The Role of the State and the Church in Primary Education Seen Through NO-DO (Spain, 1943-1975)

Open Access

Abstract

The use of visual materials has been one of the characteristics of history of education during the last decades, but the use of documentaries and films has been rather scarce. This paper is part of a broader research that uses NO-DO as primary source. In fact, its aim is not to know how education was, but how it was presented by NO-DO, as media of propaganda. This paper is divided into two parts. In the first, we will revise the education policy, looking at the main legislation and reviewing the role of the Church and the State in relation to primary school. In the second part, we will analyze the image of these rules and their application after NO-DO. The State assumed a subsidiary role in primary education, leaving the Church the leading role. The public schools were mainly located in rural areas and small towns, where few boys, and fewer girls, were able to decide to do further studies after primary school as the offer of public high schools was really scarce and was concentrated in the cities. Considering these aspects, our hypothesis is that the State used NO-DO to show more than it did to improve the primary education, with some nuances according to the two stages considered. Primary education was not an aspect to which NO-DO played close attention. There are 6,029 issues and only 49 dealt with this level of education. However, it is interesting to recall and to analyze what was discussed about these schools and what aspects interested NO-DO. Besides school buildings, sometimes it was possible to see teachers, occasionally priests or nuns, although their presence in NO-DO was really scarce. NO-DO focused on the schools created by the State to convey the kindest face of a regime that looked after children and offered a school place to everyone, despite the fact that the reality was quite different. ; Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech.