Page 114 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 11(2) (2023)

come teachers (Perovšek 1995, 45). While wait- ic (i.e. they were of allegedly Slavic parents), were
ing for teaching staff to arrive, some schools were obliged to attend a Slovene school, even if they
merged and others temporarily closed (Peterle did not feel Slovene and regardless of their par-
Grahonja 2004, 93). Most of the school build- ents’ wishes (Beltram 1997, 207; Hrobat Virlo-
ings in the Istrian countryside were damaged get 2021, 96−97). Children with Italian or ethni-
or even destroyed during the war. Some served cally mixed parents could enrol in either Italian
as military barracks for the occupying forces or Slovene schools . In the so-called ‘exodus’ –
3
during the war, and after the war the Yugoslav the mass emigration of those who opted for Ita-
army was stationed in some of them. The school ly when the FTT’s Zone B was taken over by Yu-
buildings were renovated thanks to the volun- goslavia in 1954 – many Italian teachers also left
tary work of local people and the help of state (Peterle Grahonja 2004, 92). They were initially
loans, but this took time so school classes were replaced by Slovene teachers who had completed
114 held in makeshift buildings. Another problem the Italian teacher training college and Italian
was the inadequate design of the buildings. Al- students. Later, Italian teachers from the Cro-
though they had been built recently by the fas- at part of Istria took up these positions (Beltram ti
studia universitatis hereditati, letnik 11 (2023), številka 2 / volume 11 (2023), number 2
cist regime, they were just simple one-classroom 1997, 207; Perovšek 1995).
buildings designed to meet the needs of the peas- During this period, and especially in the
ant population, which received only the most ba- 1950s, the school system also had to cope with
sic education. One teacher in a single classroom the social dynamics associated with the restruc- ta
taught children from several years and of differ- turing of the region, specifically with the immi-
ent ages, often in morning and afternoon shifts, gration of new populations, a phenomenon that
demanding much organisation and work, but accompanied or followed the mass departure of
this was generally typical of education in the the so-called optants. While the number of Ital-
post-war years (Petelin 2020, 168). The results of ian schoolchildren shrank sharply with the peak di
repairs to existing schools and the construction of the ‘exodus’ in the mid-1950s, the demograph-
of new school buildings and improvements in ic pressure on the Slovene school structures in
equipment were not visible until after 1948 (Pe- Koper, Izola and Piran and their new residential
terle Grahonja 2004, 92–95). areas grew rapidly. For example, in 1956 there
The Italian language schools were restored were 42 primary schools in the municipality of
wherever an Italian population was present. They Koper, 38 of them were Slovene with 2,237 pu-
enjoyed administrative and curricular autono- pils, and four were Italian with 122 pupils. De- here
my, but the people’s authorities sought to adapt spite progress, the school structure was still poor,
the curricula to the new times and the ideologi- with half (47.7%) the Slovene schools being sin-
cal goals of popular democracy. There were elev- gle-form-entry, just under 30% two-form entry,
en Italian primary schools and seven secondary 15.7% three-form entry, and only four schools
schools. The latter included grammar schools in (10%) had a larger number of classes. In addition,
Koper, Piran and Izola, a private church gram- many children did not meet the eight-year com-
mar school (seminario) in Koper, and in 1950 an pulsory schooling requirement because most ru-
Italian teachers’ college was founded in Koper ral schools taught only the first four years, while
(Peterle Grahonja 2004, 98). However, the mass further years were taught in schools that were
emigration of ethnic Italians to Trieste, especial- far away. The secondary schools included the
ly after 1947, meant that the number of pupils Slovene grammar school (430 pupils), the Ital-
attending Italian school shrank. The decline in ian grammar school (70), the teacher training studiauniversitatis
numbers was also caused by the 1952 decree (Slu- college (70) and the secondary school for eco-
ga and Jelen Madruša 2006, 9) which stipulat- 3 PAK, 936_2, OŠ Janko Premrl Vojko Koper 1946–2006,
ed that children whose surname appeared Slav- Šolska kronika 1952–53.