Is it history of didactic or didactic of history

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Ivan Franko National University of Lviv

Львівського національного університету імені Івана Франка

“Is it history of didactic or didactic of history” (review of the monograph: Dmytro Hertsiuk, Teodor Leshchak. Pedagogical Education and Science at Lviv University (1812 - 1939); “Історія дидактики чи дидактика історії” (рецензія на монографію: Дмитро Герцюк, Теодор Лещак. Педагогічна освіта і наука у Львівському університеті (1812 - 1939)

Volodymyr Kachmar PhD hab. (History), Professor of Mykhailo Hrushevsky Department of Contemporary History of Ukraine; Volodymyr Mykytyuk PhD (Philology), PhD hab. (Education), Head of the Mykhailo Wozniak Department of Ukrainian Literature; Володимир Качмар доктор історичних наук, проректор, професор кафедри новітньої історії України імені Михайла Грушевського; Володимир Микитюк кандидат філологічних наук, доктор педагогічних наук, завідувач кафедри української літератури імені Михайла Возняка

1 Universytetska Street, Lviv, Ukraine, postal code 79000

вул. Університетська, 1, м. Львів, Україна, індекс 79000

History of Lviv University - the oldest higher educational institution of Ukraine - reflects not only the processes that took place in educational and scientific sphere of Lviv, but also in Galicia, becoming an important component of intellectual and cultural history of Ukraine. In addition, the University was at the center of social and political events in the region, that is why, the study of its history is important for elucidating the formation of the Ukrainians as a nation.

Without reconstructing the history of Lviv University, it is impossible to do research on the formation and development of university education in Ukraine in general, to analyse the history of an educational institution that provided the widest possible opportunities for knowledge and improvement for Galician youth, to highlight the functioning of the University structural units (faculties and departments), to create prosopographic portraits of the University lecturers, students and graduates, who for many decades determined the intellectual level of scientific, pedagogical and cultural elite of the region, an integral part of the social space of entire Ukraine in the 17th - 20th centuries.

During different periods many researchers focused on the history of Lviv University. However, the substantive analysis of reseach works shows that certain aspects of this issue, as well as certain stages of the University development, are far from being fully elucidated and require further scientific research. From this point of view, the monograph by Dmytro Hertsiuk and Teodor Leshchak, dedicated to the formation and development of pedagogical education and science at Lviv University during the period of 1812 - 1939, is of a significant scientific and cognitive interest.

In a comprehensive monographic study by D. Hertsiuk and T Leshchak there were selected certain events-markers as chronological limits that became decisive and had a direct impact on the development of pedagogical component at Lviv University. This is the first educational course of C. Voigt's pedagogy at the beginning of the 19th century and the change in general didactic principles of University education after the occupation of Lviv by Moscow regime in 1939. Lviv University (as well as modern pedagogy of the beginning of the 19th century in general) performed the main social task of the time: to educate and develop generational experience and the generation's ability to realize intellectual, moral and physical qualities of society in order to ensure civilizational progress. In addition to the French Revolution ideology, the ideas of the American constitutional democracy about general education after gaining independence of England and education independence of origin had a significant impact on the liberalism formation in university education in Europe. The road is difficult and long from finishing a general public elementary school to a general secondary school, and even more so to an elite gymnasium school, which gave a pass to university studies. But it is the development of the so-called classical gymnasiums in our “small” Motherland - Galicia, these typical secondary educational institutions of the 19th century, that ensured the spread of the neo-humanism ideology, in particular at Lviv University with its complicated but glorious history. In this context, it is worth noting a rather laconic, but capacious and meaningful innovative subsection “Development of Teacher Training System in the Context of Education Evolution in Galicia” (pp. 43-77), which performs the function of a kind of “second introduction”, a propaedeutic introduction in the monograph. Subsection 1.3 is more concise “Lviv University as a Higher Pedagogical and Scientific Institution” (pp. 77-109), which, in our opinion, is caused by the fact that stereometrically delineated object of scientific research becomes the main subject in Chapter 2 “Establishment and Evolution of Teacher Training System at Lviv University in the 19th - the Beginning of the 20th Centuries”.

