E d u c a t i o n .
C H A P T E R VIII.
Anglo-Vernacular Schools.
162. In no respect do conditions in Bengal differ m ore widely from those'obtaining elsewhere in In d ia th an in respect o f A nglo-V erna
cular schools. W hile in other Provinces these institutions Educational exist almost entirely in towns or a t th e headquarters of conditions in districts, here they also abound in villages ; while Bengal. elsewhere they owe th e ir existence m ainly to Governm ent or to local funds a n d occasionally to individual m unifi
cence, here they have been an d are being principally established by private effort ; while elsewhere they are on the whole effectively contro
lled by Governm ent, in Bengal, G overnm ent, in consequence o f the recomm endations o f the In d ian E ducation Commission o f 1882, adopted an attitu d e o f practical non-interference in regard to private enterprise.
Tw o examples will illustrate the enorm ous differences which dis
tinguish Bengal from th e rest o f U p p e r In d ia an d which stultify so m any generalisations. T h e M ad arip u r Subdivision o f the rem ote ru ral dis
trict o f JFaridpur contains 15 private H ig h Schools, each w ith an atten dance o f about 400 boys. I t fu rth er holds 19 private M iddle English Schools. T he M unshiganj Subdivision o f the D acca D istrict is even m ore richly endowed w ith private H igh Schools. B ut in the whole o f the U nited Provinces there are only 14 H ig h an d 15 M iddle English Schools away from district headquarters. Five o f the form er and four o f the latter are m aintained by G overnm ent or local funds. T h e figures o f atte n dance for all b u t two o f the entire n u m b er are far below the average
Bengal figures. *
163. The- presence of a m ultitude o f English schools flung far and wide over the Presidency is m ainly due to th e dominating^ influence o f Calcutta, which has been term ed the m ost Europeanised city in the East an d has long been th e centre o f legal, educational
Reasons for j - i • ♦ • v~v ♦ i • * n
and com mercial activities. O utside it there are lew towns and some
results of these m Bengal o f considerable size or im portance. This is conditions. partly accounted for by the fact th a t the Bengali H indu bhadralok, or clerical classes and small landholders,
* • J 3
live largely in villages an d retain their ancestral homesteads, even when
they serve or work elsewhere. U n d er such circum stances they often leave their children a t hom e in charge o f relatives ; and, w hen active life is over for themselves, they frequently re tu rn to their ancestral villages.
W herever they settle or leave th eir children, th ey w ant A nglo-V ernacular schools and are ready to pay for them . L o rd C urzon once said : “ I am no t sure th a t if a vote were taken am ong th e intelligent m iddle classes o f this country, they would no t sooner see m oney devoted to secondary education th an to any other educational object. T h e reason is, th a t it is the basis o f all professional or industrial em ploym ent in In d ia .” T h e difference between the Bengali bhadralok a n d the small landlords an d m iddle class of other Provinces o f U p p e r In d ia is th a t the former are more enterprising, m ore intelligent and far m ore ready to p u t their hands into th eir pockets to secure educational advantages. T hey act largely under the influence o f a great city to which all path s o f advancem ent are consi
dered to lead. T h e result is th at, w ith the strong encouragem ent of Governm ent, private enterprise has sown English education broadcast am ong a clever, keen, excitable people. Even th e cultivating classes are now becoming impressed w ith its advantages. T his extended knowledge of English, in times like the present, m ust necessarily have produced, and will continue to produce some degree o f social an d political unrest; and it is n atu ral th a t this unrest should affect th e rising generation. But w hat was u nnatu ral was the particularly sinister an d prom inent p a rt played by Bengal colleges an d schools thro u g h o u t th e recent troubles, a p a rt which, we have reason to think, is no t entirely played out. “ W hen did you hear o f educated .people turning dacoits an d robbers?” said . an old M uham m adan servant o f G overnm ent to us. H e m ight have added:
“ W hen did you hear of boys leaving th eir schools to take p a rt in systematic dacoity?” T here have been various instances o f this in Eastern Bengal. M ost people will agree th a t th ere m ust be som ething seriously wrong in the system which produces such phenom ena. T h e fact is th a t the diffusion o f English education in Bengal dem anded considerably more from G overnm ent th an it received. P rivate effort, however meritorious, required careful an d attentive steering; b u t the Education Commission o f .1882 did no t realise this, n o t having tearnt by bitter experience "the dangers of spreading am ong an Eastern people a W estern education, cut down to the lowest possible cost, w ith no regard to religious training and w ith little regard to m oral training.
