Case study no. & title:
201. An educational integration policy aimed at Polish and German inhabitants in Dobrzeń Wielki, Poland (1990-)

Keywords

2. Author information:
2.1 Author’s Name
Joanna Wawrzyniak

2.2 Institutional Affiliation and Contact Details:
Warsaw University, Institute of Sociology (PhD student)

contact address:
ul. Sierpecka 6/32
01-592 Warszawa
Poland

E-mail: kochanowiczjoanna@wp.poczta.pl

2.3 Date recorded
5/11/2000

3. Good Practice Information Sheet
3.1 Local Level Good Practice:
Local authority policies to promote the integration in schools of children of Polish and German (or Silesian) ethnic origin.

3.2 Location:
The gmina of Dobrzeń Wielki, Silesia region, Poland

3.3 Minority/Target Groups:
Minority: Germans; Target Group: community of Germans (or ethnic Silesians) inhabitants in Dobrzeń Wielki, Poland.

3.4 Major Actors Involved

3.5 Budget allocated by local government authorities and/or by other actors
This year the budget devoted to local education was 8.5 million PLN. Around 60% (around 5 million PLN) came from the subvention of the Polish Ministry of Education, and 40% (around 3.5 million PLN) from the local budget. This year the whole local budget was 24 million PLN. These numbers and proportions change annually. The opportunities for a school to secure additional funds depend mainly on the relationship of a head-teacher to the local authorities, and on material abilities of the authorities to cover additional programs. Some financial help is also received from the German federal government. The precise amount was not available at the time of this research, but the German government contribution was insignificant relative to the total cost of running the local school system.

3.6 Timeframe
The proposal to launch courses in German as either a foreign language or a native language was put forward immediately after democratic changes had taken place. The classes were started at the beginning of 1990s. Other integration practices within schools were implemented at the same time (for example courses devoted to the history of Silesia). The proposal to open a bilingual high-school was officially made in 1993, and was put in practice that year. All activities are expected to continue indefinitely.

3.7 Local level good practice relation to national level ethnic policy
Educational policies have to be carried out in accordance with the national level legislation. The situation is relatively easy, as the Polish legislation states that minorities have the right to education in their native languages. However, the point that requires explanation is that - since the beginning of 1990s – the authorities of all gminas in Poland were put in charge of primary and - in special cases – also of secondary schools. This basically means that the Ministry of Education provides only part of the funds needed for the school-system – the so-called "subvention", which is sufficient mainly for staff wages. All other costs, such as the maintenance of buildings, investments and curricula of special programs are to be covered by municipalities. Headmasters are relatively free to implement programs in their schools, provided that they fulfil the so-called "minimum program" laid down by the Ministry. Usually, the most important barrier to exceeding the minimum requirements is a lack of funding.

4. Good Practice Description
Location and local authorities
The practice takes place in Dobrzeń Wielki, a gmina (the lowest administration level) placed around 15 kilometers away from Opole in the region of Silesia (south-western Poland), which used to be under the German rule before the Second World War. Dobrzeń Wielki, in common with all other gminas in Poland, is governed by elected local authorities. The self-government covers the villages of: Dobrzeń Wielki (both a name of a gmina and of the largest village), Brzezie, Dobrzeń Mały, Borki, Czarnowąsy, Krzanowice, Świerkle, Kup, and Chrościce. The majority of representatives in the Local Council (the main decision-making body) is of German ethnicity. They are elected from the so-called German Minority List, and have been in power since 1990. The local community consists of around 14,200 inhabitants of German (or Silesian) and Polish origins. At the moment, the ratio of Polish to German (Silesian) population is half-and-half. However, the strongest identification with German nationality occurs among the older generation. The members of the middle and young generations are often assimilated.

The specificity of local community
The German (or Silesian) origins inhabitants were under the communist regime subjected to forced Polonization, which caused inverted, rather than intended, results. For years, the Silesians have had their own culture, which was distinct from the German culture but the fact that they did not receive any cultural autonomy from the communist authorities caused strong pro-German sentiments. Their cultural and educational revival - mainly as Germans – has been underway since 1990. Various initiatives have been launched both by a newly-created NGO – Deutscher Freundchaftskreis (DFK), and by the local authorities.

