“Those Sound of Mind”. Educator Alexander Ivanovich Tarnavsky about the systemic problems of upbringing and education of youth in Russia at the turn of the XIX—XX centuries
Elena V. Burlutskaya, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor
Orenburg State Pedagogical University, Orenburg, Russia, ida777@yandex.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0001-2207
Mikhail I. Rodnov, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Leading Researcher
Order of the Badge of Honor Institute of History, Language and Literature of the Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ufa, Russia, Rodnov@ufacom.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7654-4782
Abstract
In the course of studying the works of teachers of the second half of the 19th — early 20th centuries, thoughts about the relevance of their reflections appear. The professional community of teachers of the past had already analyzed issues related to the physical and mental health of the younger generation, the need to introduce it to traditional values, the cultural level of young people, and the acculturation of “a person of another faith”. The conclusions and generalizations of teachers of the past had obvious practical significance. This experience can be useful today. An important contribution to the modernization of the Russian education system at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was made by Alexander Ivanovich Tarnavsky. He served as an inspector of the Orenburg Kirghiz teacher training school, headmaster of the Blagoveshchensk teachers training seminary in the Ufa province, and then headmaster of public schools in the Orenburg province. The article, from the standpoint of the current state of the Russian education system, provides an assessment of the views and practical actions of A. I. Tarnavsky, aimed at transforming approaches to the upbringing and education of youth at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Keywords
Microhistory, employment history, Tarnavsky, Orenburg, Orenburg Kirghiz teacher training school, Blagoveshchensk Teachers Training Seminary, students, education, upbringing.
For citation:
Burlutskaya E. V., Rodnov M. I. “Those Sound of Mind”. Educator Alexander Ivanovich Tarnavsky about the systemic problems of upbringing and education of youth in Russia at the turn of the XIX—XX centuries. Vestnik of Orenburg State Pedagogical University. Electronic Scientific Journal, 2025, no. 4 (56), pp. 107—123. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32516/2303-9922.2025.56.7.
1. Adres-kalendar’ Ufimskoi gubernii na 1900 god [Address calendar of Ufa province for 1900]. Ufa, Parovaya tipo-lit. A. P. Zaikova Publ., 1900. 157 p. (In Russian)
2. Aminov T. M. Istoriya professional’nogo obrazovaniya v Bashkirii. Nachalo XVII veka — 1917 god [History of vocational education in Bashkiria. Early 17th century — 1917]. Ufa, BGPU Publ., 2012. 296 p. (In Russian)
3. Blagoveshchenskii zavod, Ufimskogo uezda: (Korrespondentsiya “Ufimskikh Gubern. Vedom.”. Postroika tserkvi pri Blagoveshchenskoi uchitel’skoi seminarii) [Blagoveshchensk Plant, Ufa District. (Correspondence from the Ufa Gubernia News. Construction of a church at the Blagoveshchensk Teachers Training Seminary)]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1896. Oct. 13, no. 218. (In Russian)
4. Burlutskaya E. V. “Po predmetam i kartinkam…”. Uchebnik A. I. Tarnavskogo kak istochnik po istorii detskoi domashnei povsednevnosti v Orenburge poreformennoi epokhi [“By objects and pictures…” Tutorial by A. I. Tarnavsky as a source on the history of children’s daily life in Orenburg of the post-reform era]. Istoriya povsednevnosti — History of Everyday Life, 2022, no. 2 (22), pp. 21—33. DOI: 10.35231/25422375_2022_2_21. (In Russian)
