Secret Teaching Organization
Encyclopedia
Secret Teaching Organization was an underground Polish educational organization created in 1939 after the German invasion of Poland to provide underground education
in occupied Poland.
The Organization was created towards the end of October 1939 in Warsaw
response to German closure of most Polish educational institutions and repressions against teachers
. To forestall the rise of a new generation of educated Poles, German officials decreed that Polish children's schooling should end after a few years of elementary education. Heinrich Himmler
wrote in a May 1940 memorandum, "The sole purpose of this schooling is to teach them simple arithmetic, nothing above the number 500; writing one's name; and the doctrine that it is divine law to obey the Germans... I do not think that a knowledge of reading is desirable." Most schools were closed, some teachers were arrested and even executed during the purges of Polish intelligentsia
, in the remaining schools, curriculum
was heavily censored, textbooks were confiscated, libraries closed.
The Organization concentrated on the primary education. Over time, it expanded into secondary education. It provided assistance to teachers in need, for example to the ones deported from the Polish territories annexed by Nazi Germany, or to the ones in hiding with arrest warrants. It provided assistance to the families of teachers who had been imprisoned or killed, or who were in hiding. It was also involved in the underground printing and distribution of textbooks.
Norman Davies
notes that the Organization undertook the education of a million children. By 1942, about 1,500,000 students took part in the Organization underground primary education; in 1944, its secondary school system covered 100,000 people and the university level courses, about 10,000.
The Organization cooperated closely with the Polish government in exile
(by which it was subsidized) and the Polish Underground State. Its network covered the whole of Poland, roughly corresponding to the pre-war educational structure of the Second Polish Republic
, and was most organized in the General Government
. Thousands of its members were arrested and killed by the Germans. It is estimated that about 15% of Polish teachers or 8,000 died during the occupation period.
Founders and main activists of the Organization, many of whom were connected to the pre-war Association of Polish Teachers (Związek Nauczycielstwa Polskiego), included: Zygmunt Nowicki, Kazimierz Maj, Wacław Tułodziecki, Teofil Wojeński and Czesław Wycech.
In 1945 the Organization became the basis of the reestablished Association of Polish Teachers; however, it also became controlled by the communist government.
Education in Poland during World War II
This article covers the topic of underground education in Poland during World War II. Secret learning prepared new cadres for the post-war reconstruction of Poland and countered the German and Soviet threat to exterminate the Polish culture....
in occupied Poland.
The Organization was created towards the end of October 1939 in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
response to German closure of most Polish educational institutions and repressions against teachers
Polish culture during World War II
Polish culture during World War II was suppressed by the occupying powers of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, both of whom were hostile to Poland's people and cultural heritage. Policies aimed at cultural genocide resulted in the deaths of thousands of scholars and artists, and the theft and...
. To forestall the rise of a new generation of educated Poles, German officials decreed that Polish children's schooling should end after a few years of elementary education. Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
wrote in a May 1940 memorandum, "The sole purpose of this schooling is to teach them simple arithmetic, nothing above the number 500; writing one's name; and the doctrine that it is divine law to obey the Germans... I do not think that a knowledge of reading is desirable." Most schools were closed, some teachers were arrested and even executed during the purges of Polish intelligentsia
Intelligentsia
The intelligentsia is a social class of people engaged in complex, mental and creative labor directed to the development and dissemination of culture, encompassing intellectuals and social groups close to them...
, in the remaining schools, curriculum
Curriculum
See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
was heavily censored, textbooks were confiscated, libraries closed.
The Organization concentrated on the primary education. Over time, it expanded into secondary education. It provided assistance to teachers in need, for example to the ones deported from the Polish territories annexed by Nazi Germany, or to the ones in hiding with arrest warrants. It provided assistance to the families of teachers who had been imprisoned or killed, or who were in hiding. It was also involved in the underground printing and distribution of textbooks.
Norman Davies
Norman Davies
Professor Ivor Norman Richard Davies FBA, FRHistS is a leading English historian of Welsh descent, noted for his publications on the history of Europe, Poland, and the United Kingdom.- Academic career :...
notes that the Organization undertook the education of a million children. By 1942, about 1,500,000 students took part in the Organization underground primary education; in 1944, its secondary school system covered 100,000 people and the university level courses, about 10,000.
The Organization cooperated closely with the Polish government in exile
Polish government in Exile
The Polish government-in-exile, formally known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile , was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, which...
(by which it was subsidized) and the Polish Underground State. Its network covered the whole of Poland, roughly corresponding to the pre-war educational structure of the Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, and was most organized in the General Government
General Government
The General Government was an area of Second Republic of Poland under Nazi German rule during World War II; designated as a separate region of the Third Reich between 1939–1945...
. Thousands of its members were arrested and killed by the Germans. It is estimated that about 15% of Polish teachers or 8,000 died during the occupation period.
Founders and main activists of the Organization, many of whom were connected to the pre-war Association of Polish Teachers (Związek Nauczycielstwa Polskiego), included: Zygmunt Nowicki, Kazimierz Maj, Wacław Tułodziecki, Teofil Wojeński and Czesław Wycech.
In 1945 the Organization became the basis of the reestablished Association of Polish Teachers; however, it also became controlled by the communist government.