The Polish ethnic community comprises two groups. One consists of Poles who settled there after the Second World War, and had previously lived within the Polish territories annexed by the USSR after the War. The other consists of Poles who arrived later as a result of economic migration, mainly in 1970s and 1980s. Moreover, since 1990 Dobrzeń Wielki has experienced two additional waves of migration: out-flow toward Germany (around 20% of the original population), and in-flow from other Polish territories (also around 20%). At the moment, the relation of Polish to German (Silesian) population is half-and-half. However, the strongest identification with German nationality occurs among the oldest generation. The members of the middle and young generations are often assimilated.

Dobrzeń Wielki is a relatively wealthy municipalty due to its semi-industrial character, with a very low rate of unemployment. The main employer in the place is the power-station "Opole". Most of the employees of the station are newcomers of Polish origin, and they live in special housing estates within the Dobrzeń Wielki territory, somewhat separated from the village. The village is in turn inhabited by the original population or Poles settled there right after the War.

Integration policies implemented by the local authorities
The local authorities had grave concerns that the two groups, the one from the village and the other from the separated housing estates, would be in serious conflict with each other. Their worry was based on the examples of other villages in Silesia where such conflicts, including the use of violence, has occurred during the last ten years. The conflicts are based on nationalist grounds. Polish-origin newcomers are often not familiar with the ethnic Silesian dialect or the German language. The latter is increasingly used on the occasion of various events that had been forbidden under the communist regime. In addition, initiatives such as the building of monuments to German soldiers have caused hostile reactions.

Since 1990, however, there has not been open hostility and violent behaviour place in Dobrzeń Wielki. Undoubtedly, this is thanks to the efforts of the local authorities. While upholding the German culture – by means of cultural events, social assistance, and educational policies – the local authorities (who are of German ethnicity) have never formally distinguished between Polish- and German-origin inhabitants. Thus, all of the initiatives that take place there are always targeted at both groups. These activities include, among others, various feasts with German or Silesian roots (such as October Fest or Nicolaus Fest), activities offered by the Local Cultural Center (from aerobics to dancing and the singing of folk songs), publication of a local newspaper, and integration carried out in schools. Involvement in originally German activities has one measurable advantage for the Poles, because gminas with significant German minorities often receive help from public institutions in Germany - the Ministry of Internal Affairs, federal (land) governments, the so-called "sister villages", or NGOs.

This is not to say that relations between Poles and Germans are perfect. Problems remain in terms of the integration of the two groups. Sociological surveys have revealed the existence of divisions in the common consciousness between "those from the village and those from the power-station".(1) Nevertheless, one of the indubitable successes of the integration policies carried out by the local authorities is the fact that Poles not only vote for the German Minority List, but in the recent elections two Poles were on that List. At the moment, 20 out of 22 representatives of the Local Council are from the List.

Educational policy
Children and teenagers are a key concern for the local authorities. Those of German ethnic origins come from the generation of families which was subjected to forced Polonization under the communist regime, so they often do not even speak German at home. Thus, educational programs in German are seen as important. They do, however, involve a high level of logistical effort on the part of the local authorities, as they want to promote education in the German language, but do not want to cause antagonisms with Poles.

Primary education
Given both the framework of the national-level regulations and the specificity of the local community, the authorities in Dobrzeń Wielki have worked out ways of launching curricula in the German language. As far as the primary education is concerned there are six primary schools on the territory of the municipality. They have teaching programs in Polish but most of them also offer additional courses in German. When, at the beginning of 1990s, the requirement to teach Russian as an obligatory foreign language was removed, local headmasters, with support from the local authorities, decided to replace Russian with German classes. Moreover, German started to be taught as a native language. Thus, the German classes offered have two forms: German as a foreign language or German as a native language. The majority of parents in a school decides which of the two versions is to be taught. However, after the policy was launched, there were dissatisfied individuals who either pointed to the "Germanization" of the local education or stressed the necessity of studying English. Interestingly enough, Germans were also among the latter. To avoid conflicts, the authorities decided to introduce English as another optional foreign language.

The significance of the school as an institution of socialization is something that is recognized by the local authorities. In this respect, an important decision was to reject a proposal for opening a separate school in the area inhabited by power-station employees. The refusal was based on the assumption that integration of children both of newcomers and of indigenous citizens will not take place unless they are involved in the same activities. The authorities try to avoid the division of the local community into two separated – if not hostile - camps. Therefore, in cooperation with headmasters they launch various programs with the purpose of furthering the integration of the local children. The main concern is to promote the region of Silesia as a common land: a small homeland for the new-comers and a Heimat for the Germans. There are classes of Silesian history, special sessions targeting historical, social, and ecological problems of the region, trips to interesting places in the region, and school folk groups performing regional dances and songs. In close cooperation with the school in Dobrzeń Wielki, an Earth Day was recently organized, which was devoted to local ecological problems and to co-existence with the power-plant “Opole”. The results of sociological research carried out in the place have shown that prejudices are rarely found among children of the same school, but are frequent among teenagers who have not attended the same school. (2)

The primary school in Dobrzeń Wielki launches also implements integration practices targeted at adults. Parties are organised for parents of all the children, giving them occasion to get to know one another. In addition, they co-operate in the school’s Parents’ Committee, and together prepare various occasional events, such as Christmas Parties for children.

