-----------+-----------
Kindergarten | 12,859 | n.a. | 281,000 | 331,960
Primary | 955,330 | 928,934 | * | *
Secondary | 73,561 | 129,396 | * | *
| --------- | --------- | --------- | ---------
Total primary-secondary | 1,028,891 | 1,058,330 | 1,212,383 | 1,154,630
Vocational technical | n.a. | n.a. | 42,123 | 47,253
Secondary vocational | n.a. | n.a. | 0 | 83,038
Technical | n.a. | n.a. | 93,944 | 152,919
| --------- | --------- | --------- | ---------
Total technical | 46,925 | 31,826 | 136,067 | 283,210
Teacher training | 401 | n.a. | 4,203 | 6,921
Higher education | 11,443 | 29,639 | 54,965 | 89,331
--------------------------+-----------+-----------------------------------
n.a.--not available.
* In 1960 the primary and secondary levels were unified under one system.
The next reforms occurred in 1957 and in 1958 and placed a much stronger
emphasis on technical-vocational training, while the years of total
schooling were again increased. The period of secondary schooling
consisted of a five-year program rather than the previous four, thus
extending the entire period of education to twelve years. The network of
professional schools was expanded significantly, and teacher training
was upgraded and given new emphasis. In 1958 there were specialized
professional schools with approximately 64,000 students studying various
aspects of industry and agriculture. At approximately the same time
there were twenty-two pedagogical schools with an enrollment of 8,989
students.
_Table 8. Number of Teachers in Bulgaria, Selected School Years,
1938-70_
--------------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+----------
Level | 1938/39 | 1948/49 | 1960/61 | 1970/71
--------------------------+-----------|-----------+-----------+----------
Kindergarten | 286 | n.a. | 11,873 | 18,185
Primary | 24,830 | 34,000 | * | *
Secondary | 2,874 | 4,893 | * | *
| ------ | ------ | ------ | ------
Total primary-secondary | 27,704 | 38,893 | 51,067 | 54,068
Vocational technical | n.a. | n.a. | 2,835 | 2,734
Secondary vocational | n.a. | n.a. | 0 | 5,720
Technical | n.a. | n.a. | 5,307 | 9,045
| ------ | ------ | ------ | ------
Total technical | 2,487 | 1,109 | 8,142 | 17,499
Teacher training | 50 | n.a. | 251 | 406
Higher education | 588 | 1,169 | 3,883 | 7,125
--------------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+----------
n.a.--not available.
* In 1960 the primary and secondary levels were unified under one system.
The concept of practical work as an integral part of the curriculum was
again emphasized, and the scope of vocational training grew enormously
as vocational and technical schools increased threefold. Although all
students had to perform certain tasks as part of their basic education,
the 1957-58 reforms dictated that graduates of higher technical and
agricultural institutions had to perform one year of practical work
before graduation. As the concept of polytechnical education became
widespread at the secondary level, practical work consumed up to
one-third of the total hours of education. Although experimental
vocational training was introduced into the curricula of some gymnasiums
in this period, other gymnasiums, particularly in the rural areas,
required students to spend several hours weekly in formal vocational
studies.
In the same 1957-58 period a number of broad, rather than structural,
reforms were initiated. Schools for ethnic minorities were established
in which, despite the fact that study of the Bulgarian language was
compulsory, teaching was performed in the language of the minority
group. All schools of general education became officially coeducational,
and evening classes for workers were initiated. At the same time,
although there already had been some financial assistance, scholarships
were presented on a wide scale. In the 1957-58 academic year 46 percent
of all students in institutions of higher education received stipends
from the government. Although there were few scholarships given to
gymnasium students, with the exception of Turkish students who were
considered the least educated group, students in professional schools
and technical colleges were the recipients of a large number of
governmental stipends.
The reforms of 1959 were of more lasting significance than were the
1957-58 reforms. Unlike the latter reforms, which represented a slight
deviation from the Soviet educational model, the 1959 reforms returned
the Bulgarian system once more to the original Soviet pattern. In 1958
Nikita Khrushchev wrote a treatise called "Strengthening the Ties
Between School and Life" in which he demanded a close integration of the
educational system and the economy. Shortly thereafter, Zhivkov declared
that the 1957-58 school reforms in his own country were inadequate and
asked for a basic reorganization of the entire school system. In July
1959 a basic law, reorganizing the entire school system, was passed.
This law was entitled "Law on Establishing a Closer Link Between
Education and Practical Life and on Furthering the Development of Public
Education in the People's Republic of Bulgaria." Its stated objectives
were: "To prepare youth for life by combining education and instruction
with practical and production work" and "to imbue the young people with
a love of work and a spirit of patriotism and international solidarity."
The law proposed the introduction of polytechnic studies on an
unprecedented scale in order to provide skilled workers for agriculture
and industry. Although the main objective was to meet the demands of the
economy, it was hoped that the new emphasis on technical subjects would
break down the exclusiveness of the educated classes, while socializing
the younger generation in communist ideological terms.
In practical terms the 1959 reforms introduced a unified twelve-year
so-called secondary school--despite the fact that it included the
elementary grades as well--called the medium polytechnical school, which
totally replaced the existing five-year basic school and the four-year
medium school or gymnasium. The medium polytechnical school was divided
into an eight-year elementary course and a four-year upper course. After
completing the basic school the student was faced with four
alternatives. He could enter: the upper course, which provided general
education plus specialization in an area of production; a medium
professional school or technicum, which provided a specialized
education; a professional technical college, which prepared him for
production in the economy; or the so-called miscellaneous training,
which included courses organized by plants, factories, and cooperatives.
