EDU 06: EDUCATION IN INDIAN SOCIETY

SEMINAR REPORT

TOPIC: INDIAN EDUCATION DURING BRITISH PERIOD

SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED BY

MISS SAJEESHMA PARVATHY B

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR B.Ed ENGLISH

CHRIST NAGAR COLLEGE ROLL NO 10

OF EDUCATION
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INDEX

S.NO TOPIC Pg:No

1 INTRODUCTION 3-4

2 ROLE OF EAST INDIA COMPANY 5-6

3 CHARTER ACT OF 1813 6-7

4 ORIENTAL - OCCIDENTAL 7-8

CONTROVERSY
5 MACAULAY’S MINUTES ON 9-10
INDIAN EDUCATION
6 DOWNWARD FILTRATION 11-12
THEORY
7 WOOD’S DISPATCH 12-16

8 CONCLUSION 17

9 REFERENCES 18
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INTRODUCTION

Education is a powerful tool to unlock the golden door of freedom that can

change the world. The education system that existed in ancient and medieval

India was prominently that of the ‘Gurukul’ type. In this system, students lived

with the teacher or ‘guru’ in the same house and education was parted by a guru

who taught his disciples to attain Moksha. In this period, education was

available to all and no restrictions were placed on it. However, the lessons

taught to each caste were different, based on the job attached to their category.

As India faced Mughal rule, education was greatly influenced by Islamic

ideologies. Muslims and Hindus were educated in pre-British times through

Pathshalas, Tols, Madrasas, and Maktabs, where young students learned from

religious texts and other ancient literature for various kinds of knowledge. There

was little awareness of scientific advances taking place around the world.

However, even at that time, India was reputed for many global universities like

Nalanda.

With the advent of the British Rule in India, their policies and measures

breached the legacies of traditional schools of learning which resulted in the

need for creating a class of subordinates. The colonial conquest led to the fall of

the education system in India. For the initial sixty-odd years, the British did not

pay any heed to advancing the education system in the country.

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As their territory increased and they started to control the revenue and

administration, the need for educating the Indians in English became a necessity

to procure manpower. Later, the British started on a mission to abolish the

ancient gurukul system and sowed seeds for the cultural and linguistic upheaval

of the country. To achieve this goal, they instituted a number of acts to create an

Indian canvas of English colour through the education system. Initially, the

British East India Company was not concerned with the development of the

education system because their prime motive was trading and profit-making.

Modern education and the idea of practical learning were introduced to

India by the British school system. In order to better comprehend the nation, the

British initially set up educational institutions where people could learn about

local customs, traditions, and laws. Under British administration, the East India

Company, Christian missionaries, and Indian thinkers and reformers served as

three of the main proponents of modern education.

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ROLE OF EAST INDIA COMPANY

Western Education made a beginning in India with the activities of the

Dutch and Portuguese. Christian Missionaries began to set up educational

institutions as part of their work of propagating their religion. But an organised

and systematic programme came into existence only with the coming of East

India Company in the field.

The East India Company was a private company which, after a long series of

wars and diplomatic efforts, came to rule India in the 19th century. Ships of the

company's first voyage sailed from England in February 1601. In the early

1600s the East India Company began dealing with the Mogul rulers of India. At

the Battle of Plassey, in 1757, forces of the East India Company, though greatly

outnumbered, defeated Indian forces backed by the French. In the late 1700s,

company officials became notorious for returning to England and showing off

the enormous wealth they had accumulated while in India. Alarmed by reports

of enormous corruption in India, the British government began to take some

control over company affairs. A number of Christian missionaries had been

allowed into India by the East India Company. And the native population

started to become convinced that the British intended to convert the entire

Indian subcontinent to Christianity.

The outbreak of Indian Revolt of 1857 effectively brought about the end of the

East India Company. Parliament passed the Government of India Act of 1858,
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which ended the company's role in India and declared that India would be

governed by the British crown. The company's impressive headquarters in

London, East India House, was torn down in 1861.

The company was not interested in the education of Indian citizens. Its

main objective was only trade. They adopted a policy of non interference in the

matter of education. But in due course the East India Company took up the

programmes of religious propagation and establishment of schools in addition to

expansion of trade.

CHARTER ACT OF 1813

Although, before 1813, Missionaries and various religious groups had

brought some basic education non-officially to the Indian masses but it was

through the Charter Act that a state system of education was officially

introduced in Indian history.  It makes the beginning of an era of modern Indian

education in the country. All the later educational developments in British India

virtually originate from the provisions of the Act.

The British administration in India had for the first time realized its

educational responsibility with the Charter Act of 1813.It had sanctioned a big

sum of rupees for the first time to serve the cause of Indian education.

