Los colegios de La Salle en Asturias durante el primer tercio del siglo XX = L·a Salle Schools in Asturias in the first third of the 20th century

Abstract

During the first third of the 20th century, ten La Salle schools opened in Asturias. Most of them appeared in the Asturian coalfields, a region with a strong presence of active tradeunionism which, at the time, was trying to become strong regardless of the means. The Institute's most important goal was to provide the working classes with free education. This goal was achieved in all the coaldfields schools thanks to the agreements they signed with the companies that had sponsored them. However, the special relationship the Brothers had with the managers that were sponsoring the schools, together with the traditional way in which they approached the working classes, helped to categorise them in the same group as the employers; this, at times of political tension, like the 1934 revolution, had a negative impact on the schools. On the other hand, the Brothers took part in the Catholic Movement by stimulating, from the schools, the movements that later on, and following the instructions from the hierarchy, turned into the Catholic Youths. The number of pupils that attended the Brothers schools was important, nearly half the student population in the region. In fact, thanks to the schools opened by the coal companies, it was possible to balance the antiquated structure of the state education system. The prestige that the Brothers obtained in the their educational work in their community was basically due to two factors. First, to the efficiency of their to aching me thod: schools grading and the simultaneous system me ant an improvement of decades in comparison to the general state of education in Spain despite the fact that theirs were not pedagogical breakthroughs. Secondly, the Brothers fulltime dedication to teaching reinforced their professional vocations, which took the from of extra time devoted to pedagogical work and to the pupils.