After the Communists took power in the country, literacy increased at a rapid pace. In 1956 only 17.6 percent of the population over twenty-five was illiterate, and by 1965 only 8.6 percent was illiterate. In 1973, although total literacy for people under fifty years of age was claimed by the government, the rate of literacy of this group was probably somewhere between 90 and 100 percent. Of the illiterate population in 1965, approximately three-fourths were women and only one-fourth were men, reflecting the recency of the emancipation of women in Bulgaria. Of ethnic groups, the Gypsies have both the lowest levels of literacy and of education, whereas the Turks have a significantly higher literacy rate. Jews, Czechs, Greeks, and Russians all have a relatively high literacy level. In 1965 there were three times as many illiterates in rural areas as in urban. Also, illiteracy in Bulgaria was much more common among the older generation than among the young. In 1965, of the population over 60 years of age, approximately one-third was illiterate, whereas only a very small percentage of the working-age group was illiterate. The government seemed relatively unconcerned about the problem of illiteracy among the older people, as an official stated: "The high illiteracy rate among the older population does not present a problem since this is the population above the working age and this group is not crucial to our economic life." THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM Administration and Finance The 1947 constitution established both the Ministry of Education and the Committee for Science, Art, and Culture, which held ministry status. In 1954 the Law on Public Education increased the authority of the Ministry of Education; all general and vocational schools fell under its jurisdiction at that time. In February 1954 the Ministry of Culture was established. It replaced the Committee for Science, Art, and Culture and oversaw, in broad terms, the curricula at all levels of education, including correspondence courses. In 1973 the executive branch dealing with the legal aspects of education was the Council of Ministers, and the Ministry of National Education dealt with all administrative matters. The minister of national education is a member of the Presidium of the National Assembly as well as of the BKP Central Committee. Similarly, the assistant ministers of education hold high offices in the party structure. In this way the party not only supports educational legislation but also originates it. The Ministry of National Education has four principal tasks to perform. Its primary duty is to direct and control the educational system in accordance with the policies of the party and the government. It both formulates and approves basic documents of the educational system, such as the curricula, the school regulations, and methods. It arranges for the publication of all school textbooks and supervises the work of the people's councils at the local level.