Secondary education: a bilingual school
In addition to educational activities carried out at the primary level, the local authorities have decided to transform the high-school into a bilingual one. The proposal was made by the self-government’s mayor and was accepted unanimously by the Local Council in 1993. Two parallel programs of study are on offer. One is similar to those in other Polish high schools; the other offers intensive German courses and natural science and mathematics taught almost exclusively in German. It offers a matriculation that is recognized both in Poland and Germany, thus giving students the possibility of continuing their education at universities in either country. The program was accepted by the Ministry of Education.

At the beginning, the main concern of the local authorities was to provide qualified staff for the German program. Particularly, there was a lack of trained teachers able to conduct natural science classes in German. Assistance came from German federal governments, who sent teachers from Germany, and also covered a proportion of the expenses related to their stay. Due to this help their wages could be closer to German standards (thus higher than typically in Poland). The local authorities provided accommodation. Recently, the situation became easier, as now, ten years after the collapse of the communist regime, it is possible to find an adequately qualified teacher in the region, trained in a university or college in Silesia. Thus, German help was reduced to two teachers per year. Next year they will probably limit the practice to one. In the first phase of functioning of the school (1993-1995), the local authorities negotiated directly with the German federal governments. Later, a special coordinator was appointed at the Polish voivodship level. S/he is in charge of all the necessary arrangements between the Germany, local schools, and the Polish Ministry of Education.

The high school in Dobrzeń Wielki also covers three additional municipalities. Pupils admitted each year have the right to choose between the Polish and German program. In each of them there is place for around 25 students per year. There are no ethnic criteria of admission: it is enough that students have the sufficient knowledge of German to participate in the second program. As classes of German are offered to all local citizens in primary schools, there is no language barrier for potential Polish students. Interestingly enough, according to the local authorities, the main difficulty of the German program at the moment is neither lack of qualified staff nor funding. Rather, they point out to general unwillingness of the local students to choose the program, which is much harder and more time-consuming than the Polish one. In their opinion, the importance of education is not yet widely recognized among the population. A local NGO, Deutscher Freundchaftskreis (DFK), has become active in promoting the German program.

Concluding remarks
The uniqueness of the educational policy carried out by the municipality in Dobrzeń Wielki does not lie in the fact that it offers extra curricula in the German language. Such activities are obviously important, but they are relatively common in Poland. All minorities in the country have the right to education in their native language. The importance of the local program in question lies in the fact that it concentrates on integration while promoting German curricula. It would be possible to imagine a scenario where the local community was separated into two camps, each having their own schools and own programs. Fortunately, the educational policy is a part of the general policy of acceptance, co-operation, and partnership carried out by the local authorities.

The fact that it is a minority who governs in the municipality might be the key to the positive policy. The situation where a minority’s representatives are in power requires careful tactics, given the relative homogeneity of Poland’s population. Thus, putting aside good intentions, the policies that are implemented must include benefits for all. Otherwise the representatives could be overthrown in the next democratic elections.

Main sources of information
Interview with local authorities: Między przeszłością a przyszłością: Elektrownia Opole jako czynnik zmiany społecznej, eds. W. Lesiuk et altera. 2000. Opole: Państwowy Instytut Naukowy – Instytut Ślaski. Dobrzeń Wielki. 1998. Dobrzeń wielki: Urząd Gminy.

Footnote 1: V. Ruszczewska. 2000. Społeczność Dobrzenia Wielkiego – dawne i nowe wzory zachowań. In: Między przeszłością a przyszłością: Elektrownia Opole jako czynnik zmiany społecznej, eds. W. Lesiuk et altera. Opole: Państwowy Instytut Naukowy – Instytut Ślaski. D. Berlińska. 2000. Integrecja społeczna mieszkańców osiedla..., ibidem.

Footnote 2: D. Berlińska, op.cit