Accordingly, the Act proposes 1 lakh of rupees for Indian education. The

British administration had realized that they had the official responsibility to

remove the poverty and illiteracy of the Indian people. The Charter Act of 1813

open the way to western literature and culture in India. The later educational
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and political developments in British India owe their origin to this Charter Act

of 1813. From 1813 to 1857, the company opened many schools and colleges

under their control which laid the foundation of the English system of education

in India.

ORIENTAL OCCIDENTAL CONTROVERSY

Oriental-Occidental Controversy was an ideological conflict between two

groups of people in India during the British colonial rule. The ideological

quarrel was related to the organization of modern education India. British

started organizing the formal educational system in India only during the first

half of the 19th century. Their real intention behind their sailing to India was

not administrative. They came to India just for trade. However, the dramatic

events spread across two centuries caused for the commencement of British

colonial rule in India just after the War of Plassey  in 1757. It was a turning

point in the history of modern Indian Education.

As they became the rulers of India, they wanted to implement the modern

administrative system in India by following the British model of administration.

They needed modern officials for the purpose. The newly emerged situation

made them think about giving modern education to Indians by establishing

modern educational institutions in India. Mean while, an ideological clash

emerged. The clash is known as Oriental-Occidental Controversy. Some people

advocated that the educational system should accept the languages such as
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Arabic, Sanskrit and Urdu as the medium of instruction. They also wanted that

eastern literature i.e. the literary pieces written in Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit

should be taught in educational institutions. This group is known as

the Orientals. Another group which included Indians, too, argued that English

should be the medium of instruction rather than using the languages such as

Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit. They also stood for the teaching of the European

literature in educational institutions. This group of people is known as the

occidentals. Hence, the clash is known as the Oriental-Occidental controversy.

The orientalists were afraid that the great Indian culture would be brutally

destroyed by the British. They felt that there was some hidden agenda for the

British by starting modern educational institutions in India. At the same time,

some Indians, who had already started enjoying the status they had had because

of their capacity to speak in English language and tendency of behaving like

British, stood firmly for the promotion of English language in India. They had

already started underestimating the eastern literature and culture. They believed

that English education can bring progressive changes in India.

  As the controversy hindered the progress of modern education in India, Lord

Macaulay was brought to India to solve the problem. Thus he submitted a report

to the governor general of the time. The report is known as Macaulay’s Minutes

of 1835.
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MACAULAY’S MINUTES ON INDIAN EDUCATION

Lord Macaulay came to India in June 10, 1834, as the law member of the

Governor General’s Executive council and was appointed as the President of the

committee of Public Instruction. He was entrusted to settle down the dispute

between orientalists and Anglicists in 1835. He submitted his famous minutes in

February, 1835 to the council which was approved by Lord Bentik and a

resolution was passed in March 1835.

In his minute on education, Macaulay justified the use of English as the

medium of instruction, and also the teaching of western education to Indians.

He lampooned Indian knowledge and languages and thought them completely

worthless. For instance, he said of Indian literature:

“…a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native

literature of India and Arabia.”

Macaulay wanted the government to spend money only on imparting western

education and not on oriental education. He advocated the shutting down of all

colleges where only eastern philosophy and subjects were taught. He also

advocated that the government try to educate only a few Indians, who would in

turn teach the rest of the masses. This is called the ‘downward filtration’ policy.

He wanted to create a pool of Indians who would be able to serve British

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interests and be loyal to them. This class would be “Indian in blood and colour,

but English in tastes, in opinions, in morals and in intellect.”

Macaulay’s proposals were promptly accepted by Lord William

Bentinck, but he cleverly deferred its implementation until he was to relinquish

his post as governor-general. Bentinck perhaps wanted to avoid a backlash from

some quarters. He nevertheless, did not shut down oriental learning completely

as proposed by Macaulay. Macaulay’s proposals were officially sanctioned in

March 1835. In 1837, English was made the court language. In 1844, high

government posts were open to Indians.

Criticism of Macaulay’s Minute:

Macaulay’s minute was criticized in the following grounds.

They are:

(i) Macaulay’s claim about English as only the medium of instruction cannot be

justified.

(ii) It is wrong to believe that Macaulay was responsible for introducing a new

educational policy in India.

(iii) Other Indian languages were neglected.

(iv) His downward filtration theory proved to be more a failure for Indians.
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Downward Filtration Theory

During the British rule in India the downwards filtration theory was adopted in

the country. Filtration means coming of something to the bottom from the top.

Thus the filtration theory in education meant coming down of education or

knowledge from the top to the bottom, i.e., from the higher class people to the

lower classes or the general people.

There were many reasons for adopting this policy. Different views have been

expressed about this policy. Some people think that this policy was adopted

because of the narrow-mindedness and selfish attitudes of the English who

intended to educate only a few for getting clerks for running their

administration.

