Alfred Salmela’s house

Forsbackantie 9 Räyrinki Veteli

Alfred Salmela (1897–1979) was born as the sixth child of a farmer family in the village of Räyrinki, in Veteli, and lived there until his teenage years. He first attended an ambulatory school because his father did not let him attend primary school, which he thought was “intended for the lazy ones”. Despite the hindrances set by his father, Salmela was able to complete further studies at the folk high school of Ilmajoki and the coeducational school of Lapua, and finally at the Jyväskylä Teacher Seminary. Already at the age of 30, he was appointed to the post of counsellor of education at the National Board of General Education (present National Agency for Education). Before his long career at the National Board of General Education, he worked as a primary school teacher on the Karelian Isthmus and as a primary school inspector in Lapland. Salmela retired from the National Board of General Education in 1964.

Salmela participated in developing free municipal lower secondary education (keskikoulu) and a two-year education (kansalaiskoulu) after primary school for pupils who did not continue their studies at the secondary level. The social reforms carried out in the primary school system under his direction were significant especially for families of limited means and in remote districts: free school meals, free school commuting, school libraries and school health care. However, Salmela was critical about the comprehensive school reform launched in the 1960s because he found it might reduce pupils’ possibilities to choose between different subjects and make teaching less practical. According to him, pupils’ individuality should not be made uniform even in the name of equality. Salmela published books related to school administration, wrote textbooks on ethics and such areas as gardening for primary schools, and actively wrote for newspapers. He received the honorary title of professor in 1964.

Stories

Alfred’s father thought that school makes children lazy and snobbish. In Alfred’s childhood, there was a primary school in Räyrinki, but he was not allowed to go there and had to attend an ambulatory school, just like his siblings. As a teenager, Alfred held a long coffee strike with his brother. The money he saved was to be used by one of the two brothers to secretly apply for the folk high school in Ilmajoki. Alfred applied and was admitted, but the situation was contradictory. His father stated: “If you leave now, there’s no coming back!” Out on the fields, Alfred agonised whether to continue ploughing or go to school.  The lady of the neighbouring farm encouraged him: “Well, you certainly have done a lot of ploughing by now!” That was the beginning of Alfred’s studies, which were not financially easy. The head of the folk high school, for example, supported Alfred by giving him his old trousers. Sometimes there was not even enough food. At the final stage of his upper secondary studies, Alfred participated in the Finnish Civil War on the side of the Whites. Nevertheless, because of his hard work and persistence, his success in studies continued so that he finally graduated as a Master of Arts in spring 1923. (Alaspää 1994, 439–443)

Photos

Alfred Salmela´s house in summer 2019

Alfred Salmela (Salmelan suku http://salmelankartano.fi)

Alfred Salmela´s book (Salmelan suku http://salmelankartano.fi)

Map