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Estonia is a small Baltic country that has been dominated by Sweden and Russia and strongly influenced by Germany. There are also linguistic and cultural afinities with Finland to the north. The country's education system strongly reflects these influences. The oldest educational facility in Estonia is the University of Tartu, established in 1632. The University was founded by Gustaf Adolf, King of Sweden, when the Swedes controlled Estonia. Estonia was seized by Tsarist Russia in the Great Northern War (18th century). Even so, The language of instruction at the university level and most of the doctoral theses were in German until 1919. We know less about the primary and secondary schools. Estonia became independent after World War I. Schools were opened usung Estonian. We are unsure about schools for minority groups, Germans and Russians. Also all of the ethnic Germans returned to the Reich at the onset of World War II. The Soviets occupied Estonia (1940). The NKVD arrested many Estonian civil servants. This included teachers. Many were shot or deported. Estonian The educational system was heavily influenced by the Soviet system after the country was invaded and annexed by the Soviet Union (1940). The language of instruction became Russian. I'm unsure just what other changes have taken place in education since independence. The lanuage of instruction became Estonian. A reader tells us that there are schools that operate in the Estonian as well as the Russian language. This probably reflects the substantial Russian population in Estonia.
Estonia was one of the last corners of Europe to be Christianized. The Estonians were a tribal people without cities and a written language. Schools in a formal sence only appear when a written language exists. Chritinizationbegan with the Northern Crusades. The Estonian tribes resisted fiercely, but were funally overcome by the Danes abd Germanic rusading irrders. Most of the cities along the southern Baltic coast were founded or grew into importance by the Hanseatic League. Tallinn was a small settlement abd grew to importance as aesult of participation in the Hanseatic League. The Hanseatic cities tended to have important German populations among Baltic populations in the countryside. Two written languages were introduced Latin by the Church and German by the hanseativ League. This mean that schools were needed. We know nothing about schools during this period. Very few children would have attended schools. But the Church founded monastic and cathedral schools as towns began to appear. Here the schools were to train choristers and eventuly future priests. The Dominican monastery was founded (1229) and a formal school (1244). Estonians were among the monks and services in the monasteries pparently sometimes held in Estonian. Christianity among the Estonian population in the countryside was largely provided by the monastery-educated mendicant monks who traveled and spread the Catholic faith. Along with Christianity they also spread knowledg about the wider secular world. Trade guilds in Tallinn presumably sponsored small schools with a ficus on more pratucal subjects like match needed in the world of business and presumably German literacy. Some of the monks furthered their education in the West, mostly Germany. Young nobelmen also studied abroad. The Estonian population in the countryside, however, remained untouched by any form of schooling abd were lrgely iliterate. The first known primer in the Estonian language was published shortly before Sweden acquired the principality (1575).
Protestantism began reaching Estonia soon after Martin Luther oublished his 95 Thesis (1517). The German controlled Hanseatic League was an important conduit for Protestantism (Lutheranism). And Pritestabtusm had significant influences beyonf theology and one of them was education. Luther preached that that preiests were not needed to teach religious doctrine. He believed that every man ansoman needed to read abd study the Bible themselves. And this of course required widespread literacy. And this meant schools were needd and not just for the elite. As a result, very quickly after Luther launched the Reformation, without meaning to do so,
Lutheran services were being held in Tallinn and other Estonian towns. This a first did not occur in the countrtside. There the land-owning nobility remained mostly Catholic.
The same process was not only at play in Germany, but also in Sweden to the north. Sweden in the medieval era was a substantial power that played a major role in the Baltic area. Sweden acquired most of Estonia as a result of the Livinian War (1558-63). The Sedes infroduced social reforms. Swedish-ruled North Estonia rapidly accepted the ideas of the Reformation. The Counter-Reformation reaction also began to give more emphasis on eduction. Southern Estonia remained more catholic The first Estonian Gymnasium was foundd by the Jesuits in Tartu (1583). The south was not at first part of the Estonian area firsrt seized by Sweden. The Swedes turned over Estonian church affairs to Christian Agricola. His father, Mikael Agricola, was bishop of Turku in neigboring Finland, another Swedish possession. gricola thus was well informed about Swedish church and school administration. Agricola’s instruction (1586) ordered that Estonian churches had to support church schools. Congregations were assigned the responsibity for children’s education in their parish. Estonian historians maintain that the standard of teaching in Estonian towns was comparable to thar=t in Western European protestant countries (early-17th century). The oldest educational facility in Estonia is the University of Tartu, established in 1632. The University was founded by Gustaf Adolf, King of Sweden, when the Swedes controlled Estonia. Courses were taught in German because most of Tallinn's educated elite were ethnic Germans. The Swedish and German influence meant that Estonia became a Protestant principality. And with Protestantism came a interest in literacy a education for ordinary people.
Estonia was seized by Tsarist Russia in the Great Northern War (early-18th century). It was a long brutal war followed by a terrible plague. One historian reports that these tragedies "brought the nation to the brink of extinction". At the time, there was no protection for civilans from maurauding armies. With Tsarist control eventually came a slow recivery. The Tsarists focused on vocational education with the pupose of servinge military and industrial interests. Now with a Russian widow on Europe, a Tsarist edict ordered the building of Russian-language admiralty schools for a new Russian Navy (1719). Here in edition to general education, shipbuilding and artillery were taught. A school of navigation was established in Narva. Even with Russian control, the language of instruction at the university level and most of the doctoral theses were in German until 1919. We know less about the primary and secondary schools. Catherine II came to the throne (1762). She launched what became known as the ‘Enlightened Absolutism’. It combined Tearist absolutism inan uneasy combination with the German and French Engligtenment. One major advance in Estonian education was an expansion of primary education in the countrysude as a result of different all-Russian laws and regulations. A network of published schools was established. And girls began attending schools for the first time (late-18th century). Educating girls was especually important. Literate mothers could teach children at home. A developing economy encouraged peasants to learn to read to increase job opportunities. .
Estonia became independent after World War I. Schools were opened usung Estonian. We are unsure about schools for minority groups, Germans and Russians.
Also all of the ethnic Germans returned to the Reich at the onset of World War II. The Soviets occupied abd annexed Estonia (1940). The NKVD arrested many Estonian civil servants. This included teachers. Many were shot or deported. This stopped with ehe NAZI invasiom (1941), but resumed again when the Red Army drove out the NAZIs (1944).
The Soviet Union began the Sovietization of education when it seizd Estonia and the other Baltic countris. The educational system was completely Sovietized after tge Red Army drove out the NAZIs. The language of instruction became Russian.
We are unsure just what changes have taken place in education since independence (1991). The lanuage of instruction became Estonian. A reader tells us that there are schools that operate in the Estonian as well as the Russian language. This probably reflects the substantial Russian population in Estonia.
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