Tendencies of training teachers of primary schools in Transcarpathia in late XVIII – the first half of XIX century

On the basis of studying the documents from the State Archives of the Transcarpathian region and the National Széchényi Library in Budapest the article deals with the main tendencies of developing professional pedagogical education in Transcarpathia in late XVIII – the first half of ХІХ century. In the light of systematic educational transformations that took place in the period when the Transcarpathian lands belonged to the Habsburg monarchy, the author substantiates the development of the professional training of teachers of primary schools as consequence-dependent transformations in its organization, management, structure, core activity that are determined by the region‘s state and territorial subordination. Training of teachers for the region‘s public schools started with the patronage of the bishop of Mukachevo Greek-Catholic eparchy A. Bachynskyi (1732–1809) and was performed according to Maria-Theresia‘s Decree of 22 August 1777 on the introduction of a new system of education in Hungary and its provinces: "Ratio Educationis totiusque Rei Literariae per Regnum Hungariae et Provincias eidem adnexas". The main tasks of the reform included: liquidation of illiteracy, covering by the primary education of the maximum number of children, separation of school from church. In each school district, four-year "normal" schools were established. The schools had praeparanda aimed at training teachers for public schools. In 1793 teacher D. Popovych was sent to Uzhgorod to organize and head the training of pedagogical staff for public schools and later on he became director of the first praeparandum. The training course lasted 5 winter or 5 summer months. On 4 November 1806 a new edition of "Ratio Educationis" was published that systematized the laws, ordinances, instructions adopted before and provided for the quantitative increase of praeparanda. According to the 1845 educational reform "Systema Scholarum" the period of study in praeparanda increased to two years, however they still were not independent educational establishments and functioned within "normal" schools.