Q 1 –Define the term linguist.
Ans. The linguist is someone who knows and studies several languages.
Q 2 –What was main aim behind establishing Hindu College in Benaras in 1791?
Ans. Hindu College was established to encourage the study of ancient Sanskrit texts that would be useful for the administration of the country.
Q 3 –What is meant by an Orientalist?
Ans. Orientalists were those who were having scholarly knowledge of the language and culture of Asia.
Q 4 –How did Thomas Babington Macaulay see India?
Ans. He saw India as an uncivilized country that needed to be civilized.
Q 5 –Why was the English Education Act introduced and in which year?
Ans. Following Macaulay’s minute, the English Education Act of 1835 was introduced.
Q 6 –Who toured the districts of Bengal and Bihar in the 1830s?
Ans. In the 1830’s William Adam, a Scottish missionary toured the districts of Bengal and Bihar.
Q 7 –When did the Company decide about improving the system of vernacular education?
Ans. After 1854, the Company decided to improve the system of vernacular education.
Q 8 –Name the institution established by Rabindranath Tagore.
Ans. ‘Santiniketan’ was established by Rabindranath Tagore in 1901.
Q 9 –Who was William John.
Ans. William Jones was appointed as Junior Judge at the supreme court of the company.
Q 10 –Which languages were learned by William Jones?
Ans. Greek, Latin, French, and English.
Q 11 –By whom was the Asiatic society of Bengal was setup?
Ans. By William Jones.
Q 12 –From whom did William Johns learn the Sanskrit language?
Ans. The Pandits.
Q 13 –In which year was Madarsa set up in Calcutta?
Ans. In 1781.
Q 14 –When was the Hindu college Benaras was established?
Ans,. In 1791
Q 15 –Who emphasized the teaching of the English language in the manner of civilizing, changing the taste values and cultures of the Indians?
Ans. Lord Macaulay.
Q 16 –When was the English Education act introduced?
Ans. In 1835
Q 17 –Who was William Carey.
Ans. William Carey was a Scottish missionary.
Q 18 –In what sense does Gandhiji and Tagore’s thoughts were similar and different about western education?
Ans. In many senses Tagore’s and Gandhiji’s thoughts about western education were similar.
There were several differences too. Gandhiji was highly critical of western education, civilization, and its worship of machines and technology.
But Tagore wanted to combine elements of modern western civilization with the best within the Indian tradition. Tagore emphasized the need to teach science and technology along with art, music, and dance.
Q 19 –Why did Tagore hate going to school in his school days?
Ans. He found school suffocating and oppressive. The school appeared like a prison to him as he could never do what he felt like doing. And the experience of Tagore’s school days in Calcutta shook his ideas of education. These were reasons why he hated going to school in his school days.
Q 20 –What did Mahatma Gandhi say about western education?
Ans. Mahatma Gandhi said that western education focused on reading and writing rather than oral knowledge. It valued textbooks rather than practical knowledge. He argued that education ought to develop a person’s mind and soul. Literacy or simply learning to read and write by itself did not count as education.
Q 21 –What consequences were there of the new rules and routine over the earlier pathshala students who accepted the British rules?
Ans. In the earlier system of Pathshala, students from poor peasant families had been able to go to pathshalas as the timetable was flexible before the adoption of rules of the British government.
The discipline of the new system demanded regular attendance, even during harvest time when children of poor families had to work in the fields. Inability to attend school came to be seen as indiscipline, as evidence of the lack of desire to learn.
Q 22 –What did James Mill declare while attacking the orientalists?
Ans. James Mill attacked the orientalists and declared that the British should not make efforts to teach what the natives wanted or respected, in order to please them. The aim of education tought to be to teach what was useful and practical. So Indians should be made familiar with the scientific and technical advancements that the west had made, rather than with the poetry and sacred literature of the orientals.
Q 23 –In view of Mahatma Gandhi, why was practical knowledge very much essential for the development of a person’s mind and soul?
Ans. Mahatma Gandhi believed that western education focused on reading and writing rather than lived experiences and practical knowledge. He argued that education taught to develop a person’s mind and soul. Literacy – or simply learning to read and write by itself did not count as education.
