The Essence of State Social Policy in Czechoslovakia in the Years of the First Republic (1918–1938)

This study gives an account of the basic principles of social policy in interwar Czechoslovakia and introduces the leading Czech theorists in this area of domestic politics. Of the extensive activities in the area of social politics, particular attention is paid to those based on co-operation between state welfare and voluntary care for citizens who found themselves in critical social situations resulting from lost employment, illness or old age. The democratic climate of the young state created a dignified environment comparable with standards seen in Europe as a whole

National diversity versus citizenship as social capital exemplified by Polish families living in the Vilnius Region

National diversity within one statehood generates number of problems that determine not only the quality of social relations but also the cultural self-identification of the members of culturally diverse communities, affecting the sense and range of their civic commitments. As a consequence, it concerns social capital of a multinational state. Therefore, exploring the quality of social relations of national provenance, specificity of the national dualism along with their cultural and socialisational consequences shall all be recognized necessary for conceptualisation of social capital in a multinational society. The presented research results allowed to outline the specificity of the cultural diversification in Lithuania, distance and recognition of national provenance, significant for the researched areas of their everyday functioning accompanied by cultural interspersion and family socialisation. The proposed conclusions provide foundation for description of the specificity of social capital of nationally diverse local communities

Civil education in the theory and practice of Women’s Civil Work Association in the Second Polish Republic

One of the main aims of Women’s Civil Work Association (Związek Pracy Obywatelskiej Kobiet) (1928-1939): the largest and the most influential women’s organisation of the Sanation political camp in Poland in the interwar period, was the creation of a new model of a woman citizen and forming and educating women, in concordance with ideological and political ideas of the Sanation (the state-forming idea of J. Piłsudski), to be “a new type of citizens”, aware of their rights and duties, who take an interest in the affairs of the state and who take an active stance towards the strengthening of the new independent state. The Association tried to achieve this aim by organising various forms and methods of civil education, setting up and running various educational, supportive, an economic institutions, which made it possible for the Association to bring into effect its ideas, including the main goal, that is, the creation of a modern, active, and responsible woman citizen

Cultural education of the Hutsuls. Historical and contemporary contexts

The Hutsuls – an ethnic highlander group inhabiting Eastern Carpathians in the Ukraine have constantly made efforts to organise cultural education of their young generations. Throughout the ages the level of involvement of families, local communities, professional circles, and schools in culture and education has varied. Until the second half of the 20th century the duty of forming cultural identity lay with families, as well as local communities and professional circles. The work of schools was made difficult by ideological and political factors. It was only in the 1990s that schools have become free to engage in the development of regional education. The curricula related to the Hutsul culture on the preschool level, as well as all the other levels of education, can serve as an example of the efforts that Hutsuls have made to preserve their culture and ethnic identity and to promote the traditions that they have shaped through the ages in their country as well as abroad

Development of the School System of the Czech Lands in 1918–2020. A View of the School Legislation after one Hundred Years of the Republic

The paper presents a chronological outline of the development of school legislation and the school system of the Czech Lands from 1918 to the present. Captured are changes after historical breaks, as well as efforts for gradual conceptual changes. The topics addressed are as follows: The development of the Czechoslovak education system after the establishment of an independent democratic state in 1918; its form during the Nazi occupation and during more than forty years of the communist government; and the way of searching for the form of Czech education after the fall of the communist regime in 1989

Situation in Subcarpathian Rus in 1919 as Reported By the Czech Officials

The article focuses on various aspects of the situation in Subcarpathian Rus raised and analyzed in the reports of the Czech officials, who visited the Subcarpathian region during 1919. Most Czech officials stated the vital need for a far-sighted and responsible policy in this strategically important region. In their reports to Prague, most Czech officials divided the local Rusyn intelligentsia in Subcarpathian Rus into pro-Russian and local orientations, and recommended Czechoslovak authorities to rely on and to provide support for the representatives of the local orientation as more preferable for Prague interests in that region

Is the Name “Polish Death Camps” a Misnomer?

