11/10/2012

The Social Tradition of

Salesian Education
DBYN network meeting
October 2012, Logroo, Spain

Overview
Overview of the session
Introduction
Don Bosco training boys to earn a living
Rerum novarum
3 followers of Don Bosco
Don Rua
Don Bertello
Don Scaloni

Questions

Introduction
DBYN master plan 2011 2013
Emphasis on youth unemployment

Parallel Don Bosco & present EU

Change of society (industrialisation & service society)
High rates of youth unemployment

Don Bosco = historic model

Towards 2015
2012
history of Don Bosco
Development up to 1910 = towards formalisation

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Michael Ribotta, Training Boys to Earn a Living:The beginnings of Vocational

Education at the Oratory
Michael Ribotta, Don Boscos Battle Against Illiteracy

TRAINING BOYS TO EARN A LIVING

Training boys to earn a living

Young workers in factories & workshops
First target group Don Bosco
Work = no time for education
High illiteracy & low morality
not churchgoers & no friends

Risk = no work = prison

Vagrancy
Street gangs

Training boys to earn a living

Solution 1- Battle against illiteracy
Socio-economic disadvantage
Moral risk

Good christians & responsible citizens

Moral & socio-economic
Morality more important than competence
Language aimed at evangelisation
Arithmetics aimed at morality (ex: question)

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Training boys to earn a living

Solution 1- Battle against illiteracy
Pragmatic development
Sunday school
Evening school
Lancaster model of pupil assistance
New metric system italy
Printing of text books

Training boys to earn a living

Solution 2 - Mutual Aid Society
Political context
constitution 1848
Guilds evolve into Mutual Aid Societies
Mutual Aid Society of the Oratory of St. Francis of Sales
Don Bosco in his time was strongly recognised for
pioneering in this field (but not historically first)

Manual
Social & welfare benefits
Illnes & unemployment (rules 1 8)

Spiritual obligation
Sacraments every 2 weeks (rules 8,12,14)

Training boys to earn a living

Solution 3 - Work contracts
Early records since 16th century
Agreement employer & parents
Employer = in loco parentis
7 years apprenticeship = trade + moral education

In practice = Cheap labour, no education

Work contract Don Bosco

Disclaimer responsibility Don Bosco (rules 4,5,7)
Rules on Work conditions (rules 1,3,4,5)
Rules on Christian & moral education (rules 2,5)

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Training boys to earn a living

Solution 4 - Own workshops
Moral reason - Blasfemy in factories & workshops
Educational reason - Vocational training
Pragmatic reason cost reduction (books, ...)

Milestone = Printers workshop in1861

Books disseminate morality & education
From focus on production to instruction
Difficulties finding right educators
Highly regarded internationally (cf. Prizes)

Training boys to earn a living

Solution 4 - Own workshops
Second general Chapter
Development more vocational schools

Third General Chapter

Defining 3 general aims for education
Religious-Moral
Intellectual
Professional

1889
1910
Formalisation of Vocational training in schools

Francis Desramaut, The Social Question in Life of Fr. Michael Rua

RERUM NOVARUM

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Rerum novarum
1891
Encyclic
Don Bosco = inspiration (pilgrimige to valdocco)
Slow implementation

Social question as seen through the Catholic

Church
Criticism on Socialism
Sociology of Durkheim in stead of Marx

Rerum Novarum
4 Foundations
1. Right of free property, enterprise & trade

In contrast to community of goods of Socialism

2. Worker & employer make free arrangement

Morality > capitalism & Justice > economics

3. State is responsible for justice

Law protects weakest in society

4. Dominance of the state needs to be avoided

System of intermediate associations in which workers decide

freely to participate in

Question:
Do you recognise Don Boscos solutions in these 4
foundations?

Rerum Novarum
First international congress of Cooperators
1895
First translation of R.N. in Salesian family
Focus: workers from the view of young workers

Rules for cooperators as employers clearly reflect

concerns of Don Bosco
Blasfemy
Mutual Aid
Religious & moral education
Employer has responsibility in education

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Francis Desramaut, The Social Question in Life of Fr. Michael Rua

Jos-Manuel Prellezo, Scuole Professionali Salesiane (CNOS/FAP)
Freddy Staelens, Scalonis publicaties

3 FOLLOWERS OF DON BOSCO

3 followers of Don Bosco

Don Rua
First successor of Don Bosco
Social activism

National Society for the Protection and Mutual Aid of

Young Female Workers
Human resources
Salesians
Support FMA
healthy holidays in mountains

Trade union actions

Social mediator in conflict at Anselmo Poma Textile Mill
Rallies together with trade unions in the city of Charleroi

3 followers of Don Bosco

Don Bertello
Responsible for development learning curricula
professional schools
Influenced by Rerum Novarum

Sociology as part of curriculum

First year = actors within society
Second year = processes between actors society
Third year = Criticism on Socialism

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3 followers of Don Bosco

Don Scaloni

Founder and first provincial SDB in Belgium

Provincial in UK
Past-pupil professional school under Don Bosco
Professional school in Liege in the model of Valdocco

Capital et Travail
Manual for sociology in last 3 years vocational training
Reading of Marx through Rerum Novarum
Pragmatic creation
intense political conflict
Catholics
Socialists
4th edition = 2 books Capital et Travail & Le Socialisme

Influence on Joseph Cardijn? (worker-priest - founder of JOC)

Obligatory literature theology students Cardinal Mercier in Leuven
Cardijn = Librarian during theology studies in Leuven under Mercier

QUESTIONS

Questions
Do you personally know this part of Salesian
history/tradition ?
Does your Salesian province still work in this
Salesian tradition ?
Is this tradition still relevant for your work in
your sending organisation ?
Can this tradition be relevant for Don Bosco
Youth-Net ?