Promoting Literacy: Early Years Of The Soviet Revolution
8. Promoting Literacy
In the early days of the Soviet Revolution (that is in the first two decades of the 20th century), it is estimated that the literacy rate among the Russian population was only around 25% in the countryside, with much higher percentages reported for St. Petersburg and Moscow (when most Western nations had in those days a literacy rate of 80-85%).
The Soviets realized that to promote efficiently the radical new communist ideas, posters or meetings where masses were progressively educated in the communist principles, had to be supplemented by concerted efforts to raise the literacy rate. Doing so, they expected to outreach a much greater readership of communist books, published speeches and newspaper propaganda. The
In the early days of the Soviet Revolution (that is in the first two decades of the 20th century), it is estimated that the literacy rate among the Russian population was only around 25% in the countryside, with much higher percentages reported for St. Petersburg and Moscow (when most Western nations had in those days a literacy rate of 80-85%).
The Soviets realized that to promote efficiently the radical new communist ideas, posters or meetings where masses were progressively educated in the communist principles, had to be supplemented by concerted efforts to raise the literacy rate. Doing so, they expected to outreach a much greater readership of communist books, published speeches and newspaper propaganda. The