At the same time the new law provided for the improvement of teacher
training. All teachers who taught in the fifth level or above were
required to have a university education or its equivalent. Teachers who
taught in kindergartens or the first to fourth levels were required to
take a three-year course after the obligatory twelve-year course of
schooling.
The reforms were later criticized, however, on much more far-reaching
grounds. Some felt that technical specialization was stressed to such an
extreme that the liberal arts were altogether ignored. Some complained
that, although students were overburdened with superfluous details of
overspecialized subjects, teachers were still basically unprepared to
teach these subjects. Others felt that there was a lack of correlation
between the work that the student had to perform and his or her area of
expertise. Still others realized that there was a basic clash between
the managers who supervised the worker-students and the students
themselves.
Despite much criticism about the reforms, in terms of bare statistics
they were successful in greatly increasing the emphasis on
technical-vocational training. Although the number of primary and
secondary students remained approximately at the same level and the
number of primary and secondary schools declined drastically, there was
a tremendous increase in technical-vocational schools, students, and
teachers.
In 1967 there was another wave of educational reform in Bulgaria, as
well as in all of Eastern Europe, that once again changed the direction
of education. Although most Eastern European countries began to
deemphasize polytechnic instruction, Bulgaria's course was more cautious
and ambivalent. On the one hand, Bulgarian educators stated that the
time allotted for practical training would be increased, while on the
other hand, efforts were made to reintroduce the humanities into the
curriculum. In the last three grades of the upper course, the curriculum
was divided into two branches: natural science and mathematics, and the
humanities. The number of general education subjects was gradually
increased, and there was renewed emphasis on foreign languages and the
social sciences.
By 1969, however, authorities once again perceived certain problems in
the educational system and proposed counteracting reforms. One problem
was the relative cost of higher education, which was expanding, as
compared to the cost of primary education, which was both cheaper and
contracting. A second problem was the question of the availability of
trained persons for the national economy because of the long periods of
schooling then required. It was argued that by the time a young man had
completed his education and his military training, he was twenty-five or
twenty-six years old. A third problem was the intense competition for
places in higher education and other postsecondary institutions. In 1969
approximately 70,000 to 75,000 students leaving secondary schools
competed with each other for 20,000 places at the university level. A
fourth problem was whether the polytechnic school should place primary
emphasis on trade specialization or on academic subjects.
In the same year serious thought was given to the solution of these
problems, and tentative measures were proposed. The major thrust of
these proposals was to enable students to meet the needs of the economy
by shortening the period of overall education. It was proposed that a
unified polytechnic school, which would fuse general and professional
elements of education, would replace the current, professionally
oriented polytechnic school. At the same time children would enter
school at the age of six, instead of the customary seven. The secondary
polytechnic school would be a ten-year instead of a twelve-year course,
allowing students to graduate at the age of sixteen. Most courses in
higher education would be reduced from five to four years, enabling
students to complete all levels of education by the age of twenty rather
than twenty-five.
The reforms would perhaps have a greater impact on the secondary system
than the other levels, as they envisioned a completely unified secondary
school system in which professional and general education would be
fused. Specialization in liberal arts, mathematics and economics,
chemistry and biology, social sciences, and foreign languages would be
offered.
In 1972 these reforms were officially proposed and passed by the Council
of Ministers. It was anticipated that they would be carried out over the
next ten to fifteen years. Although the concept of fusing general and
professional education in the new unified secondary polytechnic school
was not universally popular, the reform embodying this concept was
passed primarily because of the influence of one of its strongest
proponents, Zhivkov.
Other reforms proposed in 1972 dealt with the specific levels of the
educational system and with monetary necessities to fulfill these
expectations. As it was expected that by 1975 approximately 76 percent
of children from three to seven years of age would be in kindergartens,
the Sixth Five-Year Plan (1971-75) emphasized the development of a huge
network of kindergartens. By 1975, 85 percent of the students attending
primary school were expected to go on to the secondary level, and plans
were made to increase the construction of boarding and semiboarding
schools to accommodate these students. Secondary education was to be
made compulsory in order, in Zhivkov's words, "to give every young man
and girl the opportunity not only of acquiring scientific knowledge of
nature and society and the necessary general culture and polytechnical
education, but also of acquiring certain production and technical habits
and skills, of preparing themselves for socially useful work."
The main emphasis in the 1972 reforms, however, was on higher education.
It was anticipated that there would be some 120,000 students in higher
education by 1975. Of this number it was expected that 65,000--or
approximately half--would be specialists. Of the 65,000 specialists,
half would be engaged in science and technology. Therefore, in 1972
plans were being formulated for the construction of new buildings at
many of the major institutions of higher education.
In order to fulfill these structural changes, it was decided that both
increased expenditures and additional places for students were needed.
During the Fifth Five-Year Plan (1966-70), about 300 million leva (for
value of the lev--see Glossary) had been expended on education. In the
Sixth Five-Year Plan (1971-75) 500 million leva were to be allocated. In
addition, 30,000 more places were to be provided at the preschool level,
28,000 more accommodations at hostels, and 4,500 classrooms at all
levels.
LITERACY
Figures vary to some degree, but at the time of liberation in 1878
between 85 and 90 percent of the Bulgarian population was illiterate. By
the early twentieth century, however, Bulgaria had achieved the highest
literacy rate in the Balkans. Although some scholars stated that only
some 31 percent of the population over school age was literate, by 1920
nearly 50 percent of the population over school age was literate. By
1934 only 31.6 percent of the population over school age was still
illiterate, and by 1940 this figure was reduced to between 20 and 25
percent.