People had to work with their hands, learn a craft, and know how different things operated. This would develop their mind and their capacity to understand. This is why Mahatma Gandhi believed that practical knowledge was very much essential for the development of a person’s mind and soul
Q 24 –Explain William Adam’s report produced on the progress of education in vernacular schools.
Ans. William Adam had been asked by the Company to report on the progress of education in vernacular schools. The report Adam produced was interesting.
Adam found that there were over 1 lakh pathshalas in Bengal and Bihar. These were small institutions with no more than 20 students each. But the total number of children being taught in these pathshalas was considerable over 20 lakh. These institutions were set up by wealthy people, or the local community. At times they were started by a teacher (guru).
The system of education was flexible. Adam discovered that this flexible system was suited to local needs. For instance, classes were not held during harvest time when rural children often worked in the fields. The pathshala started once again when the crops had been cut and stored. This meant that even children of peasant families could study.
Q 25 –Explain Wood’s Despatch. What was mentioned in its provision?
Ans. In 1854, the Court of Directors of the East India Company in London sent an educational despatch to the Governor-General in India, issued by Charles Wood, the president of the Board of Control of the Company. It has come to be known as Wood’s Despatch.
- It emphasized once again on the practical benefits of system of European learning.
- One of the practical uses the Despatch pointed to was economic European learning.
- It said, it would enable Indians to recognize the advantages that flow from the expansion of trade and commerce.
- Wood’s Despatch argued that European learning would improve the moral character of Indians.
- It would make them truthful and honest and would supply the Company with civil servants who could be trusted and depended upon.
- The literature of East was believed to be full of errors and also couldn’t instill in the people a sense of duty and a commitment to work nor could it develop the skill required for administration.
Q 26 – Look at the picture given below and answer the following questions:
- Who was Henry Thomas Cookbrooke?
2. Whom does the monument belong to?
3. Along with whom is Mahatma Gandhi sitting with civilizing the “NATIVE” Educating the Nation.
4. What does the picture shows?
Ans
- He was a scholar of Sanskrit and ancient sacred writings of Hinduism.
- Monument belongs to Warren Hastings.
- He is sitting with Kasturba Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore.
- The picture shows a class in progress in Santiniketan in the 1930’s.
Q 27 –What were the provisions of Wood’s Despatch?
Ans. The Court of Directors of the East India Company in London sent an educational dispatch to the Governor-General in India in the year 1854. As the despatch was issued by Charles Wood, the President of the Board of Control of the Company, came to be known as Wood’s Despatch. ‘ Wood’s Despatch outlined the educational policy that was to be followed in India.
It criticized Oriental knowledge and emphasized the need for European learning.
• The Despatch made it clear that European learning would enable Indians to recognize the benefits that would flow from the expansion of trade and commerce. It would also make them see the importance of developing country’s resources. Indians needed to adopt European ways of life because this would change their tastes and desires and create a demand for British goods.
• Wood’s Despatch further argued that European learning would improve the moral character of the people of India. It would make them honest and reliable and thus supply trusted civil servants to the Company.
• The Despatch strongly criticized the literature of the East because it was full of errors and unable to instill in people a sense of duty and a commitment to work
Q 28 –What measures were undertaken by the Company to improve the system of vernacular education?
Ans. There were no rules and regulations in pathshalas. Hence, the Company decided to improve the entire system. It took several measures:
• It appointed a number of government pandits, each in charge of looking after four to five schools. The task of the pandit was to vi§it the pathshalas and try and improve the standard of teaching.
• Each guru was asked to submit periodic reports and take classes according to a regular timetable.
• Teaching was now to be based on textbooks and learning was to be tested through a system of annual examinations.
• Students were asked to pay a regular fee, attend regular classes, sit on fixed seats, and obey the new rules of discipline.
Q 29 –Write a note on Rabindranath Tagore and his school Shantiniketan.
Ans. Rabindranath Tagore, like Mahatma Gandhi, also did not approve of Western education wholeheartedly. At the time when several Indians urged the British to open more and more schools, colleges, and universities in order to spread English education in India, Rabindranath Tagore reacted strongly against such education. He was a great educationist But he hated going to school because he saw it as oppressive. In fact, he wanted. to establish a school where the children were happy and were free to explore their thoughts and desires without feeling any suppression. He advocated for giving children natural surroundings where they would be able to cultivate their natural creativity.
