The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-04-12
REPORT SHOWS.
NLL|TERAGY
IN INDIA.
Education Standard Little
Raised by Compulsory
Schooling Act.

LONDON, England, April IL
J. A. Richey, education COMMISSION
or for India, and just nominated py
the viceroy to a seat in the legls
lative assembly, has published MS
report on the progress OF eouCa-
ton in India: during the qulnqusn-
MUM 1917-1922, a period OF excep-
tlohal interest, seeing that it Gov
, cred the incorporation movement
TO boycott schools and colleges, says
q special correspondence from Cal
cutta to the Christian Science
Monitor"
!. The report actually records the
first wear of the working Of the
reformed councils, and is pointed
and published at a time when the
author can also, in his mind, sur
svev the working of the triennial
period, 1921-1923, inclusive, cover
Ing the sittings of the first re-
formed assembly and councils.
Flood of Enthusiasm.
Mr.. Richey remarks that the quin-
quennium opened with a flood of
enthusiasm which would have swept
all children of school-going age
Into school, and closed with an
echo to reaction and doubt Which
sought to empty schools of even
their voluntary attendance. Forces
behind both these, movements were
political"
" Indians realized that the progress
Of India toward nationhood depend
cd on the evolution of popular
a electorate capable of exercising the
: franchise, and therefore ultimately
on the rate of expansion OF llteracy
among the masses. Mr.. Gokhalc's
!. primary education bill of 1911 rec
Ognized this need, and after the
aMontagu Chelmsford declaration OF
1917 the feeling was that an eX-
pansion under a voluntary system
of education was proving a slow
and uncertain business, the solu'
ton lay in the early introduction
= Of compulsory education, with which
purpose education acts with this
. object in view were introduced in
rapid succession in the seven prll'-
cipal provinces of India.
Wave of Unrest.
. Mr.. Richey thinks that these
acts would have served their pur.
pose better had they been applied
rather to local bodies than to par
: 0nts. In any case the acts were
followed by a great appeal of non
cooperation, and economic distress
engendered by the war. The stu
dents responded to the appeal un-
der the impression that in some
way they were serving their coun-
try, and then they found that the
system Of education, discussions
p. literary, discussions on the Holy
Roman Empire, were of no use to
them in studying the great liberal
!, and national movements of the
nineteenth century, or the present
needs of their own country.
- There is, in fact, from end to end
Of India genuine dissatisfaction with
the system of education in force in
India from 1850 to 1920. | pro
fesses to be a literary education,
and yet not more than seventy-two
per 1000 of the population of India
are literate. The figures show a
slight improvement from the 1871!
standard of fifty-nine per 1000. bur
It must regretfully be confessed
that India, as whole, does not
record any general advance in the
battle against illiteracy.
English of Value.
English is of the greatest value
as a lingua franco in country
of 140 vernaculars, but unfortunate
~ it is no longer indispensable in
the securing of employment. The
Strengthened finances of the cen
!. trail local governments preclude
any e of striking educational
developments in the near future.
Besides the question OF the Ei ous,
form of education, another poirl
overlooked has been the important
question how far fresh taxation
for educational improvements would
be acceptable to the mass Of tax.
payers.
!, Here is the key to midas educa-
tional problem. There is no pres
emit indications, in the words of the
Montagu Chelmsford report, that
the stimulus will be forthcoming
from the reforms which will en-.
able the necessary money to be
found" Taxation is as unpopular
in 1924 as in 1918, and there is no.
where any indication of the az,
rival of minister courageous
enough to risk his popularity on
\ the framing of a scheme of COM
pulsory education both widespread
in it's application and effective in
the provision of the finance on
which such a departure as compu.-
sorry education must rely.