250 years since the promulgation of the General School Ordinance – celebrate with us!
In 2024, we celebrate the 250th anniversary of Maria Theresa’s General School Ordinance.
The General School Ordinance of 1774 was the first state primary school law in force on the territory of present-day Slovenia. With the Ordinance, the authorities led by Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II began to establish a centrally managed state education system. Officially incorporating all social classes, it marked the beginning of compulsory and mass education, and also led to the strengthening of the public position of the Slovenian language.
The implementation of the school reform contributed to the consolidation of certain principles that are still valid in social life today: education as a state concern, the awareness of making basic knowledge available to all children, the importance of group teaching, and the consideration of the moral formation of pupils.
The year 2024 is a jubilee year for education.
We invite you to join us in celebrating the 250th anniversary of the General School Ordinance by attending our events.
250 YEARS OF COMPULSORY SCHOOLING ON SLOVENIAN TERRITORY: LITERACY AND CULTURE IN THE LATE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY
EXHIBITION ON THE JAKOPIČ PROMENADE IN TIVOLI PARK, LJUBLJANA,
ON DISPLAY FROM 19 APRIL TO 22 JUNE 2024
The exhibition opening and guided tour will take place on 7 May at 11 am on the Jakopič Promenade in Tivoli Park.
The extensive exhibition, consisting of eighty panels, commemorates the 250th anniversary of the General School Ordinance (1774). It presents the key features of education and culture in the late eighteenth century on Slovenian territory and in the neighbouring lands. The material consists of reproductions of significant extracts from the General School Ordinance, textbooks, manuals, documents, graphic works, and education-related items. The exhibition was devised by Dr Simon Malmenvall, curator at the Slovenian School Museum.
The exhibition is a collaboration between the Slovenian School Museum and Ljubljana Tourism, with financial support from the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Slovenia.
SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUM ON THE 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF MARIA THERESA’S GENERAL SCHOOL ORDINANCE
22 MAY 2024, 9 AM, SLOVENSKA MATICA
A scientific symposium organised by the Slovenska Matica, the Slovenian School Museum and the Slovenian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies will be held on 22 May at 9 am in the hall of the Slovenska Matica. At the symposium, scientific papers will be presented in three thematic sections: Political and ideological currents at the time of the General School Ordinance, The beginnings of elementary education in Slovenia and Lasting traces of the Theresian school reform.
WHEN SCHOOL BEGAN: IN HONOUR OF THE 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF MARIA THERESA’S GENERAL SCHOOL ORDINANCE
22 MAY 2024, 6 PM, SLOVENIAN SCHOOL MUSEUM
To mark the 250th anniversary of Maria Theresa’s General School Ordinance, conservators and restorers Blanka Avguštin Florjančič and Lucija Planinc from the Conservation and Restoration Centre of the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia will present the creation of a model and the process of conservation and restoration of the original German-Slovenian copy of the General School Ordinance from 1777, which is held at the Slovenian School Museum. Visitors will be greeted by Empress Maria Theresa in a short performance, followed by a presentation of the content of the Ordinance along with the permanent exhibition School Rules!
PUBLICATION AND PRESENTATION OF A THEMATIC ISSUE OF THE SCHOOL CHRONICLE WITH PAPERS FROM THE SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUM DEDICATED TO THE 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE GENERAL SCHOOL ORDINANCE
6 DECEMBER 2024, 12 NOON, SLOVENIAN SCHOOL MUSEUM
The General School Ordinance entered into force on 6 December 1774. In view of this, the thematic issue of the School Chronicle, a scientific and professional journal for the history of schooling and education published by the Slovenian School Museum, will be published on 6 December 2024.
PRESENTATION OF THE TRANSLATION OF THE GENERAL SCHOOL ORDINANCE INTO MODERN SLOVENIAN
6 DECEMBER 2024, 1 PM, SLOVENIAN SCHOOL MUSEUM
The first comprehensive translation of the General School Ordinance into modern Slovenian will be presented.
All events are free of charge.
You are cordially invited to celebrate the anniversary with us!
