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Podvis School
Podvis School
	View of the ruins of the school
General information
Type	school
Location	Podvis
Country	North Macedonia
Coordinates	41°28′08.27″N 20°53′26.06″E / 41.4689639°N 20.8905722°E
Technical details
Material	stone
Lifts/elevators	1
Designations	Monument of Culture since December 15, 1978
Known for	The first contemporary Macedonian language school

The Podvis School (Macedonian: Подвишко училиште, Podviško učilište), also known as Old School Building (Macedonian: Стара училишна зграда, Stara učilišna zgrada), is a building of the first primary school that held classes in contemporary Macedonian language, in the village of Podvis, North Macedonia. The building is declared as a Monument of Culture.^[2]

The old building is located in the village of Podvis, high above the last remaining houses in the village.^[3]

Location

The old school in village of Podvis, where in 1943 the classes were taught in contemporary Macedonian language, is located high above the last remaining houses in the village and the main village St. Athanasius Church. The only path to the village is a dirt road, and to the building itself there is only a hiking track and there is no clear sign showing where the school is located.^[3]

History

Prior to the April War in 1941, in the school was taught in Serbian language, according to the Royal Yugoslav educational system and the forced Serbianisation.^[4]

Teaching in the Macedonian language, the school began working on September 23, 1943, only six days after the liberation of Kičevo. The first class was held by the teacher Vasilko Risteski Lazaroski.^[5]^[1]

In the late 50s/early 60s, a new school building was constructed in the lower and newer parts of the village located near the Treska river and this older building lost its function as a school.^[4]

On December 15, 1978 the building was listed as Cultural heritage site.^[1]

Current state

Today, the school building is in bad shape,^[6] the floor has collapsed, the wall has collapsed, there is no door, and the ceiling is crumbling.^[1] The site is overgrown with thorns and bushes, and the only way to get there is with an off-road vehicle.^[3]

The commemorative plaque, that was placed inside the building, was removed by the locals and moved to the newer part of village of Podvis, in the lowland area.^[3]

Even though the Ministry of Culture made announcements for renovating the building during 2014,^[5] that never happened.

Gallery

The inside of the building
Side view of the school
The inside of the building
The plaque that was placed in the school

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Ž. Zdravkovska (11 October 2022). "Пропаѓа училиштето во Подвис каде во 1943 за првпат се одржа настава на македонски јазик, оти државата го заборави" [The school in Podvis, where in 1943 the Macedonian language was taught for the first time, is collapsing, because the state forgot about it]. sdk.mk (in Macedonian). Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^ "Национален регистар на објекти кои се заштитно културно наследство" [National register of buildings that are protected cultural heritage] (in Macedonian). Ministry of Culture. 2012. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Првото училиште на македонски јазик заборавено од државата" [The First Macedonian Language School Forgoten by the State]. kicevo.mk (in Macedonian). April 22, 2013. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Sanja Jačevska (October 12, 2021). "Радоста на децата кога слушнале "добро утро" на мајчин јазик - приказната за првото училиште на македонски во Подвис" [The joy of the children when they heard "good morning" in their native language - the story of the first school in Macedonian in Podvis]. fakulteti.mk (in Macedonian). Archived from the original on November 22, 2022. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Реконструкција на првото училиште на македонски јазик" [Reconstruction of the first Macedonian Language School]. NetPress (in Macedonian). May 1, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2022.
^ "Училиштето [The School]". podvis.mk (in Macedonian). Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.

External links

Video on YouTube - a 2006 video report about the village of Podvis; from 11:39 to 29:17 mentioning about the Podvis School
Video on YouTube - a 2021 video report about the Podvis School by TV Telma