Public elementary schooling in the inner harbour area : 1900-1939

Abstract

This dissertation is an attempt to start analysing the changes that education went through in the first four decades of the twentieth century. This study gives an account of development in the public elementary schooling in Maltese Islands with a special reference the Inner Harbour Area. The socio-economic and political contexts were part and parcel of all the changes that took place within this timeframe and thus had their effect upon the education system. The Director of Elementary Schools Dr. A. V. Laferla left his imprint on the educational system. Progress was made in the quality of elementary education with the building of a public schooling network around the Islands so that more children could be educated. The students of the Inner Harbour area benefited from such reforms. So, I delved in this specific area and tried to analyse each city and the changes that were encountered. Finally, I tried to analyse the impact of various forces that contributed to educational development in Malta and more specifically in the Inner Harbour Area.