A brief history of Malta's educational broadcasting

Abstract

The year 1948 was a milestone in the history of Maltese broadcasting. A special wing, known as the School Broadcasting Unit, was established within the Education Department. It had the specific aim of introducing radio broadcasts for primary and secondary school students, utilising the Rediffusion services. The reader must bear in mind that in the mentioned period, responsible government had been re-introduced in Malta and women acquired the right to vote in future electoral appointments. The new Labour Government elected in 1947 also introduced compulsory education, and in due course this would radically upgrade Malta’s literacy and numeracy skills. Reforms were also undertaken by the University of Malta which changed the major course structures. “This abolished the existing preparatory courses and... substituted them by admission courses leading to the various faculties.” The BA (Honours) course was also introduced. In 1948, more than 40,000 Maltese and Gozitan pupils attended primary school. Since 1949, the Colonial Office began to issue the publication Sound and Television Broadcasting in the Overseas Territories, demonstrating a vibrant broadcasting scenario in the British Empire. Malta was no exception to this development as this paper will reveal.