Prosvjetna politika u službi ideološkoga pre/odgoja u Hercegovini (1945.-1952.)
Eduational policy in the service of social reform of education in Herzegovina (from 1945 to 1952)

Summary/Abstract: Immediately after the consolidation of government, the Communist Party, recognizing the importance of the education system as a socialization medium, began its transformation in which very important role was attributed to the formation of a new "socialist man". Adhering to the motto that "an illiterate person stands out of politics", a broad campaign of eradication of adult illiteracy was started, organizing different levels of courses, reading groups, folklore groups and other forms of amateur organizations, which was a responsibility of educational departments of National Committee. General national enlightenment contributed to the radio and film production of carefully selected films like "The Defense of Moscow", "Liberation of Czechoslovakia", whose viewing was controlled by national authorities. In fact, the entire education system was subordinated to the single objective of building a collective identity that was supposed to ensure the legitimacy of the current government based on its leading authority role in NOB (National Liberation War). School naturally served as an important ideological apparatus in the education reform, having in mind its key role of a mediator in the interpretation of social reality. Therefore, great attention was paid not only to building of a widespread school network, but also to personnel policy and curricula that were abundant with "national liberation" themes and glorification of the role and person of Josip Broz. A special function was planned for history teaching that was to serve in the construction of the past through the prism of common historical memory. The complexity of this process in a multinational community as was the second Yugoslavia/Herzegovina resolved in selective memory or the antonymy such as memory vs. oblivion. Besides, the goal of teaching was not just the acquisition of knowledge, but also the empathy of students for specific topics in order to turn their knowledge into a way of thinking and living. Therefore, since the task of school was to raise similar ideological followers of the existing government, with great distrust was looked at religious education which, in fact, represented the only worldview "opposition" within the strictly controlled school system. Despite many legal restrictions and the regime's torture, catechism still managed to survive the first years as an elective course up to 1952, when it was expelled from public schools on the grounds that religiosity was personal matter of an individual, and that the school as an educational institution must be based on scientific grounds.

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