We can state that in the 19th century a general trend of European universities was development and predominance of the so-called general sciences, primarily Philosophy and Philology, because the very studying at these departments or faculties gave the most opportunities to influence students' worldview, shape their personality, change or form their mentality. As we know from the history of Lviv University, Philosophy Department also performed, according to the authors of the monograph, a more or less basic function - professional training and graduation of teachers to work at gymnasiums. Perhaps, this is the main problematic component of the monograph by D. Hertsiuk and T Leshchak: in university education the ideas of neo-humanism of the 19th century contributed to the development of national characteristics of peoples, distinction and (re)formation of individual nations, had a positive effect on the emergence and formation of cultural nationalism. It was an inevitable historical process, the result of formation of an educated, harmonious, comprehensively developed personality, who seeks to identify and distinguish himself and his nation in accordance with cultural, religious and ethnic mental chatacteristics.

However, it must be admitted that the “problematic component” did not become an issue of the monograph: the authors quite consistently focus their presentation on the institutional forms of pedagogical education at Lviv University mainly, analyse the methodology and methods of the educational process, peculiarities of practical and theoretical training of students, the role of individual university didactics in improving scientific and educational process. Researchers focus their attention on purely technological tools, on pedagogical tools and organizational forms: teaching methods and techniques, the content of pedagogical courses, programmes, emergence and institutionalization of pedagogical education at the University. These tools organizational forms are supported and illustrated by the introduction of unknown or little-known archival materials from Ukrainian and Polish archives into scientific circulation, which constitutes an indisputable significance and scientific novelty of the monograph. However, D. Hertsiuk and T. Leshchak avoid the national identification of pedagogical personalities in the history of Lviv University, focusing on and comprehensively analyzing significant empirical material of the history of pedagogical thought of this educational institution. In the 19th century, Ukraine like Poland, did not independently determine the parameters of its educational system, because it did not have state independence; for some period of time, the Ukrainians and the Poles were united in their resistance to Germanization and Russification policies of the empires, and later - competed with each other in the effort to obtain political dividends by means of cultural success. It must be admitted that the Poles were better at it, and the struggle between our nationalisms was very tough (and sometimes brutal!), but it still took place within certain civilizational frameworks. First of all, under the rule of Vienna, more antagonistically - during the period between the world wars.

There should be noted a well-researched reformist role of the Polish scientist Yulian Okhorovych (pp. 241-245) for Lviv University, his merits in singling out and formation of Psychology as an independent empirical discipline of an experimental nature. After all, the influence of Yu. Okhorovych's lectures on a student I. Franko is known, which was clearly reflected in the pedagogical conceptual sphere of the Ukrainian thinker. In particular, in his conviction that Pedagogy must be based on Psychology, on the positivist principles of upbringing and education: a social benefit, a scientific view of the world, preparation at school for a practical future life, the unity of education and upbringing, etc.

However, in our opinion, indication of nationality or origin (even contrary to further public self-identification) would be appropriate and scientific. By the way, the authors consistently indicate, for example, the Czech origin of scientists and lecturers of Lviv University (V! Voigt, V! Amtmann). The authors should have identified the Ukrainianness of Hryhoriy Yachymovych, Ivan Bartoshevskyi, Yevsebiy Cherkavskyi and other outstanding lecturers of Lviv University? Instead, the authors of the monograph identified Franz Kostek (pp. 176-177), Yosyf Delkevych (pp. 200-201) as Ukrainian theologian-lecturers. Concerning the majority of Ukrainian lecturers, the “universal” formula is used in the monograph: he came from the family of a Greek-Catholic priest, graduated from a Greek-Catholic seminary. Probably, the best explanation of this problem is the coverage of E. Cherkavskyi's participation in the organizational and personnel issues of pedagogical training at the Faculty of Philosophy at the end of the 19th century.