After the Communists took power in the country, literacy increased at a
rapid pace. In 1956 only 17.6 percent of the population over twenty-five
was illiterate, and by 1965 only 8.6 percent was illiterate. In 1973,
although total literacy for people under fifty years of age was claimed
by the government, the rate of literacy of this group was probably
somewhere between 90 and 100 percent.
Of the illiterate population in 1965, approximately three-fourths were
women and only one-fourth were men, reflecting the recency of the
emancipation of women in Bulgaria. Of ethnic groups, the Gypsies have
both the lowest levels of literacy and of education, whereas the Turks
have a significantly higher literacy rate. Jews, Czechs, Greeks, and
Russians all have a relatively high literacy level. In 1965 there were
three times as many illiterates in rural areas as in urban. Also,
illiteracy in Bulgaria was much more common among the older generation
than among the young. In 1965, of the population over 60 years of age,
approximately one-third was illiterate, whereas only a very small
percentage of the working-age group was illiterate. The government
seemed relatively unconcerned about the problem of illiteracy among the
older people, as an official stated: "The high illiteracy rate among the
older population does not present a problem since this is the population
above the working age and this group is not crucial to our economic
life."
THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM
Administration and Finance
The 1947 constitution established both the Ministry of Education and the
Committee for Science, Art, and Culture, which held ministry status. In
1954 the Law on Public Education increased the authority of the Ministry
of Education; all general and vocational schools fell under its
jurisdiction at that time. In February 1954 the Ministry of Culture was
established. It replaced the Committee for Science, Art, and Culture and
oversaw, in broad terms, the curricula at all levels of education,
including correspondence courses.
In 1973 the executive branch dealing with the legal aspects of education
was the Council of Ministers, and the Ministry of National Education
dealt with all administrative matters. The minister of national
education is a member of the Presidium of the National Assembly as well
as of the BKP Central Committee. Similarly, the assistant ministers of
education hold high offices in the party structure. In this way the
party not only supports educational legislation but also originates it.
The Ministry of National Education has four principal tasks to perform.
Its primary duty is to direct and control the educational system in
accordance with the policies of the party and the government. It both
formulates and approves basic documents of the educational system, such
as the curricula, the school regulations, and methods. It arranges for
the publication of all school textbooks and supervises the work of the
people's councils at the local level.
The minister of national education is assisted by three vice ministers
who are appointed by the National Assembly and who head three broad
departments: the Department of General Education, the Department of
Vocational Training, and the Department of Higher Education. Also within
the Ministry of National Education are the following sub-sections:
Marxism-Leninism, physical culture, economic planning, finance,
employment, teaching materials, and cultural relations.
At the regional level the district people's councils have responsibility
for organization and instruction in all educational institutions with
the exception of schools of art, intermediate schools, and institutions
of higher education. Each council is under the authority of its
executive committee as well as the Ministry of National Education. The
Education Section of the council performs the routine tasks affecting
the educational system. The Ministry of National Education supervises
these education sections and assists them when necessary. They are also
assisted by various advisory committees.
Education in Bulgaria is generally financed by the state budget. Schools
that are deemed to have national importance are financed by the national
budget, whereas schools that have only local significance are financed
by the people's councils at the local level. Since 1964 the expenses of
many vocational training schools have been financed by various related
ministries, factories, and enterprises. These organizations have played
an increasing role in the financing of the schools since that date.
The only available figures dealing with the financing of education are
those on higher education. As Bulgaria is considerably behind most
European countries in terms of the financing of education, there is very
little public discussion of the issue. Sofia, the capital city, has one
of the most severe financial problems. In 1966 only 3.2 percent of the
total city budget was spent on matters relating to education. Generally,
financial figures for education are categorized with those for science
and culture so that it is nearly impossible to separate those figures
that deal specifically with education. In recent years educational
reformers have requested greater sums for education than were allocated
in the past.
Bulgaria's budget for education fluctuated between 133 million leva in
1960 and 491 million leva in 1971. The proportion of the total budget
allocated for education, however, actually decreased over the last eight
years of the period. In 1960 education represented 5.9 percent of the
total budget; in 1964, 9 percent; in 1967, 8.4 percent; and in 1971,
only 8.3 percent. The percentage of the Bulgarian gross national product
(GNP) earmarked for education in 1972 was inferior to that of some other
European and Asian countries. The German Democratic Republic (East
Germany) spent 5.9 percent on education; the Soviet Union, 5.8 percent;
Japan, 5.3 percent; Poland, 4.8 percent; Great Britain, 4.3 percent;
France, 3.2 percent; and the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany),
3 percent. Bulgaria allocated only 0.5 percent of its total GNP to the
field of education.
Preschool Education
Before the Communists took power in 1944 kindergartens were considered
to be an unimportant factor in education. In 1921 there were only
twenty-four kindergartens in the entire country.
The Communists made a real effort to establish a far-reaching network of
kindergartens, which in the late 1940s included three types: the half
day, all day, and seasonal. No tuition was required for the half day
kindergarten, and tuition varied--depending on the income of the
family--for the other two types.
Half day kindergartens accepted children after six years of age,
preparing them for admission to elementary schools. All day
kindergartens, which were located in large towns and industrial areas,
cared for children, aged three to seven, of working mothers. Seasonal
kindergartens were established in rural areas for the children of
mothers whose work was seasonal. These schools operated from two to ten
months per year and also accepted children from three to seven years of
age.
