gical studies introduced into the curriculum consisted of the
fundamental principles of Marx and Lenin, the history of the communist
party of the Soviet Union, and the history of the BKP. All of these
subjects became obligatory from kindergarten.

The second initiative in the 1948-49 reforms was the declaration that
all universities and institutions of higher education as well as the
Academy of Sciences were no longer autonomous. A third reform during
this period was the reduction from five to four years of the gymnasium,
which in turn reduced the total schooling from twelve to eleven years.
The fourth reform was the redesigning of polytechnic education to
greatly increase the number of trained graduates to fill the rapidly
escalating demands of the economy.

In statistical terms the results of the various communist reforms were
mixed. Although the number of primary and secondary schools increased
slightly overall from 1938 to 1948, there was hardly any appreciable
growth in primary schools, whereas secondary schools nearly doubled. The
number of students, similarly, barely changed in the same ten-year
period; the number of primary students actually declined, but the number
of secondary students grew appreciably (see table 6; table 7).

Higher education, on the other hand, made great strides after the
communist takeover as the number of universities and other institutions
of higher education increased by one-third. Despite the emphasis on
technical and vocational education, such schools dropped in terms of
facilities, students, and teachers during the early communist years. The
number of teachers of polytechnic subjects also declined during the
period (see table 8).

_Table 6. Number of Schools in Bulgaria, Selected Years, 1938-70_

--------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------
Level | 1938/39 | 1948/49 | 1960/61 | 1970/71
--------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------
Kindergarten | 254 | n.a. | 6,570 | 8,037
Primary | 7,291 | 7,872 | * | *
Secondary | 133 | 253 | * | *
| ------ | ------ | ------- | -------
Total primary-secondary | 7,424 | 8,125 | 5,877 | 4,197
Vocational technical | n.a. | n.a. | 236 | 132
Secondary vocational | n.a. | n.a. | 0 | 190
Technical |