164. In this Presidency nine G overnm ent colleges educate about 3,000 students. Twenty-five private colleges educate about 10,000 students.
All these institutions are fed by 527 H igh Schools, 38 o f which are m ain
tained by Government, four by local funds, 208 are aided by Governm ent or local funds, and: ^.1*1 Are unaided. All these H igh Schools, although
sometimes pecuniarily assisted by Governm ent, which provides the ins
pecting staff and scholarships, are controlled by the Syndicate of the C alcutta University, which has the power o f“recognising” them as q u a
lified to present candidates for the M atriculation examination, the sole goal o f youthful scholastic am bition in Bengal. These H igh Schools are partly recruited from 1,295 M iddle English Schools, o f which four are m aintained by Governm ent, 43 by local funds, 775 are aided and 473 are unaided.
T h e above figures give the position on th e 31st o f M arch 1913. T here have apparently been increases since. T h e E ducation D epartm ent has not been able to furnish us w ith figures o f unrecognised Anglo-Ver
nacular schools, b u t reports th a t there were in M arch 1913, 446 private boys’ schools o f all kinds, educating 17,992 pupils an d n o t conforming to departm ental rules. T h ere are some signs th a t any stiffening in the requirem ents for “ recognition” will cause unrecognised schools to increase;
and they are increasing m aterially in the D acca an d M ym ensingh districts.
T here are a few “N ational schools,” legacies from th e boycott movem ent.
T h e D irector considers th a t th eir extinction is only a question o f time.
W e paid a visit to one in the town o f Jh a lu k a ti in the Bakarganj District.
T h e M unicipal C hairm an inform ed us th a t the attendance was now only 25 or 30; b u t we found ab o u t 60 boys there, an d we were told th a t 90 names were on the roll. T h e school did not impress us as m oribund. T h e instruction in draw ing an d carpentry, which we saw, seemed good. W e were shown a drawing o f A rab inda Ghose an d were subsequently informed, on unim peachable authority, th a t only a short tim e before Romesh C h an d ra A charjya, sentenced td 12 years’ transportation in the Barisal cons
piracy case, h ad stayed a t this school. Excepting N ational schools, all Anglo-Vernacular institutions are increasing in num bers; and alm ost all which we visited were cram m ed w ith boys, especially in East Bengal, where th e M uham m adans are coming into the educational field in rising strength.
165. H igh Schools m ay be term ed the pivot o f A nglo-V ernacular education. T hey supply the Colleges w ith students and receive'boys
from the, M iddle Schools *under transfer-certificates.
High Schools. ^ the H igh Schools are well-regulated, desirable institutions, both the Colleges and M iddle Schools will benefit. B ut being as they are un der th e control o f a body of gentlemen, ordinarily resident in C alcutta by th e conditions o f their appointment, the m ajority o f the private H igh Schools o f Bengal are not well regulated. Studies are a h ard grind of prep aratio n u nd er gener
ally incom petent teachers for a single w ritten exam ination; buildings are frequently bad; class rooms are commonly overcrow ded; games are restricted; life is Hull anH nnintprpsting, who come
} L (G P 4 * y " ‘I 1 6 V NATIONAL INSTITUTE f
d U * l- ) C AD MI NI S T R AT I ON j j
to some H igh Schools from distant villages, there is h ard ly m ore th an a pretence o f satisfactory boarding arrangem ents. Unless so fortunate as to find th eir way to a few special institutions like th e O xford Mission hostels or the Bell Islam ia boarding house a t Barisal, they live in such places as Dacca, Barisal, Comilla, exposed to th e w orst influences a t the m ost im pressionable period of their lives, aw ay from th eir homes, under nom inal an d careless guardians. Even if there be a hostel, it affords only a small p a rt o f the accom m odation required, an d is too often badly housed and inefficiently supervised. O u t o f school-hours th e boys practically do w hat they like. T hey w ander about an d spend th eir tim e as they please in towns where b ad influences are concentrated. Some play games; b u t these are generally the m inority, an d of the supervision th a t an English school-boy receives out o f school-hours there is h ard ly any. T h e conse
quences o f such arrangem ents are w hat m ight be expected. Every effort is being m ade by Governm ent to im prove th e general situation by lavish grants; an d here and there m uch has been or is being done. But, as the G overnm ent of In d ia have observed, qualitative im provem ent is retarded by the length and expense of the program m e ; an d th e system which has produced such a state o f things rem ains unaltered. Even now M atriculation remains th e only goal of alm ost every boy’s school career; even now control o f H igh Schools is n o t w ith G overnm ent. I t is w ith these insti
tutions, ra th e r th an w ith the num erous M iddle English Schools (which are b ad enough, b u t can be im proved w ith com parative ease when once H igh Schools are properly regulated), th a t this chapter is mainly concerned.
