Nadezhda Krupskaya, a prominent Bolshevik and Lenin's wife, was a leading theorist on education in the early Soviet Union. Her writings emphasize the critical role of education in building socialism and fostering class consciousness among the working masses. Krupskaya advocated for a polytechnical education system that combined academic learning with practical skills to prepare individuals for productive labor and active participation in society.
She critiqued the bourgeois education system for perpetuating class divisions and sought to replace it with a system that emphasized collective values, critical thinking, and the integration of intellectual and manual labor. Krupskaya believed in the transformative power of education to eradicate illiteracy and empower the proletariat, making it a cornerstone of revolutionary change.
Her contributions laid the foundation for Soviet educational policy, focusing on egalitarian access, the alignment of education with socialist ideals, and the creation of a new type of individual committed to collective progress.