The purpose of the study is a historical-linguistic analysis of the ambiguous name “Polish death camps” (or “Polish concentration camps”), which for the last thirty years has led to conflicting assessments among politicians, journalists and historians, and in some cases being considered as a term. In order to make an accurate assessment of this name, and to clarify the question of the correctness/incorrectness of its use and come to a conclusion about the linguistic suitability/unsuitability to consider it a term, the authors study the new evidence by historians, interviews with public and political figures, and in particular, for the first time investigate the original editorial material where the name was formulated. In the course of the study, the true source of the name “Polish death camps” was first disclosed and a comprehensive history of its use was presented. Basing on gathered material the conclusion was made that the name is linguistically incorrect and can not be used as a term

Comparison of the documentaries and its use in the teaching of history

The aim of the presented study is to compare two documentaries that deal with the same personality – Klement Gottwald – President of the Czechoslovak Republic in the years 1948–1953. Based on selected films we want to analyse how the current social situation, state regime, results stemming from history knowledge and current history education are reflected in their content. For this reason, we chose a documentary from the Descendants and Ancestors series called Klement Gottwald made in 1986, as well as a documentary from the Red Presidents series called Unified in Fear – Klement Gottwald in 2018, since the aim was to compare images published before and after 1989.2 At the same time, we look at the issue from a didactic point of view, when we present specific possibilities of using the comparison of documentary films in history teaching. At the beginning, we briefly define what a documentary is. Next, we introduce the personality of Klement Gottwald from the point of view of modern historiography, and for an overview we name and briefly inform about some documentary films that were made about him. Subsequently, we focus on the basic data for the selected images and then we move on to the comparison itself, where we focus among other things, on pointing out the influence of communist propaganda. In this section we focus on specific common or different features of both documents and analyse them in detail. Finally, we offer several alternatives for the application of the comparison of documentary films in educational practice

Limitation of photosynthetic processes in photosystem II in alpine mosses exposed to low temperatures: Response of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters

In this study, we evaluated the effects of low and sub-zero temperature on the fast chlorophyll fluorescence transient (OJIP) and OJIP-derived parameters in 4 different mosses: Sphagnum girgensohnii, Polytrichum formosum, Hylocomium splendens and Pleurozium schreberi. The low temperature stress was applied on the mosses for 90 min. at 3 different temperatures (5°C, -1°C and -10°C). To investigate the effects of this stress on the functioning of photosystem II (PS II), the chlorophyll fluorescence measurements were taken at control temperature (22°C) and, after a 90 min. acclimation period, at each experimental temperature. The shape of OJIP curves and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were found temperature-dependent in all the species. The mosses differed in their sensitivity to the stress but general trends in response to low temperature were similar. The results support the idea that S. girgensohnii is less resistant to low temperature stress than the other species. We were also interested in the K and L steps in OJIPs, representing different disorders caused by low temperature. The K-step was seen in P. formosum and P. schreberi and the L-step in H. splendens and S. girgensohnii

Biodiversity of freshwater autotrophs in selected wet places in northern coastal ecosystems of James Ross Island

Freshwater algae and cyanobacteria, their biodiversity in particular, have been studied at the James Ross Island (Antarctica) since 2004. The main aim of presented study was to contribute to species list of a particular seepage that has been monitored repeatedly on the northern deglaciated part of the Island. The seepage is located on north-facing slopes of Berry Hill and supplied by melt water from annual snow depositions and frozen ground. Microclimate conditions have been monitored by an automatic weather station since 2012. For the purpose of this study, samples of microbiological mats were collected from bottom of three streams passing through the seepage dominated by several moss species. Algal and cyanobacterial taxa were determined according to morphological characteristics. Species richness differences between sampling sites were found and evaluated. Dominating taxa differed between sampling sites as well. The species reported in our study were compared with existing literature sources related to James Ross Island. Altogether, 44 algal and cyanobacterial taxa were found. Biodiversity of the seepage is discussed and related to microclimate characteristics of the site