166. Those who know him best agree th a t the Bengali student or school-boy is, under favourable circum stances, hard- The young working, well-behaved an d readily am enable to discipline.
Bengali. In the words o f an experienced witness, “ he does no t m ind being kept in order.” In contact w ith teachers who m ake a conscience o f th eir work, have tim e to give their pupils in
dividual attention, and are n o t dependent on parental caprices, he is responsive to intellectual appeal and personal influence. M r. Archbold, Principal o f the D acca College, told us:— “ I t is marvellous how good an In d ian student really is, w hen the slackness o f discipline is considered.
T h e whole m ind o f an ordinary Bengali student is set on his work. In all my tim e here (four years) I never h ad a d ay ’s trouble w ith one boy.” T he Principal o f the Hostel o f the O xford Mission to C alcu tta said:— “Relations between the students an d th e m embers o f the Mission are excellent.
T here is no insubordination. Discipline is very good. W hatever racial feel
ing the studenfs acquire they get from th e new spapers.” A t th e same time the Bengali youth, is em otional, uncritical an d liable to be carried away by
bursts o f fanaticism. O f this there have been m any well-known instance's*
an d we would invite atten tio n to parag rap h 17, C h ap ter I I o f this report.
T he highly injurious influence th a t an inflam m atory press has exercised over the young generation was emphasised by the late Sir H erb ert Risley when introducing the Press Act o f 1910; there is still a section o f society which misses no opportunity of endeavouring to graft its own inveterate discontent on others, a n d from time to tim e seditious publications are circulated w hich tend to excite im pressionable youth.
167. U nfortunately, as we have already shown, the m ajority o f Ben
gali boys pursue their studies in establishm ents where th ere is little to coun
teract injurious influences. T here is, on th e contrary, a Long-standing good deal to strengthen them . L ord C urzon’s Governm ent defects m his pointed o u t ten years ago th a t the 1‘em edy for the lack o f educational religious instruction lies in the influence o f carefully
surroundings. , , .
Their history selected a n d trained teachers, in the m aintenance o f a high stan d ard o f discipline, an d above all in the association o f teachers an d pupils in the com m on interests o f daily life. T h e present condition of m any A nglo-V ernacular schools in Bengal is the negation of all these things; an d sometimes the association o f teachers w ith pupils has been for seditious an d crim inal purposes. In seeking for the causes o f this, one soon becomes aw are o f long-standing defects of system. I t will b e convenient to review th eir history w ith effect from the years 1882-83, w hen the In d ian Education Commission, in reporting upon the state of education then existing, m ade a careful enquiry into the measures w hich h ad been taken in pursuance o f the E ast India C om pany’s despatch o f 1854, an d subm itted detailed pro
posals for carrying ou t the principles o f th a t despatch.
168. T he m em bers o f the Bengal Educational C om m ittee an d the In d ian Education and P ublic Service Commissions o f th e ‘eighties’ m et
under conditions widely different from those o f the present Thirty years day. Learners o f English were then far fewer. Politics ago. were less generally absorbing and h ad n o t invaded
education. T h e C om m ittee w rote:— “ I t was jud ged rightly that the knowledge im bibed w ith, and the intelligence evoked by, English education, however incom patible they might* be with blind belief in wrong theories o f Science an d History, could no t sap the foundations o f a m orality which was in essentials common to pupils and teacher, and th a t the ties w hich bound fast the ruler to the ruled would, under the system of education introduced, become identified w ith those which bound the disciple to the m aster.” T he Com m ittee considered that the grant-jn-aid policy, initiated by the C ourt o f Directors in 1854, had proved an entire success. O f H igh Schools, for one m aintained by
G overnm ent, there were three, two aided an d one unaided, supported by private effort. O f English M iddle Schools, G overnm ent m aintained only a small fraction. T h e result of English education was th a t numerous associations h a d been form ed for the prom otion o f objects o f social and nation al im portance, m any o f w hich did “ a great am o un t o f political good.15 A lthough the C om m ittee h ad moved am ong the contentions engendered, by th e Ilb e rt Bill, there was no presentim ent o f the evils which would one day come from cheap, inferior, ill-disciplined schools. O n th e contrary, extrem e confidence was manifested in all existing tendencies. Those who h a d displayed such keenness in establishing schools m ight safely be left to m anage them . T h e education th a t practically m ean t m ere cram m ing for exam ination should be widely extended w itho ut let or hindrance.
