Family and Child Education in Communist Romania: Consequences of the Duality of Values and Behaviors

Facing the strict and alienating rules imposed by the totalitarian communist party in all aspects of civil life and having to have their children educated in the communist education system, the Romanian families found innovative ways to keep and pass on the rich cultural and religious traditions together with the ancient beliefs and values. However, this was accomplished with sacrifices and long term consequences on the development of children. This paper introduces the broad political, social and economical context of the communist regime in Romania and presents several sociocultural challenges which the children and families found ways of adapting to and integrate in their daily lives. The article demonstrates that, although the communist system left profound and unmistakable scars on children development, families have succeeded in transmitting their cultural heritage to the next generation. Using the sociocultural theories of learning as an anchoring framework, the author conducted a literature review and several in-depth ethnographic interviews to describe and formulate an explanation of the continuity and change of Romanian transmission of family traditions under duress.