ABSTRACT
Western languages remained on the margins of primary school education in the People's Republic of Poland. Russian dominated foreign languages beginning in 1949. Only in the 1980s did French, German and English return as compulsory second foreign languages to be taught in the last two grades. The Russian language was for the majority of the existence of the People's Republic of Poland the only foreign language taught at primary schools. Art textbooks were rather thin because, according to the curriculum, practical drawing still dominated in this school subject. Art textbooks claimed that the "people's government" took care even of the aesthetics of the life of its citizens. The textbook by Sovetkin was approved by the Polish Ministry of Education for primary schools, but it was originally designed as a tutorial for adults. During the Stalinist period of 1950–1957 the concept of learning languages at school changed and so did the textbook authors, publishers and content.
