Primary Education in the Municipality of Calheta (from the 1930s to the 1970s)

Abstract

Following the study of primary education in the municipality of Calheta, published in the previous issue of this journal under the title «Primary Education in the Municipality of Calheta (1772-1930)», the present article analyses the evolution of this level of education between the early 1930s and the beginning of the 1970s.

In the nineteenth century and during the first two decades of the twentieth century, in the field of primary education, the priority of government authorities was the establishment and maintenance of at least one school in each parish. Initially intended for the education of male children and later also of female children, these schools provided only a minority of the child population with access to learning to read, write and count.

Between the 1930s and the 1970s, there was a significant expansion of primary education in the more remote and densely populated areas of the municipality of Calheta, in line with developments observed in the rest of the region and the country. This expansion made it possible for all children in the municipality to have access to schooling by the end of the 1960s.

Most schools operated in rented private houses. In the 1930s, through initiatives of a private nature, the first purpose built buildings specifically intended for educational activities began to be constructed, as was the case with the schools of the Externato de São Francisco de Sales, in Prazeres, and Dr Roberto Monteiro, in Calheta.

Cooperation between private entities, particularly those linked to the Catholic Church, and public institutions such as the State, the General Council of the Autonomous District of Funchal and the Municipal Council of Calheta, played a relevant role in the dissemination of primary instruction among children and adults. For the latter, “Evening Courses” or “Adult Courses” were made available, aimed at promoting basic literacy. 

In view of the shortage of school buildings and the poor conditions of most existing ones, the Government implemented, in 1940, the "Centenary Plan", aimed at the construction of an extensive network of schools throughout the country. In the municipality of Calheta, six schools were built under this plan, the first being that of the locality of Cabo, in Ponta do Pargo, completed only in 1961.

During this period, teacher training ceased to be a governmental priority. Any individual with basic schooling could teach in primary education, since the essential requirement was the ability to read, write and count. To address the shortage of qualified teachers, the role of regentes escolares became widespread, being responsible for teaching activities in school posts.

Between 1930 and 1970, under the regimes of the Military Dictatorship and subsequently the Estado Novo, there was a strong centralisation of the education system. Rules and guidelines were imposed which partially instrumentalised the school in the ideological dissemination of the regime. Classrooms were required to display a crucifix - a symbol of the Catholic religion - as well as portraits of the President of the Republic and the Head of Government. To reinforce the political message in schools and, through them, reach local communities, the official bulletin Escola Portuguesa was published. Pedagogical activities were also promoted in order to extol the traditional values of the trilogy "God, Fatherland and Family", with particular emphasis on initiatives that sought to exalt and defend the overseas territories.

Keywords: Students; Municipality of Calheta; Education; Primary Education; School; “Estado Novo”; Teacher.