E. Cherkavskyi's actual pedagogical achievements (courses, scientific interests, administrative and managerial activities) were professionally analysed, but political and national orientations in educational sphere were outlined rather chaotically and unconvincingly. In general, this figure is very complex and fluent in his beliefs, the core of which Oleksandr Barvinskyi (who owed his career to E. Cherkavskyi) determined the centralist orientation towards Vienna. Ivan Franko called E. Cherkavskyi's social and political activity a vivid example of apostasy and renegadeness, but modern historian Yaroslav Hrytsak considers Ivan Franko's consideration to be biased, referring to Antony Knot's article “Czerkawski Euzebiusz” (Polski Slownik Biograficzny. Krakow, 1938. Vol. 4. S. 333-334), because as a school inspector, E. Cherkavskyi resisted polonization of the Germanized Krakow and Lviv universities, for which he was physically humiliated by the Polish students (Hrytsak Ya. A Prophet in His Country. Franko and the Community (1856 - 1886). Kyiv, 2006. S. 481). E. Cherkavskyi's position concerning opposition to the Russification of Galicia and the imperial ideas of Muscovite pan-Slavism remained unexplained in the monograph, as well as efforts to introduce the Latin alphabet into Ukrainian writing and the Gregorian calendar for Greek Catholics. Note also that the correct spelling of the scientist's name is Eusebius, not Eusebius. In terms of qualifications, E. Cherkavskyi should be labeled a philologist and pedagogue, not a philosopher, although, of course, he graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy (p. 227).

We consider the material coverage in Subsection 1.2.2 “Education in Galicia in the Second Half of the 19th - at the Beginning of the 20th Century” (pp. 48-62) to be the most controversial. Objectively outlining the efforts of the Poles (eventually realized) to dominate the Regional School Council, established after the acquisition of Galicia's autonomous status as part of the Austro-Hungarian state, the authors of the monograph, perhaps for the first (and the last) time, use outdated ideological cliche terminology (“a noble and church circle”, p. 49). At the beginning of the subsection, having rightly pointed out the discriminatory system of educational institutions against the Ukrainians, the researchers analysed the Polish education reform in the Second Polish Commonwealth quite descriptively and uncritically. Apology for changes (overcoming the encyclopedism of school programmes, a new multivariate educational concept, creative schools, schools of joy), the statement that “now the school had to nurture not only intellectual, but also social and especially state-oriented student's development” (p. 62) is rather strongly dissonant with, in our opinion, a real state of “schools of joy” for the Ukrainians in interwar Poland, of course, it should be noted that there is meant the vector of “state orientation” of the Polish state itself, which the Poles won in the confrontation with the Ukrainians as well. At the end of the subsection there is also uncommented the thesis about “the Austrian school system” that remained in Galicia during the interwar period (and is that a bad thing?) and rapid changes in the process of education system reforming on the territory of the Russian Empire (p. 62). Is it about pedagogic conservatism or chauvinist narratives in territories under Moscow occupation?

It goes without saying that the practical significance of the monograph would be increased a lot if it were designed with a name and subject index, which must be taken into account during the hypothetical 2nd edition, as well as making its E-version available. history lviv university

Summing up, it is necessary to emphasize an indisputable innovation and scientific significance of the historical analysis and synthesis of pedagogical multicultural heritage at Lviv University, carried out in the monograph by D. Hertsiuk and T Leshchak. Circumstances and moments of didactic scientific progress and educational practice, development of pedagogical knowledge, understanding of socio-political circumstances and intercultural communications are an integral part of the pan-European cultural heritage, Ukrainian civilizational progress. Without understanding historical heritage, without historical cultural memory, it is impossible to predict and programme new educational and educational theories and narratives, which will be of a lasting and decisive significance to national development.

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