5. Vasil’ev A. Istoricheskii ocherk russkogo obrazovaniya v Turgaiskoi oblasti i sovremennoe ego sostoyanie [A historical overview of Russian education in the Turgai region and its current state]. Orenburg, Turgaiskii obl. stat. komitet Publ., 1896. 226 p. (In Russian)
6. Deev A. Poezdka okonchivshikh kurs Blagoveshchenskoi uchitel’skoi seminarii v Ufu, v teatr [A trip to the theater for graduates of the Blagoveshchensk Teachers Training Seminary in Ufa]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1897. June 26, no. 134. (In Russian)
7. Dzhumaliev. V Kremle (23 dekabrya 1892 g.) [In the Kremlin (December 23, 1892)]. Poezdka v Moskvu uchenikov Orenburgskoi kirgizskoi uchitel’skoi shkoly. Zametki i vpechatleniya uchenikov s predisloviem inspektora shkoly (A. Tarnavskogo) [Trip to Moscow of students of the Orenburg Kyrgyz Teachers School. Notes and impressions of students with a preface by the school inspector (A. Tarnavsky)]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1893, pp. 19—25. (In Russian)
8. Ivakin N. N. Risovanie v shkole: Lektsii, chitannye na letnikh kursakh dlya uchashchikh dvukhklassnykh uchilishch Direktsii Moskovskoi gubernii v 1915 g. [Drawing in school: Lectures given at summer courses for students of two-year schools of the Moscow Province Directorate in 1915]. Moscow, Tip. torgovogo doma “Kopylova i Dmitrieva” Publ., 1916. 74 p. (In Russian)
9. Irinin. K voprosu o merakh dlya bor’by s p’yanstvom. (Pis’mo iz Blagoveshchenskogo zavoda) [On the issue of measures to combat drunkenness. (Letter from the Blagoveshchensk plant)]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1896. March 15, no. 60. (In Russian)
10. Istoricheskii ocherk Orenburgskoi kirgizskoi uchitel’skoi shkoly za vremya s 1883 g. po 1899 g. [Historical overview of the Orenburg Kyrgyz teacher training school from 1883 to 1899]. Tsirkulyar po Orenburgskomu uchebnomu okrugu [Circular for the Orenburg educational district]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1903, no. 6—7, June, July. (In Russian)
11. Katalog predmetov professional’no-pedagogicheskoi vystavki Orenburgskogo uchebnogo okruga 1898 goda [Catalogue of items from the professional and pedagogical exhibition of the Orenburg educational district in 1898]. Tsirkulyar po Orenburgskomu uchebnomu okrugu [Circular for the Orenburg educational district]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1898, no. 6, 7, 8, June, July, Aug. (In Russian)
12. Kuz’min K. V. Natsional’nye uchitel’skie shkoly i problemy khristianizatsii ural’skikh narodov (konets 1860-kh — nachalo 1900-kh gg.) [National teacher training schools and the problems of Christianization of the Ural peoples (late 1860s — early 1900s)]. Obrazovanie i nauka — The Education and Science, 2003, no. 3 (21), pp. 106—115. (In Russian)
13. N. Blagoveshchenskii zavod Ufimskogo uezda. 25-letnyaya deyatel’nost’ direktora Blagoveshchenskoi seminarii Aleksandra Ivanovicha Tarnavskogo [Blagoveshchensk Plant, Ufa District. 25-year career of Blagoveshchensk Seminary Director Alexander Ivanovich Tarnavsky]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1896. March 8, no. 54. (In Russian)
14. N. Blagoveshchenskii zavod Ufimskogo uezda. 25-letnyaya deyatel’nost’ direktora Blagoveshchenskoi seminarii Aleksandra Ivanovicha Tarnavskogo [Blagoveshchensk Plant, Ufa District. 25-year career of Blagoveshchensk Seminary Director Alexander Ivanovich Tarnavsky]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1896. March 9, no. 55. (In Russian)
15. O. Blagoveshchenskii zavod, Ufimskoi gubernii. (Korrespondentsiya “Ufimskikh Gubernskikh Vedomostei”) [Blagoveshchensk plant, Ufa province. (Correspondence from the Ufa Provincial Gazette)]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1895. Dec. 24, no. 281. (In Russian)
