Development of higher education in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Historical and statistical analysis

Abstract

The article presents the development of higher education in Bosnia and Herzegovina from its first serious beginnings after the Second World War until today. Considering the modest foundations of education in general, its highest level is an expression of the entire socio-historical development. The specific geographical position caused the intertwining of different influences from the East and the West on the soil of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This was also reflected in different approaches to education during the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, and later the two Yugoslavias, up to today's independent state. These conceptions had their consequences in the development of education and society's attitude towards it. However, the period after the Second World War proved to be the most intense due to the parallel work on the fast elimination of the problems of illiteracy, the lack of schools, teaching staff and the availability of education to the masses. Therefore, the radical social transformation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was particularly noticeable in the field of education. The basic source of data is official statistics from the era of Yugoslavia and contemporary Bosnia and Herzegovina. Data from the two entities and the Brčko district were combined when possible. The most important author's publications, regional and foreign, which can contribute to a better knowledge of this topic, were consulted as well. Emphasis is placed on the change in the total number of students and the participation of the male and female population in this cycle of education. Some specific tendencies were noticed. The first is a negative downward trend occurred after achieving historical growth in the number of students. In this way is represented the gradual change in the educational structure of this age group. At the end of the observed period, it is visibly different compared to the initial state. Different factors have had an impact in different periods. First of all, these are the (un)availability of education for women and the weakness of school infrastructure. Today's values are the result of negative demographic trends such as declining birth rates and migration. What unites all periods are the consequences of the direct war losses of the population. The results in the previous decade are still at a high level compared to the Yugoslav period. However, Bosnia and Herzegovina still lags behind other countries in the region. Moreover, its results are barely more than half of the European average. Slower growth, and later a decrease in the number of students shows a long-term lack of interest in higher education among this part of the population. This is why the gender gap is widening. Considering the essential role of education in the progress of society as a whole, the development of higher education contributes to a large extent to the better living standard of the population, creating the necessary preconditions for different social relations. In the first place, there is an improved position of women due to greater economic independence. The scientific contribution of this work is not negligible either, and is reflected in pointing out numerous research opportunities. At the first place, there is an interdisciplinary connection of history, geography (demography) and sociology. On the basis of demographic data, it is possible to draw historical conclusions explained by sociological laws and phenomena. Further, the change of focus from political to social topics could be a small incentive for future research on national history. Moreover, this approach enables comparisons at various levels: from local, through national to regional, and beyond. Transnational connections established in this way can be a new form of consensus on important topics. In this way, the place of a society in the world is determined and the necessary objective idea of its abilities and problems is acquired.