The Formation of imperial loyalty in the education system in the Northwest Region in 1905-1915

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Lojalumas imperijai; Carinė švietimo sistema; Šiaurės Vakarų kraštas 1905-1915. Keywords: Imperial loyalty; Tsarist education system; Northwest Region in 1905-1915.Reikšminiai žodžiai: 20 amžius; Rusija (Russia); Švietimo politika; Mokyklos; Mokymo programos; 20th century; Schools; Education policy; Education programmes.

ENThere has been practically no analysis of how attempts were made to instill imperial loyalty via the state education system in the region after 1905, or how central and local governments reacted to non-dominant ethnic groups’ attempts to use education to form other (non-Russian) loyalties among younger generations. In this study, just one aspect of the Russian Empire’s post-1905 education policy will be discussed. In order to trace this history, first this chapter will provide an analysis of how general subjects like history, geography, and Russian language and literature were taught, and what status the tsarist government assigned these branches of learning and disciplines in primary and secondary schools as a means of entrenching imperial loyalty in the Northwest Region. After this discussion of formal educational institutions, I shift my attention to various informal means of education, including educational excursions for pupils and teachers, students’ participation in historical and state celebrations, and student societies to understand their role in cultivating imperial loyalties. Through this analysis, I show that regardless of the liberalization of educational policy after 1905, the imperial bureaucracy continued to consider the teaching of history, literature, and geography an important means of indoctrination. Furthermore, despite some changes, there was still an effort to uphold narratives formulated much earlier. [Extract, p. 260]