In mid-1973 there were creches for children from infancy to three years
of age. Children from three to seven attended kindergarten. Although
attendance was voluntary, it was believed that over 60 percent of the
preschool-age children were enrolled in creches or kindergartens.
Approximately 50 percent of the children in elementary school have had
their preschool education in the half day kindergartens. There were five
types of kindergartens in Bulgaria: the half day, the all day, the
seasonal, the kindergarten sanatoriums and the auxiliary kindergarten.
Kindergarten sanatoriums provided educational facilities for children
with tuberculosis, and auxiliary kindergartens were for the mentally
deficient.
Elementary Education
Before the Communists took power, there were primary schools for
children between seven and eleven and _progymnasia_ for children eleven
to fourteen years old. Although both levels of education were compulsory
according to the law, many children between the ages of seven and
fourteen did not attend school. The program of the _progymnasium_ was to
enable children--who might be excluded from either a gymnasium or
vocational school for economic or academic reasons--to obtain additional
education beyond the primary level.
After 1944 the Communists undertook a major revision of elementary
education in accordance with their basic principles of education (see
Communist Educational Policies, this ch.). In 1950 a new unified school
system was established, patterned after the educational system of the
Soviet Union. This unified, eleven-year system comprised both primary
and postprimary education. In 1954 the Edict on Public Education stated
that the first eight years of this new general education were compulsory
for children from seven to fifteen years of age. Depending on the
particular needs of the individual community, children could attend
either four-year, seven-year, or eleven-year general education schools.
Generally, the four-year schools predominated in rural areas, and the
seven-year and eleven-year schools were more prevalent in larger
villages and towns.
Elementary education is still compulsory for both boys and girls from
seven to fifteen years of age. Classes are held in the morning only and
run six days a week, Monday through Saturday. The schools are known as
basic or general schools and include not only elementary education but
also the first two phases of the eleven-year polytechnic school. The
elementary course comprises grades one through four, and the
postelementary courses include classes five through eight. The
elementary curriculum includes the study of Bulgarian, mathematics,
music, art, and physical education. The postelementary curriculum also
encompasses the study of foreign languages and science. On both levels
the study of Russian is compulsory.
The purpose of this general elementary education, according to the
government, is to "provide pupils with general and polytechnic education
combined with fundamental moral, physical and aesthetic training,
instill in children a liking for work, accustom them to productive work
useful to society and prepare them for studies at a higher level." In
accordance with these principles "education in labor" was made an
integral part of the curriculum. The total curriculum of elementary
education consists of a tripartite division. The academic section is
subdivided into the sciences and the humanities. The education in the
labor section consists of work, beginning in the first year of
schooling, in shops, farms, and factories. The extracurricular section
is dominated by the work-study program of the youth organization known
as the Pioneers (see ch. 9).
Secondary Education
Before 1944 secondary education in Bulgaria consisted of the gymnasium
and the vocational school. The gymnasium was divided into three types:
the classical, the semiclassical, and the scientific. All three included
the following subjects in their curriculum: Bulgarian language and
literature; either French, German, or English; philosophy; mathematics;
history; the history of Christianity; geography; sociology; civics;
physics; and chemistry. In the scientific and classical divisions,
natural history and drawing were also given, and Latin and Greek were
presented in the classical and semiclassical gymnasiums. There was also
a normal school, or pedagogical part of the gymnasium, which added
pedagogy and physical education to the basic curriculum.
Soon after the communist takeover the combined elementary-secondary
period of schooling was reduced from twelve to eleven years. The
objectives of a secondary education were described in the following
terms: "the general promotion of the physical and intellectual
development of adolescents, the weaning of their minds from extreme
nationalist and reactionary ideas, the inculcation of the spirit of
progress, and preparation for creative participation in the economic and
cultural life of the country." The curriculum of the secondary schools
was changed in order to incorporate these goals. Latin and Greek were no
longer required, but Russian became compulsory. A new subject called
general history subsumed within it the old studies of religion, ethics,
political economy, and Bulgarian. Astronomy was added to the new
curriculum.
Between 1949 and 1959 other changes were introduced in the secondary
school system. There were then two principal forms of secondary
education: the general school and the technical school. Grades eight to
eleven of the general school, which were considered part of secondary
education, included study of Bulgarian language and literature; Russian;
French, German, or English; mathematics; physics; astronomy; chemistry;
biology; history; constitutional history; geography; psychology and
logic; geometrical drawing; and physical education.
Technicums and vocational-technical secondary schools, on the other
hand, offered courses ranging from two to five years that gave the
student a specialized education. Graduates of the eleven-year general
school attended these schools for two years; students who had completed
less than eleven years attended for three to five years. In 1952 labor
reserve schools were established. These factory schools offered one-year
or two-year training programs to young people from fourteen to seventeen
years of age who had already completed their elementary education.
During the 1960s the new polytechnic secondary school was introduced in
order to incorporate the elements of a general and specialized education
into one system. Although this type of secondary education continued to
be the main form of secondary education, it was criticized on two
seemingly paradoxical counts. One group of critics claimed that the
polytechnic school gave the student neither a sound general education
nor a solid base in professional training. Another group claimed that
the polytechnic school was both too narrow and too technical, depriving
the student of a broad background in general areas.
