Agreda Dirr

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Maria Agreda Dirr, OSF , (born February 14, 1880 in Oberbechingen , Swabia , as Kreszenz Dirr ; † April 24, 1949 in Dillingen an der Donau ) was a deaf-mute educator .

Grave of Sr. Agreda Dirr on the town. Cemetery in Dillingen

Live and act

Her parents ran a small farm that could barely support the large family. After attending the “undivided village school”, Kreszenz Dirr joined the order of the Dillinger Franciscan Sisters at the age of 14 . Those in charge of the women's monastery recognized her talent and had the young monastery candidate trained as a teacher. After successfully passing her exam in 1899, she went to Frankfurt am Main to train in pedagogy for the deaf and dumb. She then taught at the school for the deaf and mute of the “Regens-Wagnerischen Charities” in Dillingen on the Danube. In 1902 she made her holy profession and took the name Maria Agreda (after the Spanish abbess María von Ágreda ).

Sr. Maria Agreda Dirr was particularly committed to helping deaf and mute children of preschool age. As a result, in 1921 she set up a “curative educational kindergarten” for deaf and dumb children in Dillingen. At that time there were only three such institutions in all of Germany. A fourth was soon brought into being at the suggestion of Sr. Maria Agreda Dirr in the “Regens-Wagnerischen-Charity Agencies” in Zell near Hilpoltstein . The nun wrote about the necessity and importance of such a kindergarten for deaf and dumb children before the age of 6:

"Deaf and dumb! Deaf, that means a locked gate to a sanctuary, to the sanctuary of language. Mute, that means a well of delicious water that has been spilled. The deaf and dumb means a double heart condition at the same time ... Even the little deaf and dumb child experiences many injustices. How often do parents fail to understand how to treat their deaf and dumb child properly. How often must it be mocked by its surroundings! Is it a miracle when the little child's heart closes and turns away? That is why these poor beings need an institution that gives them more friendliness, compassion and patience. The kindergarten for the deaf and dumb is important because it is a role model for the child's environment and for his or her parents: a role model in the upbringing of the little deaf mute child. The living example will have a fruitful effect on the parents and the child's environment. "

- Sr. Maria Agreda Dirr

In 1935 Sr. Maria Agreda Dirr was appointed superior of her order. Associated with this was membership of the board of directors of the “Regens-Wagnerischen Charities”. In addition, she was a member of the General Council of the Dillingen Franciscan Sisters and consequently shared responsibility for leading the entire congregation.

In addition to her various obligations, the nun was a much sought-after speaker on questions of deaf-mute education. She gave lectures and a. in the institutions for the deaf and dumb in Munich , Breslau and Frankfurt / Main. With her publications she had significantly influenced the deaf and dumb pedagogy. As an experienced deaf-mute educator, Sr. Agreda Dirr pleaded for “reasonable language maintenance” in the “regular kindergarten” in order to counteract any “language deficits” at an early stage:

“It cannot be the task of the kindergarten to maintain a special procedure with linguistic children; that is a matter for the educational institutions. On the other hand, a sensible language care is already part of his task area from the point of view of upbringing ... Many language deficiencies that the child brings to school are to be found in neglected language education. "

- Sr. Maria Agreda Dirr

The euthanasia program of the 1940s could they and their sisters ultimately nothing to oppose.

Works (selection)

  • The current state of care for the deaf and dumb in Germany, In: Krankendienst 1925 / H. 10, p. 226 ff.
  • Language deficits in kindergarten, In: Kinderheim 1926 / H. 2, p. 47 ff.
  • Speech therapy at the preliminary stage of the mentally ill school, In: Krankendienst 1928 / H. 2, p. 27 ff.
  • Speech therapy in the weak-minded school, In: Franz Keller (Ed.): Yearbook of Caritaswissenschaft, Freiburg 1929, p. 61 ff.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Berger 1998, p. 142
  2. ↑ Dirr 1926, p. 71
  3. ↑ Manfred Berger, article Dirr, Sr. Maria Agreda. In: Hugo Maier (Ed.): Who is who of social work. Lambertus, Freiburg im Breisgau 1998, ISBN 3-7841-1036-3 , p. 142.
personal data
SURNAME Dirr, Agreda
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Dirr, Maria Agreda; Dirr, Kreszenz (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German deaf-mute pedagogue
DATE OF BIRTH February 14, 1880
PLACE OF BIRTH Oberbechingen
DATE OF DEATH April 24, 1949
Place of death Dillingen on the Danube