16. Otdel IV. Adres-kalendar’ [Section IV. Address Calendar]. Kalendar’ Ufimskoi gubernii na 1893 god [Ufa Province Calendar for 1893]. Ufa, Gub. tip. Publ., 1893. (In Russian)
17. Prilozhenie k № 11 “Tsirkulyara po Orenburgskomu uchebnomu okrugu” za 1898 g. [Appendix No. 11 of the “Circular for the Orenburg Educational District“ for 1898]. Tsirkulyar po Orenburgskomu uchebnomu okrugu [Circular for the Orenburg Educational District]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1898, no. 9, 10, 11, 12, Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec. P. 13. (In Russian)
18. Rodnov M. I. Krest’yanstvo Ufimskogo uezda po perepisi 1917 goda [Peasantry of the Ufa district according to the 1917 census]. Ufa, NUR-Poligrafizdat Publ., 1997. 192 pp. (In Russian)
19. Rodnov M. I. Kupets Vasilii Ivanovich Nesterov. Istoriya sem’i i biznesa [Merchant Vasily Ivanovich Nesterov: A family and business history]. Bel’skie prostory, 2023, no. 6, pp. 128—129. (In Russian)
20. Rodnov M. I. Finansovaya istoriya Blagoveshchenskogo zavoda Dashkovykh (vtoraya polovina XIX — nachalo XX veka) [Financial history of the Blagoveshchensk factory of the Dashkovs (the second half of the 19th — the early 20th centuries)]. Magistra Vitae: elektronnyi zhurnal po istoricheskim naukam i arkheologii — Magistra Vitae: Electronic Journal of Historical Sciences and Archeology, 2020, no. 1, pp. 20—26. DOI: 10.24411/2542-0275-2020-0102. (In Russian)
21. S. Blagoveshchenskii zavod [Blagoveshchensk plant]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1897, Oct. 28, no. 230. (In Russian)
22. S. Blagoveshchenskii zavod, Ufimskoi gubernii [Blagoveshchensk plant, Ufa province]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1897, May 22, no. 106. (In Russian)
23. S. Blagoveshchenskii zavod. (Korrespondentsiya “Ufimskikh Gubernskikh Vedomostei”) [Blagoveshchensk plant. (Correspondence from the Ufa Provincial Gazette)]. Ufimskie gubernskie vedomosti, 1897. Feb. 15, no. 38. (In Russian)
24. Sudorgina T. V. “U uchitelya ne dolzhno byt’ detei” [“A teacher shouldn’t have children”]. Vechernii Orenburg, 2001, Oct. 3, p. 9. (In Russian)
25. Tarnavskii A. I. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei: Pis’ma A. I. Tarnavskogo [Because of the Orenburg children. Letters of A. I. Tarnavsky]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1892. 97 p. (In Russian)
26. Tarnavskii A. I. Krasnyi krest: (ocherk) [Red Cross: (essay)]. St. Petersburg, Sinodal’naya tip. Publ., 1904. 16 p. (Shkol’naya b-ka. Book 24). (In Russian)
27. Tarnavskii A. I. Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka: (K stoletiyu so dnya rozhdeniya) [Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka. (On the centenary of his birth)]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., [1904]. 20 p. (In Russian)
28. Tarnavskii A. I. Nizshie uchilishcha Orenburgskoi gubernii (1875—1899) [Lower schools of the Orenburg province (1875—1899)]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1904. 158 p. (In Russian)
29. Tarnavskii A. I. Ob obyazannostyakh uchitelya nachal’nogo narodnogo uchilishcha: Opyt kratkogo rukovodstva dlya vospitannikov uchitel’skikh seminarii i uchitelei nachal’nykh uchilishch [On the duties of a primary school teacher. A brief guide for students of teacher seminaries and primary school teachers]. Moscow, K. I. Tikhomirov Publ., 1896. 142 p. (In Russian)
30. Tarnavskii A. I. Obuchenie vzroslykh gramote [Teaching adult literacy]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1904. 7 p. (In Russian)
31. Tarnavskii A. I. Pamyati preosvyashchenneishego Ioanna, episkopa Chigirinskogo [In memory of His Grace John, Bishop of Chigirin]. Kiev, Tip. G. T. Korchak-Novitskogo Publ., 1883. 8 p. (In Russian)
