Place of country elementary schools and their teachers in the life of peasant communities in Galicia

Abstract

I am attempting to discuss the title issue on the basis of memoirs literature mainly from the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. That is why my scientific deliberations refer basically to this period. In this article I first show the peasants’ attitude towards elementary education and establishing schools in their villages. It should be noted that it was different depending on the village. I also emphasized that the impact of elementary schools on the level of education of rural communities was rather low. The second element of the article was the evaluation of the social position of rural teachers. Also in this respect one should conclude that it was not great. It depended on a specific peasant community and the personal qualities of the teacher.