and handed him a document confirming his own appointment as headmaster of that school. He then immediately sat behind the desk, while the dismissed headmaster, who often had not even been notified about that change, did not know how to behave, unsure of whether to stay in the office or go to the teachers’ room. The teachers and students also learned about the change from rumours going from mouth to mouth: “There’s a new headmaster”. That was done systematically, in school after school. Consequently, at the turn of 1939 and 1940 none of the old headmasters remained in position.
[20 continued] But it should be stated that the hiring of new teachers and their appointment to posts, particularly for subjects in which there was a labour shortage (Russian, Ukrainian), proceeded in that way only at first. Gradually everything changed both as a result of the very substantial influx of teachers from the USSR and the aggregation of schools. Later though, due to budgetary considerations, the Bolsheviks decreased the number of schools, resulting in [21] unemployment even among teachers.
Removal of the old headmasters and their replacement with newcomers from the USSR. Arrivals of teachers from the USSR began during the winter break of 1939/1940 and gradually increased. Initially, the old headmasters were retained at their posts, but in early 1940 (January–February) all schools were assigned new headmasters (Soviet citizens), while the old ones were assigned teaching jobs. The old headmasters were even content with that change due to their reluctance to take on as great a responsibility as that resting on a headmaster’s shoulders. By contrast, the teaching staff was discontented as it did not know the possible consequences of that change. Many of the old headmasters were appointed zawpeds (more about them later), that is, pedagogical supervisors.
[22] Types of schools in the USSR. Seven-year schools. Ten-year schools. Generally speaking, in the Soviet system there are seven-year schools (of seven grades), that is, incomplete secondary schools, and ten-year schools (of ten grades), that is, complete secondary schools. Villages have only the seven-year schools (incomplete secondary schools), while cities usually contain both the complete ten-year schools and the incomplete seven-year ones. Compulsory education begins at the age of eight for all children. All schools had been free of charge until 1941, when fees were introduced, first for eighth-graders. Privileged, the newly incorporated territories were exempted from fees for the next two years. A ten-year school diploma gave one the right to study
LVO V AN D SOUTH EASTERN REGIONS [ 42] 579
