Dr. Szabó Lajos: A magyar ifjúság testi nevelésének története (A Sportmúzeum Kincsei 5. Budapest, 2004)

A filantropisták, avagy a német és a svéd torna követőinek tevékenysége hazánkban

AS AN EFFECT OF THE ENLICHTENMENT natural sciences started to develop, and social sciences became modern. In 1771 Ádám Borosjenői Székely translated John Locke's very effective work Some thoughts concerning education into Hungarian. Ratio Educations II published in 1806 was a withdrawal from point of view of physical education, as the question of physical education is not mentioned at all. From 1820 - as part of creating national body culture -, fights started in journalism to accept physical education in schools. The educational and pedagogical sides of the question were strengthened. From among the Hungarian educators the follower of Pestalozzis ideas, Lajos Tavasi distinguished himself already in the 1830ies. He paricipated in the work of the Gymnastics School of Pest founded by Ignác Clair. Beside Tavasi the name of Lajos Schedius, aesthetic and philology teacher of University of Pest, must be mentioned who forced the acceptance of physical education as a compulsory school subject. He worked out a syllabus which was discussed by the Protestan meeting of the teachers in 1841 and was accepted as a decision. "Let there be a physical training institute in all schools and such a master who can train the youth. If it is impossible to establish one, make the students train simple and natural physical exercises, such as running, jumping, climbing, fighting, throwing, swimming, sliding, etc... - according to conditions -, between the lessons, in the playtimes, under the supervision of teachers." The ambition of specialists came to accessible proximity in the months of the 1848-49 War of Independence.