Hungarian Pedagogical Statistics around the Period of the Census of 1930.

Transcription

1 LÁSZLÓ JÁKI Hungarian Pedagogical Statistics around the Period of the Census of Introduction During the visit of Professor Egil Johansson to Hungary in the fall 2000, the possibility emerged that the researchers of the National Library and the Museum of Pedagogy, both in Budapest, would join the planned research. Our library s long past and its rich statistical archives make it possible for us to contribute to international comparative studies. We have grouped the available sources dating back to the 1930s as listed below. 1. Sociography, life circumstances 2. Progress in school 3. Choosing a profession/occupation 4. Leisure activities 5. Health matters 6. Teachers 7. Public education Computer programmes make possible a thorough comparison of available data. The difficult and tedious part of the work will be deciding on the points to be compared. The following pages will show examples based on some of our Hungarian data. A large part of the statistics are based on the Census of This allows international comparison as a census was taken in all European Countries belonging to the League of Nations in

2 1. The native language composition of nursery and elementary school pupils (1931). Nursery school Slovak 2,3% Rumanian 0,5% German 11,6% Others 0,4% Hungarian 85,1% Elementary school German 6,1% Slovak 1,8% Rumanian 0,3% Others 0,2% Hungarian 91,6% Hungary is a multiethnic country, as is also shown by the 1931 data, although the statistics taken prior to 1919 reveal a completely different picture. Data from the thirties mostly concerns the ethnic Hungarian minorities in the neighbouring countries, however it would be interesting to look into how many of them have made it into the higher education system. 41

3 2. Distribution by sex, students at the Universities (1932). 97,3% 100,0% 88,4% 51,0% 66,2% 70,0% Theology Law Medicine Arts Pharmacy Economics Male students Female students Modernisation in Hungary has been a rather belated process, and the table above clearly shows the half-feudal set of values. While women were banned by law from studying at some universities, at others they were excluded by public opinion. 3. Percentage of illiteracy among year-olds in developed and less developed regions respectively (1930). Sopron county (Developed region ) Szatmár county (Less developed region ) Illiteracy 1,1% Illiteracy 9% Literacy 98,9% Literacy 91% The rate of literacy accurately reflects the level of development of public education in any country. Hungary was somewhat below the European average, but this table shows the differences that arose as a result of different economic development in the various regions. 42

4 4. Distribution by sex of first year undergraduates at the Medical Faculty. 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 87,9% 90,2% 91,2% 87,5% 85,3% 12,1% 9,8% 8,8% 12,5% 14,7% 1918/ / / / /38 Males Females The rising number of female students at the Medical Faculty shows that a slow change began after Sociographic profile of university students (1930). Smokers 50% Consume alcohol 45% Nonsmokers 50% Do not consume alcohol 55% Have been abroad 40% Do not do any sport 25% Have not been abroad 60% Do some sport regulary 75% Examining the health issues and life circumstances of students, such as alcohol consumption, smoking, sports habits and the ratio of those who had never been abroad, promises interesting results. All these are documented in detail. 43

5 6. Professional goals of secondary school graduates (1930). 13,6% 12,7% 73,5% Intend to go on to higher education Do not intend to go on to higher education Don't know The choice of profession/occupation among pupils in a country is a great indicator of the mobility of society and the directions in which it is moving. Our table only indicates the intended professions. 7. The composition of elementary school pupils by religion (1931). Calvinist 20% Lutheran 6% Others 6% Roman Catholic 68% For historical reasons Hungary is primarily a Roman Catholic country, and the examination of religious affiliation supplies suitable data on which to base conclusions. Various teaching material and curricula not only provided a different store of knowledge, but also a different view of life. 44

6 8. Progress through the school system of the generation born in This is the possible starting point for a study of those born in 1975 and reaching school age in The table demonstrates all the pitfalls and benefits of the school system. 45