The experience of teaching national history and the foundations of constitutional knowledge in the late 1930s early 1940s (using the example of railway schools in the Kursk region)

The relevance of the topic under discussion is determined by the significant social importance of school history education. Over thirty years of Russian society's and state's life in conditions of ideological and political diversity, as well as the complete erosion of the Western-scale liberal values, has led to most Russians realizing the need to adhere to traditional moral principles based on ideas of patriotism and humanism. The domestic education system is the main vehicle for this. Therefore, the controversial experience of teaching history in schools arouses professional interest among researchers and practicing teachers. The purpose of the study is to reveal the peculiarities of teaching history in the pre–war years on the basis of archival documents and published materials on the example of departmental educational institutions of railway transport. Objectives: to characterize the contradictions of the process of introducing historical and social sciences disciplines into school education; to reflect the role of historical knowledge in the patriotic education of the younger generation. Methodology. The research was based on the principles of objectivity and historicism. To solve the tasks set by the author, the methods of historical-genetic, historical-systemic, historical-comparative, typological, retrospective were used. Results. The study of the experience of teaching the historical and social sciences cycle of academic disciplines in the pre-war years on the example of departmental educational institutions of railway transport made it possible to objectively assess the impact of humanitarian training of students on the formation of their civic position and the education of patriotic feelings, which had a decisive impact on the behavior of graduates of railway schools during the period of military trials and subsequent restoration of the national economy. Conclusions. The experience of teaching history and the foundations of constitutional knowledge accumulated in the pre-war period is worthy of application in the context of modern reform of historical education. Recognition of the leading role of national history in shaping the worldview of the younger generation requires a systematic approach in teaching and educating young people based on love and respect for their Homeland.