They adopted this policy also because they wanted to create an elite group

which would be given high posts in the administration and this group in turn

would influence the general public for accepting the British rule in the country.

The downwards filtration theory had the following three chief

characteristics:
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1. To educate only the high class people in order to give them higher posts

in the administration with a view to strengthening the roots of British

empire in the Country.

2. When the higher class people would receive English education their

culture would be improved and the general public would accept them as

their models. As a result, the lower class people would also be educated

after being influenced by the higher class people.

3. To educate the higher class people who might undertake the

responsibility of educating the general people.

Failure of the Downwards Filtration Theory of Education

The first cause of the failure of the filtration theory was that too many

English educated Indians came out in the field and it was not possible for the

Government to give them suitable employment according to their expectations.

The second cause of the failure of the filtration theory was that it created a

feeling of self-respect, national honour and independence in the English

educated Indians.

WOOD'S DISPATCH

In 1854, Sir Charles Wood, the President of the Board of Control of the British

East India Company, sent a formal dispatch to Lord Dalhousie, the then

Governor-General of India, suggesting a large shift to English language use

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within India. Sir Charles recommended that primary schools adopt vernacular

languages, high schools adopt Anglo-vernacular language and that English be

the medium of education in colleges. This communiqué is informally known as

Wood's dispatch. Wood’s dispatch was called the Magna Carta of Indian

Education because it aimed to give more education liberties and freedoms to the

people of India and advance their education system. The goal was to teach

Indians about Western culture and culture in the West. Another goal was to

educate native Indians so as to produce a class of public servants to promote the

moral development of the next generation while simultaneously fostering

intellectual growth.

Recommendations of Wood's Despatch

"Wood's Despatch" was issued by the British colonial government in India in

1854. The document, formally titled "Despatch on the Progress of Education in

India," was a significant policy statement on education and recommended

several measures to improve education in India. Some of the recommendations

from Wood's Despatch are:

1) Establishment of a well-organised system of education with English as

the medium of instruction in higher education.

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2) Establishment of universities and colleges to provide higher education to

Indians.

3) Establishment of a system of grants-in-aid to encourage the establishment

of schools by private individuals and organisations.

4) Improvement of the quality of primary education, including the training

of teachers and the provision of textbooks.

5) Encouragement of female education and the establishment of girls'

schools.

6) The recognition of the importance of indigenous languages and the need

to promote their study in schools.

7) Establishment of a system of inspection to ensure the quality of education

provided in schools and colleges.

8) Establishment of normal schools or teacher training institutions to train

teachers for primary schools.

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Merits of Wood's Despatch

1. The emphasis on English language education helped create a class of

educated Indians who were able to interact with the British rulers.

2. The establishment of teacher training institutions helped improve the

quality of primary education in India.

3. The emphasis on practical education in fields such as science and

technology helped India develop a workforce skilled in modern

industries.

4. The promotion of vocational education helped to create a skilled

workforce in areas such as agriculture, engineering, and medicine.

5. The recognition of the importance of vernacular languages helped

preserve and promote India's rich cultural heritage.

Demerits of Wood's Despatch

1. The emphasis on English language education led to the neglect of Indian

languages and cultural traditions.

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2. The promotion of English education helped create a class of Indians who

were more aligned with the British colonial rulers than with their own

people.

3. The establishment of universities and colleges focused mainly on

academic education, rather than practical skills, leading to a lack of job

opportunities for graduates.

4. The emphasis on vocational education led to a focus on manual labour,

rather than intellectual pursuits, leading to a perception that certain

occupations were beneath the educated classes.

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CONCLUSION

The introduction of English education in India brought with it western

civilization and culture into the country. The British way of life set into motion

through English education had a magical effect on the Indians. English

education brought out a reawakening and a desire to recapture our ancient glory

in addition to broadening the path of a better system of education and

government in the country. The British education brought Indians into touch

with western knowledge and science.The English education greatly influenced

the regional literature of India It generated enormous volumes of translated

literature and original works in English. The spread of science literacy through

English education caused the elimination of many superstitions and social evils

from Indian life. It leads to scientific advancement and technological

development in India .The English education gave Indians a common language

which promoted national unity. The spread of English education promoted

nationalistic feeling among Indians. It created social and political awareness and

lessened the intensity of casteism.The unprecedented importance given to

women’s education during the British period raised the status of women.
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REFERENCES

 Agarwal, J,C. Education in the Emerging Indian Society. Shipra

publications.2017.

 Agarwal, J,C. Landmarks in the History of Modern Indian Education.S

Chand Publishers.2010.

 Arjunan, N, K. Philosophical and Sociological Bases of Education.Yuga

publications.2017.

 Sivarajan, K. Education in the Emerging Indian Society. Calicut

University.2014.