In mid 1973 there were three major types of secondary education in
Bulgaria: the secondary polytechnic or a semitechnical variation of the
gymnasium, the vocational-technical schools, and the technicums (see
fig. 5). Roughly 95 percent of students who had completed elementary
school continued in secondary education.
[Illustration: _Figure 5. The Bulgarian School System, 1973_]
Approximately one-third of students continuing in secondary education
attend the polytechnic school. The stated purpose of this kind of school
is "to provide pupils with wider scientific education and more intensive
polytechnical training, through practical production experience closely
linked with general education and technical subjects, and to prepare
them for active working and intellectual life or for their continued
studies at higher levels. This secondary course completes the pupils'
basic science studies and polytechnical preparation. The practical
experiences gained prepares them for specialization in a major branch of
production work."
Polytechnic schools can be either part of the general schools--in which
case they consist of grades nine through eleven--or separate schools in
themselves. In the latter case the course is of either four or five
years' duration. These schools are also open to factory and
office-workers who are able to remain in their positions, on a reduced
basis, while continuing their education.
Technicums are more popular than the polytechnic schools. Although
sources differ with respect to the exact percentage of elementary
students who continue their education in technicums--with some claiming
approximately 40 percent and others as high as 77 percent--probably
about 50 percent continue their schooling in this area. According to the
government the purpose of the technicums is to "train specialists at
intermediate levels for the various sectors of the national economy:
industry, agriculture, and building construction, transport services,
commerce and public health services." At the same time, however, the
technicums provide general education that corresponds to some extent
with the program of the polytechnic school.
These schools, more than the polytechnic schools, are directly related
to trends in the economy. Technicums are designed to produce supervisors
and skilled workers who will satisfy the needs of the economy. The
course of study varies from three to four years. Although some general
subjects are taught, emphasis is on the acquisition of specialized
knowledge in such fields as agriculture and engineering.
The least popular form of secondary education in Bulgaria is the
vocational-technical school, which is a form of trade school. Although
the number of students in vocational-technical schools has doubled since
1944, only approximately 20 percent of the graduates of elementary
education continue in this area. The government states that "Vocational
training schools are designed to train skilled workers for industry and
agriculture." The schools can either operate independently or be a part
of a technicum or agricultural or industrial enterprise. Although the
courses are generally open to elementary graduates, workers under thirty
who have not completed their primary education may also continue their
training in these schools.
The program of the vocational-technical school varies from one to three
years. In the case of workers under thirty, the program runs from one
to four years. Graduates of the program receive the title of skilled
workmen; they are obligated to work in their field of specialization for
three years. The curriculum in the vocational-technical school includes:
Bulgarian, Russian, physics, mathematics, and physical education. These
subjects consume only half of the allotted time; the other half is spent
working in factories or on farms.
In addition to these three basic forms of secondary education, there are
special types of secondary schools as well. Specialized secondary
schools exist for music, art, and ballet. Although most operate only on
the secondary level--requiring the completion of the elementary
school--some give the complete eleven-year program. The length of study
generally is four years. Music schools offer courses in instrumental
music, singing, musical theory, and general education. Students of dance
study at the National School of Choreography, which is divided into a
section offering classical ballet and another offering Bulgarian folk
dance. Art students study at a special gymnasium.
Another form of secondary education is the foreign language secondary
school. In these schools all instruction is given in the foreign
language selected. Russian is the most popular language, followed by
French, German, and English. Although no figures are available for
schools of other languages, in 1973 there were six English-language
schools with fifteen native English instructors. Of the total number of
places available in these language schools, 50 percent are reserved for
girls and 50 percent for boys. Of the same total, 20 percent are
reserved for children of "the active fighters against fascism and
capitalism."
Higher Education
In the period between the 1921 reforms and the years just before World
War II, there were nine institutions of higher education in Bulgaria.
The University of Sofia was both the largest and the oldest. The most
popular faculties in higher educational institutions at that time in
order of popularity were: education, law, economics, medicine, and
agriculture. The arts were the least popular faculty. In mid 1973
statistics were unavailable for both engineering and physical education
(see table 9).
When the Communists took power in 1944 they made sweeping changes in the
field of higher education. Universities--which had heretofore been
autonomous--were put under state control; members of the party sat on
faculty councils that selected and promoted professors. University
graduates were placed by the government and were subject to punishment
under the newly established penal code if they refused to accept
assignments.
_Table 9. Number and Proportion of Students in Various Bulgarian
University Faculties, Selected Years, 1939-71_
-----------+---------------+---------------+---------------+---------------
| 1939 | 1948 | 1960 | 1970
|-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------
| |Percent| |Percent| |Percent| |Percent
| | of | | of | | of | | of
|Number | Total |Number | Total |Number | Total |Number | Total
-----------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------
Engineering| n.a. | ... | 182 | 5.4 | 1,480 | 25.5 | 5,042 | 40.6
Agriculture| 127 | ... | 768 | 22.9 | 1,088 | 18.8 | 1,415 | 11.4
Medicine | 139 | ... | 729 | 21.8 | 911 | 15.7 | 1,174 | 9.5
Economics | 230 | ... | 716 | 21.3 | 889 | 15.4 | 1,895 | 15.2
Arts | 55 | ... | 86 | 2.6 | 268 | 4.6 | 319 | 2.6
Education | 365 | ... | 388 | 11.6 | 827 | 14.3 | 2,163 | 17.4
Physical | | | | | | | |
education| n.a. | ... | 40 | 1.2 | 169 | 2.9 | 259 | 2.1
Law | 307 | ... | 441 | 13.2 | 157 | 2.7 | 142 | 1.1
| | |-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------
TOTAL | | | 3,350 | 100.0 | 5,789 | 99.9*|12,409 | 99.9*
-----------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------
n.a.--not available.
