Adult learning and evening classes: adult education in the early 1900s in the Terra d’Otranto

Abstract

This research focuses on the historical dimension of adult education with the aim of outlining a historical excursus, starting from the analysis of the literature and providing a
critical study of unpublished documents kept in local archives. The strategies adopted in the Terra d’Otranto in the early 1900s to implement educational legislation demonstrate the fight against illiteracy in the adult population of Salento at the time. The analysis uses documents from prefectural and municipal archives, and from the provincial administration of the Terra d’Otranto, and shows the results obtained, such as the creation of a regional body to oversee people’s access to culture. The research will also highlight the difficulties experienced by the various bodies since the second half of the XIX century in adopting suitable measures to promote adult literacy and fund adult learning.