SOME INFORMATION ABOUT TEACHING HUMAN BIOLOGY IN LATVIAN SCHOOLS TILL 1940

Teaching natural sciences in some Latvian elementary schools of Vidzeme and Kurzeme was started in the second half of the 19th century. Some information about the constitution of a human body was included in the readers. In 1860, the first textbook in natural sciences with systematically expounded materials on human biology was published. In the 20 – 40–ies of the 20th century human biology, were taught at primary and secondary classical schools. Textbooks – translations from German (O. Schmeil), Russian (V. V. Lunkevitch, V. V. Zavyalov), textbooks written in the traditions established by V. V. Lunkevitch, V. V. Zavyalov, S. K. Personalniy etc. as well as original textbooks, in which the influence exerted by O. Schmeil could be perceived, were published. Books containing descriptions of laboratory works and pupils' workbooks were also issued In such books methodology as “Dabas mācības metodika. Metodiskie norādījumi un materiāli dabas mācības pasniegšanai” (“Methodology of Natural Sciences. Methodological Reccomendations and Materials for Teaching Natural Sciences”) (1931, compiled and edited de J. Girupnieks) and “Dabas mācības un lauksaimniecības metodikas konspekts” (“Abstract of the Methodology of Natural Sciences and Agriculture”) (1936, P. Kupch) the attention was focused on the necessity of applying active methods in the process of teaching these subjects.