32. Tarnavskii A. I. Predislovie [Preface]. Tarnavskii A. I. Po predmetam i po kartinkam: pervye uroki naglyadnogo obucheniya inorodtsev russkomu yazyku [By objects and by pictures: The first lessons in visual teaching of the Russian language to Non-Russians]. St. Petersburg, P. V. Lukovnikov Publ., 1902. [Pp. 3—4]. (In Russian)
33. Tarnavskii A. I. Russkii flot: ocherk [Russian fleet. An essay]. St. Petersburg, Sinodal’naya tip. Publ., 1904. 16 p. (Shkol’naya b-ka. Book 22). (In Russian)
34. Tarnavskii A. I. Russkii yazyk: Prakticheskaya grammatika: Kurs dvukhklassnykh gorodskikh uchilishch Yugo-zapadnogo kraya. 2-e izd., ispr. [Russian language: Practical grammar: A course for two-year city schools in the Southwestern region. 2nd ed., correct.]. Kiev, F. A. Ioganson Publ., 1882. 148 p. (In Russian)
35. Tarnavskii A. I. Russkii yazyk: Khrestomatiya, sostavlennaya iz sochinenii luchshikh russkikh pisatelei: Dlya nizshikh klassov gimnazii, real’nykh uchilishch, uchitel’skikh seminarii, gorodskikh i sel’skikh dvukhklassnykh uchilishch: Illyustrirovannaya 25 portretami russkikh pisatelei i mnogimi risunkami. 5-e izd. [Russian language: An anthology compiled from the works of the best Russian writers: For lower grades of gymnasiums, real schools, teachers’ seminaries, urban and rural two-year schools: Illustrated with 25 portraits of Russian writers and many drawings. 5th ed.]. St. Petersburg, P. V. Lukovnikov Publ., 1901. 258 p. (In Russian)
36. Tarnavskii A. I. Russkii yazyk: Khrestomatiya, sostavlennaya iz sochinenii luchshikh russkikh pisatelei, s oboznacheniem udarenii obshcheprinyatymi znachkami, pravopisaniya i vygovora zhirnymi bukvami; Tolkovyi slovar’ s kratkimi svedeniyami o zhizni luchshikh pisatelei: Kurs dvukhklassnykh gorodskikh uchilishch Yugo-zapadnogo kraya. 2-e izd., ispr. i dop. [Russian language: An anthology compiled from the works of the best Russian writers, with stress marks indicated by generally accepted signs, spelling and pronunciation in bold; Explanatory dictionary with brief information about the lives of the best writers: A course for two-year city schools of the Southwestern Territory. 2nd ed., corrected and supplemented]. Kiev, F. A. Ioganson Publ., 1882. 207 p. (In Russian)
37. Tarnavskii A. I. Russkii yazyk: Khrestomatiya: Basni, skazki, rasskazy, opisaniya, rassuzhdeniya, propoved’: Otryvki iz sochinenii luchshikh pisatelei; Tolkovyi slovar’ s kratkimi svedeniyami o zhizni luchshikh pisatelei: Kurs dvukhklassnykh gorodskikh uchilishch Yugo-zapadnogo kraya [Russian language: An anthology: Fables, fairy tales, stories, descriptions, reasoning, sermons: Excerpts from the works of the best writers; Explanatory dictionary with brief information about the lives of the best writers: Course of two-year city schools of the Southwestern Territory]. Kiev, Universitetskaya tip. (I. I. Zavadzkogo) Publ., 1880. 311 p. (In Russian)
38. Tarnavskii A. I. Russko-yaponskaya voina [Russo-Japanese War]. St. Petersburg, S.-Peterb. o-vo gramotnosti Publ., 1905. 63 p. (In Russian)
39. Tarnavskii A. I. Russko-yaponskaya voina: (Chtenie v gor. i sel. uch-shchakh). Vyp. 1 [Russo-Japanese War: (Reading in city and village schools). Iss. 1]. Suvalki, Tip. Gub. pravleniya Publ., [1904]—[1905]. 21 p. (In Russian)
40. Tarnavskii A. I. Sbornik proizvedenii russkoi slovesnosti s kratkimi svedeniyami o zhizni pisatelei: dlya gorodskikh uchilishch [A collection of works of Russian literature with brief information about the lives of writers: for city schools]. Orenburg, Gub. tipo-lit. Publ., 1899. 194 p. (In Russian)
41. Tarnavskii A. I. Sektantskoe izdanie “Gusli”, izbrannye stikhotvoreniya nekotorykh russkikh pisatelei [The sectarian publication “Gusli”, selected poems by some Russian writers]. St. Petersburg, Tip. Min-va vn. del Publ., 1902. 523 p., Tip. M. Akinfieva i I. Leont’eva Publ., 1904. 13 p. (In Russian)
