Introduction of Western Education in INDIA

The Background 

British rulers were keen to spread their ideology and culture in India. This could strengthen their roots in this country. Besides, it would also create a class of Indians who might act as reliable agents of the British Empire. English education was the most important medium of achieving this objective. Several attempts were made throughout 19^th and 20^th centuries to popularize English education and make structural changes accordingly. 

Initially the Orientalist administrators and scholars like Warren Hastings, Cornwallis, William Jones, Jonathan Duncan and others attached more importance to Indian classical education but gradually their ideas lost ground. It was thought that the British Empire had to fulfill a civilizing mission in India and therefore western sciences and culture needed to be popularized.

The Charter Act 1813, and the introduction of English in India

English education was first introduced in India in 18^th century through some charity schools in Calcutta, Madras and Bombay for educating the European and Anglo-Indian children. Although the East India Company supported these schools in various ways but it did not take any responsibility for teaching English to the Indian population.

The beginning was finally made in the year 1813 through a Charter Act. This Act allowed missionaries to travel to India. These missionaries were always keen to spread western literature and teachings of Christianity through English language. Also, this Act ordered the East India Company to spend one lakh rupees annually for – encouraging Indian educated class, reviving and improvement of literature and promotion of science among the Indians.

Macaulay’s Minute

Very soon a debate arose about the choice of medium of education in India on which the East India Company was to spend. There was a huge debate between the Orientalists who favoured classical Indian language and the Anglacists who wanted money to be spent on introducing English to Indian masses. 

Things started drifting in favour of English education when Lord Bentinck took over as the Governor General of India in 1828. He appointed T. R. Macaulay as the Law Member in his Council. Now Macaulay was a great advocate of introducing English in India. 

So on 2 February 1835, he introduced his famous Minute called Macaulay’s Minute advocating English education in India which was passed by the Company without any opposition. The Company Government resolved that the aim in future would be promotion of European literature and sciences through the medium of English language. In future, all funds spent by the Company on education would be for this purpose alone.

Macaulay was of the opinion that support to English education in India would create a class of persons Indian in blood and colour, but British in taste. It was presumed that this class would eventually become strong pillars of the British Raj in India. It was expected that these Indians, trained through English education, would learn western morality and ethics. 

When incorporated into the structure of the colonial rule, these Indians would help to strengthen the British domination of India. This is also called ‘Downward Filtration’ meaning some educated Indians would educate the common mass about the western culture and eventually help British to justify their control of the country.

Macaulay was convinced that with limited funds, it would be impossible to attempt to educate the masses. It would be better that a few English educated Indians act as a class of interpreters. This class by enriching vernacular languages and literature would help western science and literature reach the masses. This would enable British rulers to spread western morality to Indian masses at a much less public expenditure. Besides, this would also help the Company to appoint some Indians to subordinate positions in the bureaucracy.

Wood’s Dispatch 

The most important part of the development of education in 19^th century was the guidelines prepared by Charles Wood, the Secretary of State in 1854, popularly known as Wood’s Dispatch. This dominated education policy in the second half of the 19^th century. It firmly put the European model on the map of Indian education.

It declared the aim of education in India was to be diffusion of European knowledge, and decided English to be the medium of instruction for higher education as well as the vernacular languages to be used as medium in primary education mainly to infiltrate the European knowledge into the masses. It also proposed a hierarchy of schools, i.e. vernacular primary schools at the village level, followed by the Anglo-Vernacular high schools and English medium affiliated college at district levels.

Wood’s Dispatch also recommended vocational education and emphasized female education. It proposed to set up Universities at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras on the model of London University to hold examinations and confer degrees. Following this the Universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were established in 1857.

Hunter Commission 

In 1882 a Commission was set up to review the progress made in the field of education following the Wood’s Dispatch. It was confined mostly to secondary and primary education. It made a large number of recommendations emphasizing primary education whose control was now transferred to district and municipal boards. 

It also spoke about encouraging the private initiative for opening schools. For then next two decades, the recommendations of the Hunter Commission showed its impact all over. It saw unforeseen growth in secondary and collegiate education. The Punjab University and Allahabad University were founded in 1882 and 1887 respectively.