G overnm ent should w ithdraw as soon as possible from th e direct m anage
m ent o f schools.
169. These findings were endorsed by the In d ian E ducation Commis
sion, w ith the reservation that, w hatever w ithdraw al th ere m ight be from direct supervision o f education, there should be none from indirect but efficient control. As, however, this reservation was coupled w ith the injunction th a t p rivate schools were only to be interfered w ith “ in cases o f extrem e necessity,” a n d was followed Jpy a determ ination (inspired by the Public Service Commission) to dispense w ith B ritish inspecting agency as far as possible, it am ounted to little m ore than a pious aspiration.
T h e C om m ittee entertained the hope th a t extended English educa
tion would, following the lines o f popu lar education in England, lead to increased industrialism an d extended avenues o f employment. They recom m ended the institution o f school courses alternative to the Entrance course an d including subjects selected w ith a view to the requirem ents of an industrial o r com m ercial career. B ut this recom m endation, although endorsed by the In d ian Commission, came to nothing. T h e practical result o f C om m ittee an d Commissions was a devolution o f educational control to the C alcutta University an d to School Committees, for which Bengal was ill-prepared.
.170. T h e mistakes in the policy adopted rapidly becam e apparent.
T his is obvious from a letter addressed by the G overnm ent o f In d ia to all
• Local Governments on D ecem ber 31st, 1887, an d from Subsequent a Resolution issued by the sam e G overnm ent on the
developments. 17th August 1889. Tendencies “ unfavourable to discipline an d favourable to irreverence” h ad been noticed in the rising generation; the lack o f efficient teachers h ad been severely felt. T h e G overnor-G eneral in Council desired to give em phatic expres
sion to the view th a t it was “of little use to spend money or\ schools wljere the teachers are either inefficient, or unable to m aintain discipline or a
healthy m oral tone.” T h e Governm ent o f In d ia recom m ended various rem edial measures to the Local Governm ents; bu t to carry ou t these required m oney which was not forthcoming. So little was done th a t even now, 24 years later, we find the D irector o f Public Instruction saying: “T h e p ro p e r train in g o f teachers and inspectors is the great desi
deratum . T here are two training colleges now, in D acca an d C alcutta.
A t present the m ajority o f teachers, even in G overnm ent schools, a re u ntrained, and in p rivate schools hardly any are train ed .”
171. P rivate English schools were thus left to develop largely as th e y pleased; an d they grew an d m ultiplied all over Bengal, particularly in th e bhadralok villages o f the Eastern districts, far rem ote from the C alcutta University, which was supposed to control them . English education was the avenue to G overnm ent service an d professional em ploym ent;
and the hereditary followers o f these m ethods o f livelihood established English education w herever they went. T hey required for their children instruction w hich w ould procure an incom e; m oral influences an d the training o f ch aracter they hard ly thought of in connection with school- teaching. T h ey placed th eir schools un der M anaging Committees o f small ideas; and these Committees, cutting down th e cost o f buildings and the salaries o f teachers to the lowest possible level, provided the chea
pest education to be had. T he U niversity recognised w ith very little discrim ination; an d even if a school were so unfo rtu nate as to be rejected, its scholars presented themselves for m articulation as private candidates.
172. I t was not until the tim e o f L ord Curzon th a t the Governm ent o f In d ia again took u p the question o f secondary education. Lord C u r
zon realised th a t this was no t a m atter th a t should be left any longer entirely to Com mittees an d U niversity Syndicates. I t was The failure of a gre a t national concern, “ the key to employment, the Lord Curzon’s condition o f all national advance and prosperity, and the reforms in ' sole stepping-stone for every class o f the com m unity to Bengal. higher things.” I t was a social and political, even m ore th an an intellectual dem and. H e stated th a t in secondary education carefully selected an d trained teachef-s were all-im portant, an d that adequate inspection was equally necessary; next cam e reform in buildings an d courses o f study. H e left the power o f m aking regulations for recognition for th e M atriculation exam ination in th e hands of the Universities; but, in addressing Local Governm ents, he expressed the view th a t, while the Syndicates would fram e the regulations, they should recognise an d control on inform ation placed before them by the E ducational D epartm ent. H e recom m ended the adoption of a m odern or industrial side an d the institution o f a School-leaving -certificate exam ination, to be conducted by the D epartm ent o f