Although the field of education for the deaf and hard of hearing and the blind or partially sighted people constantly appears in parallel in the legislation, the education for the deaf began to develop significantly earlier. The first Slovenian Deaf Institute was considered the Deaf and Mute School in Gorica in 1840. After that, the School Sisters of Notre Dame in Novo mesto started the specialised classes for girls. Furthermore, the first state institution for deaf and mute children was founded in Ljubljana in 1900. Finally, the first institute for the blind in Slovenia opened in 1919. Consequently, Slovenian children, eager to gain an education, were forced to seek a place at institutions for the blind abroad. The legislation mentions the first inclusion of blind children in the public school system in 1842. Their compulsory primary school education was confirmed by the National Public Schools Act in 1869. Thus the issues about special education for teachers were triggered. In 1886, the regulation on testing the teachers' qualifications was published. However, the topics related to defectology had found their way to teacher's school way before. Scholarship institutions contributed immensely to the education of deaf and blind children by providing financial support both at home and abroad.
|