Civilising the native

• British rule in India aimed to "civilise the natives" and change their customs and values
• British also wanted to educate and make Indians into what they believed were "good subjects"
• Debate continued on how to introduce changes and educate Indians for many decades
• William Jones, a linguist, studied ancient Indian texts and founded the Asiatic Society of Bengal
• Jones and Colebrooke believed in the importance of discovering ancient Indian texts to understand Indian culture and laws
• Many British officials supported promoting Indian learning and studying ancient Indian texts
• James Mill and Thomas Babington Macaulay criticized the Orientalist vision of learning and advocated for teaching practical knowledge
• Macaulay emphasized the need to teach English to civilize Indians and make them aware of Western science and philosophy
• English Education Act of 1835 made English the medium of instruction for higher education and stopped the promotion of Oriental institutions
• Wood's Despatch of 1854 emphasized the practical benefits of European learning over Oriental knowledge
• European learning was believed to improve the moral character of Indians and create a demand for British goods
• Missionaries in India believed in improving morality through Christian education and set up schools across India
• William Adam's report in the 1830s found over 1 lakh pathshalas in Bengal and Bihar with a total of over 20 lakh students
• Pathshalas were educational institutions in India set up by wealthy people or the local community
• Some pathshalas were started by a teacher (guru)
• The system of education in pathshalas was flexible with no fixed fee, printed books, separate school building, benches or chairs, blackboards, system of separate classes, roll-call registers, annual examinations, or regular time-table
• Classes in pathshalas were held in various locations such as under a banyan tree, in the corner of a village shop or temple, or at the guru's home
• Fee in pathshalas depended on the income of parents, with the rich paying more than the poor
• Teaching in pathshalas was oral, and the guru decided what to teach based on the needs of the students
• Students in pathshalas were not separated into different classes, all of them sat together in one place
• Adam found that the flexible system of pathshalas was suited to local needs, with classes not held during harvest time to accommodate rural children working in the fields
• After 1854, the British East India Company decided to improve the system of vernacular education in India
• The Company appointed government pandits to oversee schools, improve teaching standards, and implement regular timetables
• Teaching in pathshalas was now based on textbooks and learning was tested through annual examinations
• Students were required to pay a regular fee, attend regular classes, sit on fixed seats, and follow new rules of discipline
• Pathshalas that accepted the new rules received government grants, while those who didn't lost government support
• The new rules and routines of education in pathshalas led to poor children being unable to attend due to the demand for regular attendance, impacting their education
• British officials and Indian thinkers from the early nineteenth century discussed the need for wider spread of education in India
• Mahatma Gandhi criticized colonial education for creating a sense of inferiority in Indians and advocated for education in Indian languages to restore dignity and self-respect
• Gandhi believed that education should focus on developing the mind and soul, not just literacy, and should include practical knowledge and crafts
• Rabindranath Tagore established Santiniketan as a school focused on creative learning in a natural environment, away from rigid British schooling systems
• Tagore emphasized the importance of teaching science, technology, art, music, and dance at Santiniketan, combining elements of Western civilization with Indian tradition
• Many individuals and thinkers in India debated on the concept of national education, with some advocating for changes within the British system and others proposing alternative systems rooted in Indian culture