... not applicable.
* Columns do not add to 100 because of rounding.
Source: Adapted from _Statistical Yearbook, 1971_, Sofia, 1971, p. 247.
The essential task of higher education was enunciated by Premier Vulko
Chervenkov in 1954: "Higher schools must train not only qualified
specialists but also able, and conscious participants in the political
direction and building of socialism in our country." In 1949
correspondence courses were initiated for manual workers and civil
servants. Courses generally ranged from five to six years. Certain
workers were allowed to attend shorter courses given by the various
institutions while they continued to work. Although they were required
to pass examinations, they did not have to attend classes regularly.
Between 1948 and 1952 the curriculum became more and more patterned
after the curriculum of the Soviet Union. In 1948 Marxist-Leninist
studies were introduced; in 1949 political economy and the history of
the Communist Party of the Soviet Union became obligatory for all
university students. By 1950 the party newspaper, _Rabotnichesko Delo_,
reported that 150 Soviet texts were being utilized in institutions of
higher education. By 1952 students were obliged to study both
dialectical and historical materialism, the rudiments of
Marxism-Leninism, and the history of the BKP. Study of these subjects
was generally mandatory for three years.
In mid 1973 there were two major forms of higher educational
institutions: teacher training institutions and university level
institutions. In the latter category are universities, technical
institutes, agricultural institutes, medical schools, art academies, and
higher schools of economics. In 1972 there were twenty-two university
level institutions, sixteen of which were in Sofia. The remainder were
located in the provincial cities of Plovdiv, Varna, Svishtov, and Ruse.
The courses of study range from four to six years; five years is the
average period. In 1970 in proportion to the total population of the
country, Bulgaria was fourth in the world in terms of the number of
students--which constituted about 1 percent of the total
population--attending institutions of higher education, following the
United States, the Soviet Union, and Japan.
Higher education in Bulgaria is conceived primarily in terms of the
national economy. The entire educational process at the higher level is
determined by the needs and prerequisites of the economy. The government
has stated: "The main tasks of the institutions of higher education are:
to train qualified specialists, imbued with Communist ideals, for all
fields of activity, who will be conversant with the latest developments
in science and technology, to train teachers and research specialists
for the institutions of higher education and scientific organizations,
to take systematic measures to improve the qualifications of specialists
in various branches of the national economy; [and] to propagate
scientific, technical and political knowledge among the workers."
Students at the undergraduate level--with the exception of students of
worker and peasant origin--are expected to pass a written examination in
order to gain admission. Fifty percent of the total number of admissions
are reserved for people who have been employed for a two-year period.
Most graduates are obliged to work for three years after graduation in a
position assigned to them by the government. Unlike the prewar
faculties, technical and scientific faculties have had the highest
enrollments. Although education continues to draw large enrollments, in
1971 engineering had the largest number of students, followed by
education, economics, agriculture, and medicine. Law and physical
education had the lowest number of students at that time. As the State
Committee for Science, Technical Progress, and Higher Education
determines the specialization to be pursued, this list reflects more the
preferences of the government than those of the students.
Because the government determines the fields of specialization to be
pursued by students of higher education, over a ten-year period--from
1960 to 1970--the pendulum has swung away from the arts and toward the
pure sciences. The fields most preferred by the students themselves,
however, and those that earn the highest wages, are still medicine,
architecture, journalism, and foreign languages.
The State Committee for Education and Technical Progress stipulates the
number of admissions as well as the courses to be followed in graduate
work. All applicants for graduate study must have a minimum of one year
of working experience in their fields of specialization. In addition to
completion of four or five years of higher education, the applicant must
pass examinations in his field of specialization, in Russian, and in one
Western European language. The curriculum is determined by the various
research institutes of the Academy of Sciences, the Academy of
Agricultural Sciences, or other institutions of higher education. The
term of graduate study is approximately four to 4-1/2 years.
Beyond the usual graduate study is the doctoral program. To obtain the
doctor of science degree, the student must prepare a dissertation that
according to governmental criteria, contains "a significant scientific
contribution, new educational methods and proposals, theoretical
conclusions and discoveries of great significance for the advancement of
science, technology, and the national economy." A candidate for this
degree must either hold a candidate degree, be thoroughly accredited in
his profession, or have proof of significant contributions to the
economy.
In terms of the exchange of foreign students, there are only a
relatively small number of foreign students in Bulgaria, and only a tiny
percentage of the Bulgarian student population studies abroad. Although
theoretically opportunities exist for Bulgarian students to study in
other countries, in fact, opportunities are very limited. There are
strict regulations regarding foreign study. In 1971 the Ministry of
National Education stated that only students of parents permanently
employed abroad could study there; no students with independent sources
of income were allowed to study in foreign universities. In 1971 between
1.5 and 1.8 percent of the Bulgarian student population were foreign
students. In the academic year 1970/71 only 1,603 students studied
abroad. Of these, 1047 studied in the Soviet Union; 226 studied in East
Germany; 154 studied in Czechoslovakia; and twelve students pursued
their studies in other countries.