42. Tarnavskii A. I. Stoletie vossoedineniya Podol’skoi gubernii s Rossiei: S krat. istoriei Podolii, v voprosakh i otvetakh [Centenary of the reunification of Podolsk province with Russia: With a brief history of Podolia, in questions and answers]. Kamenets-Podolsk, Tip. Podol’skogo gub. pravleniya Publ., 1892. 116 p. (In Russian)
43. Tarnavskii A. I. Khozyaistvo zemskikh i kazennykh stipendiatov Blagoveshchenskoi uchitel’skoi seminarii [The Estate of Zemstvo and state scholarship recipients of the Blagoveshchensk teachers training seminary]. Ufa, Gub. tip. Publ., 1899. 30 p. (In Russian)
44. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo pervoe [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter One]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 39, pp. 2—3. (In Russian)
45. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo vtoroe [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Two]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 41, pp. 2—3. (In Russian)
46. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo tret’e [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Three]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 42, pp. 1—3. (In Russian)
47. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo chetvertoe [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Four]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 43, pp. 1—3. (In Russian)
48. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo pyatoe [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Five]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 44, pp. 1—3. (In Russian)
49. Tarnavskii Al. Iz-za orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo shestoe [Because of the Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Six]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 45, pp. 2—3. (In Russian)
50. Tarnavskii Al. O budushchei deyatel’nosti orenburgskikh detei. Pis’mo k redaktoru. Pis’mo sed’moe [On the Future activities of Orenburg children. Letter to the editor. Letter Seven]. Orenburgskii listok, 1892, no. 46, pp. 1—3. (In Russian)
51. Tugai T. I. Orenburgskaya russko-kazakhskaya uchitel’skaya shkola v formirovanii natsional’noi intelligentsii [The Orenburg Russian-Kazakh Teachers’ school in the formation of the national intelligentsia]. Devyatye Bol’shakovskie chteniya. Orenburgskii krai kak istoriko-kul’turnyi fenomen: sb. statei mezhdunar. nauch.-prakt. konf. [The Ninth Bolshakov readings. The Orenburg region as a historical and cultural phenomenon: A collection of articles from the Internat. sci. and pract. conf.]. Orenburg, OGPU Publ., 2018, pp. 353—358. (In Russian)
52. Farkhshatov M. N. Narodnoe obrazovanie v Bashkirii v poreformennyi period. 60—90-e gody XIX v. [Public education in Bashkiria in the post-reform period. 60—90s of the XIX century]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1994. 144 p. (In Russian)
53. Khronika [Chronicle]. Orenburgskii listok, 1900, no. 22, May 28, pp. 4. (In Russian)
54. Shkola № 59 imeni N. V. Gogolya [School No. 59 named after N. V. Gogol]. Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20121107062014/http://www.school59.ru/ru/about/hist_kol/. Дата обращения: 28.06.2025. (In Russian)
55. Yulduzov. Prigotovlenie k ot’’ezdu v Moskvu (19 dekabrya 1892 g.) [Preparations for departure to Moscow (December 19, 1892)]. Poezdka v Moskvu uchenikov Orenburgskoi kirgizskoi uchitel’skoi shkoly: Zametki i vpechatleniya uchenikov s predisloviem inspektora shkoly (A. Tarnavskogo) [Trip to Moscow of students of the Orenburg Kyrgyz teachers’ school. Notes and impressions of students with a preface by the school inspector (A. Tarnavsky)]. Orenburg, Tipo-lit. I. I. Evfimovskogo-Mirovitskogo Publ., 1893, pp. 7—9. (In Russian)