At the same time foreign students are not numerous in Bulgaria, although
they come from a variety of countries. As of 1972 only 1,240 foreign
students had been graduated from Bulgarian universities. Among these
graduates were 174 from Albania, 129 from Syria, 126 from East Germany,
ninety-four from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North
Korea), fifty-seven from Kenya, and fifty from the Democratic Republic
of Vietnam (North Vietnam). In the academic year 1969/70 alone, 1,882
foreign students attended Bulgarian institutions of higher education.
These students came from ninety-two countries; they include 430 students
from North Vietnam, 393 from Syria, 106 from the Sudan, forty-five from
Iraq, and twenty-two from Cuba. Although the focus in foreign student
exchange is definitely on the developing countries--for both economic
and political reasons--in 1971 foreign student exchanges with Western
countries were being increased.
Although higher education is tuition free in Bulgaria, financial
assistance is still required by a large number of students. The
percentage of students on governmental scholarships varies from year to
year, generally ranging between 30 to 40 percent. In 1965 over 39
percent of the student population received scholarships, whereas in 1970
only 30 percent received them. There are two basic conditions for
scholarships as stipulated by the state: acceptable grade averages and a
family income--per family member--that does not exceed 70 leva per
month.
There are still severe difficulties in the field of higher education in
Bulgaria. One problem is the acute shortage of professors in the areas
of engineering and technology in institutions of higher education. At
some times the shortage is so extreme that advertisements are placed in
the newspapers in order to recruit personnel.
Another difficulty in higher education is overcrowding in the schools
and in the cities where the institutions are located. This dilemma is
particularly acute in Sofia, where most of the major universities and
institutes are located. In school year 1969/70 there were 82,573
students enrolled in higher educational institutions; of this number,
59,130--roughly three-fourths--were in Sofia. As many of the students
come to Sofia from other areas of the country, the influx of students
has created a severe housing shortage. One solution, which has been
explored to some extent in recent years, has been for students to enroll
in institutions in major cities to study in their regional areas during
the year and come to Sofia only when examinations are given.
Approximately one-third of the total student population have studied on
this basis.
A more serious problem is the issue of student preferences versus the
demands of the economy. Since the government requires trained scientific
and technological personnel, there are more admissions in these areas
than in the arts. Students, however, have indicated a greater interest
in the humanities, but admissions in these areas are few. In 1973 for
every place available in the humanities, there were six applicants. For
every place available in the sciences, there were only four applicants.
The inevitable result of such a policy is the creation of a group of
young people who are engaged either in a study not of their choice or
who have been dissuaded from the field of higher education altogether.
The most serious problem is the fact that only a small proportion of
applicants are accepted in universities and institutes because there are
simply not enough facilities available to them. In an average year there
are generally 70,000 applicants and only 15,000 acceptances. Thus,
roughly 80 percent of all applicants are rejected by the institutions of
higher education in Bulgaria. Although students are allowed to reapply
at a future date, because they are not generally permitted to study
abroad, this overflow has resulted in the problem of the so-called idle
youth. At the beginning of 1972 authorities estimated that there were
approximately 50,000 of these people. Although the government has
attempted to deal with this problem by forcing the idlers to either work
or be trained for work--and they have been quite successful, as idlers
were estimated to be down from approximately 51,000 to 9,000 in less
than six months--they have failed to deal with the root cause of the
problem, that is, insufficient places in higher education.
TEACHER TRAINING
Between 1921 and 1932 all primary and _progymnasium_ teachers had to
complete the normal school section of the gymnasium. In 1932, however,
all normal schools were abolished, and teachers were trained in two-year
pedagogical institutes that demanded completion of the gymnasium for
admission. The pedagogical institutes were subdivided into three
sections: the humanities, the sciences, and arts and crafts. Gymnasium
teachers, in turn, had to have a university degree. Vocational-school
teachers generally were vocational-school graduates themselves.
In 1944 two new forms of teacher training, both based on the Soviet
model, were established. Teachers in the kindergartens and the four-year
elementary schools, who had already completed seven years of elementary
school, attended five-year teacher training schools. Teachers of grades
five through seven, who had completed their secondary education, trained
at two-year institutes. As before the communist takeover, teachers of
secondary education and university professors had to complete their
training at a university. Teachers of physical education, fine arts, and
music were trained at the appropriate section of an institution of
higher education.
In 1953 the government established the Institute for the Improvement of
Teachers for the purpose of providing refresher courses for teachers.
This institute also provided teachers with the proper ideological
orientation. The government stated that the objectives of this institute
were to provide the "dogmatic ideological improvement of teachers ...
and ... the study and application of [the] Soviet teaching experience."
The institute offered such courses as pedagogy, psychology, Bulgarian
language and literature, Russian language and literature, Bulgarian
history, the Bulgarian constitution, mathematics and physics, natural
science and chemistry, and geography.
In 1959, however, it was decided that all elementary-school
teachers--those who taught grades one through four--would be trained at
teacher training colleges, and all secondary-school teachers--who taught
grades five through eleven--would attend higher educational
institutions.
In mid 1973 both kindergarten teachers and teachers of the first to
fifth grades were trained at intermediate teacher training institutes.
Teachers of grades five through eight also began their training at the
same institutes, where they trained for three years after the completion
of their secondary education. When they had completed this level of
their education, they continued at an institute of higher education.
Teachers of the fifth through eleventh grades had to have a diploma from
an institution of higher education. Vocational-school teachers and art
teachers were trained at appropriate faculties of higher educational
institutions.
Teachers are paid at various levels depending on their academic
backgrounds and current circumstances. The three basic determinants of a
teacher's salary are his or her academic qualifications, the number of
classes covered per week, and the overall length of service. Every
teacher is entitled to a 4-percent increase in salary after every five
years of teaching. The total increase is limited to 16 percent. Teachers
who work excessively long hours are granted overtime pay. In the case of
teachers who are forced to teach in areas where living conditions are
considered difficult, extra salaries are given. Teachers who are engaged
in pilot programs receive a 5-percent supplement to their salaries in
order to repay them for the necessary research and training. Teachers
who teach in special schools, special kindergartens, and schools for
maladjusted children also receive supplemental salaries. Teachers
who--in addition to their regular duties--work in pupils' centers,
boarding schools, and evening study periods receive an additional 20
percent of their original salary.
OTHER EDUCATION
Before World War II there were very few facilities for education that
did not fall into the standard educational system. Schools for the
handicapped, for example, were almost nonexistent. Just before the war
there were only five schools of this kind and only 400 children were
enrolled. There were three schools for the deaf, one for the blind, and
one for the mentally retarded.
By 1944 the number of schools for the handicapped had declined to four,
and only 200 children were enrolled. One of the first pieces of
educational legislation under the Communists provided specifically for
this type of school. Although the development of these schools in the
early years was quite slow, eventually, by the early 1960s, there were
seventy special schools, caring for approximately 8,000 children. These
special schools provided general schooling for the handicapped--although
the curriculum was, of necessity, modified to suit the needs of the
individual student. Emphasis was on vocational training.
The primary focus was on adult education. The major objective was to
raise the level of literacy in the country. Between 1944 and 1950 there
were special courses that were aimed at both total illiterates and
semiliterates. When, by the early 1950s, this goal had been
accomplished, these courses were reduced in number and replaced by other
kinds of adult education. Part-time courses at the secondary level were
made available for workers. Evening classes--which taught new vocational
skills and improved already existing skills--became common. Higher
education through correspondence courses opened new avenues to people
who had previously had only a vocational education.
In 1961 the first boarding schools were established. In 1971 new plans
were formulated to increase the number of such schools. It was
anticipated that 30 percent of all first to eighth graders would attend
such schools by 1975, that 50 to 60 percent would attend by 1980, and
that a full 80 percent would live in boarding schools by 1990.
There is a wide diversity of schools that do not fall into the standard
educational system. In terms of special education there are elementary
schools for the blind, deaf, mentally retarded, and children who are
otherwise handicapped. All children in these categories begin their
schooling at the age of seven with the exception of the retarded, who
begin at eight. These children attend school for eight years and may
then continue in schools of general education, technicums, or other
schools. Retarded children, after completion of the eight years, go on
to special enterprises that are supervised by the Ministry of Public
Health.
Children who are either recuperating from, or are prone to, illness
attend primary and secondary schools located in areas where the climate
is propitious for their recovery. Children in these schools are accepted
at any point between the first and eleventh grades. Although the
curriculum is somewhat modified, the basic content of the courses is
essentially the same as in the regular primary and secondary schools.
Most pupils attend these schools only temporarily, generally from four
or five months to a year.
When the Communists came to power they stipulated that private schools
could continue only if they had express permission from the government
and were operated under governmental authority. In the early years of
communist rule, diplomatic missions continued to operate schools for
the children of foreign emissaries. In 1973, however, the only private
schools were the secondary school, known in Bulgaria as a seminary, and
the Ecclesiastical Academy of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
In addition to these special schools, there are technical and vocational
schools of various kinds that are not part of the regular school system.
Between secondary and higher technical schools fall the advanced
technicums, which function on a postsecondary level. Courses generally
run from two to three years, depending on the field of specialization.
There are advanced technicums for such specializations as mining,
medicine, veterinary medicine, and industrial chemistry. All schools
include courses in Marxism-Leninism, higher mathematics, and physical
education in addition to the courses of specialization. Also on the
technical-vocational level are six-month training courses that are
organized by factories, cooperatives, and other enterprises. These
courses are designed to improve the workers' skills or to retrain
workers for other areas of specialization. These courses include both
theoretical studies and practical work.
Evening courses, correspondence courses, refresher courses, and special
research programs are also numerous in the country. Workers up to thirty
years of age who have not completed their elementary education are urged
to attend evening schools--known in Bulgaria as shift courses--or
correspondence courses. In both types of school the average length of
study is from one to three years, depending on the amount of elementary
education completed. Once these courses are completed, the worker may
continue in either a secondary polytechnic or a vocational school.
Eventually, he may go on to an institution of higher education.
Refresher courses, on the other hand, are at the higher education level
and are provided for industrial specialists in order to keep them
abreast of the latest developments in science and technology. Teachers
and researchers are encouraged to hold research fellowships that
function under the various institutions of higher education as well as
the Academy of Sciences.
The final component of specialized education is conducted by the party.
Based on Marxism-Leninism, it is geared to indoctrinate party members
but is provided for nonparty members as well. The objectives of this
form of education were summed up by Georgi Dimitrov, premier of the
country from 1946 until 1949, who stated that these schools are to
prepare "individuals in the fundamental principles of Marxism-Leninism
... in order that they become independent practical organizers and
leaders, capable of leading the masses in the struggle against the class
enemy." The instructors of party education are trained at the Institute
for Political Instruction of the Central Committee of the BKP, which in
turn supervises the work of the Central Leninist Party School. In
addition to the general dissemination of party policy by these
instructors, there are both formal study circles and political schools
that present two-year courses in the history of both the Bulgarian and
the Soviet communist parties.