• Keeping the above ideas in mind, Rabindranath Tagore established Shantiniketan in the year 1901. He regarded it as an ‘abode of peace. He set up his school 100 kilometers away from Calcutta, in a rural setting in order to provide children a very peaceful environment. Here, they could develop their imagination and creativity. Tagore was of the opinion that existing schools were killing the natural desires of the children to be creative. Hence, it was necessary to help them develop their curiosity by providing them with good teachers who could understand them.
By establishing an institution like Shantiniketan he did a great job in the field of education.
Q 30 –Give a brief account of William Jones
Ans. In 1783, William Jones came to India as a junior judge, to work in the Supreme Court set up by the East India Company. In addition to being a lawyer, Jones was a linguist. Jones knew many languages. Greek, Latin, French, English, Arabic, and Persian were some of the languages he knew. As Jones had a deep passion to learn many languages he spent many hours with pandits who taught him the Sanskrit language, grammar, and poetry. Soon he started studying ancient Indian books on law, philosophy, religion, politics, morality, arithmetic, medicine, and the other sciences.
Q 31 –Write a brief not on the Asiatic Society of Bengal?
Ans. The Asiatic Society of Bengal was founded by the renowned English jurist Sir William Jones. He brought Asian languages, literature, arts, and sciences to the attention of Europeans. The members of the Asiatic Society of Bengal were the first European scholars to recognize the common ancestry of Sanskrit with Greek, Latin, and other European languages. They considered Sanskrit as the classical language of India and praised its wonderful structure and stated that it was more perfect than the Greek
Q 32 –What was Thomas Babington Macaulay instrumental for?
Ans. Thomas Babington Macaulay was instrumental in creating the foundations of bilingual colonial India, by convincing the Governor-General to adopt English as the medium of instruction in higher education, from the sixth year of schooling onwards, rather than Sanskrit or Arabic.
Q 33 –State the recommendations of the Wood’s Despatch.
Ans. The Wood’s Despatch recommendations were:-
- An education department was to be set in every province.
- Universities on the model of the London University be established in big cities such as Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras.
- At least one government school be opened in every district.
- Affiliated private schools should be given grants in aid.
- The Indian natives should be given training in their mother tongue also.
Q 34 –What was the outcome of Wood’s despatch?
Ans. accordance with Wood’s Despatch, Education Departments were established in every province, and universities were opened at Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras in 1857 and in Punjab in 1882, and at Allahabad in 1887. Attempts were also made to bring about changes within the system of school education.
Q 35 –What were the special features of a pathshala?
Ans. In a pathshala the system of education was flexible. There were no fixed fees, no printed books, no separate school building, no benches or chairs, no blackboards, no system of separate classes, no attendance registers, no annual examinations, and no regular timetable. Students were not separated out into different classes: all of them sat together in one place. The guru interacted separately with groups of children with different levels of learning. Classes were not held during harvest time when rural children worked in the fields. The pathshala started once again when the crops had been cut and stored. This helped the children of peasant families to attend school.
Q 36 –What were Tagore’s ideas on education?
Ans. Tagore felt that childhood ought to be a time of self-learning, outside the rigid and restricting discipline of the schooling system set up by the British. Teachers had to be imaginative, understand the child, and help the child develop her curiosity. The natural desire of the child to be creative should be encouraged. Tagore felt that creative learning could be encouraged only within a natural environment. Living in harmony with nature, children could cultivate their natural creativity.
Q 37 –Name two individuals who sharply attacked the Orientalists
Ans. James Mill and Thomas Babington Macaulay
Q 38 –Why was Calcutta Madrasa set up?
Ans. Calcutta Madrasa was set up to promote the study of Arabic, Persian and Islamic law.
Q 39 –Why was the Hindu College established in Benaras?
Ans. The Hindu College was established in Benaras to encourage the study of ancient Sanskrit texts that would be useful for the. administration of the country.
Q 40 –Name the different languages that William Jones studied
Ans. Greek, Latin, English, French, Arabic, and Persian.
Q 41 –How were Oriental institutions like the Calcutta Madrasa and Benaras Sanskrit College viewed by the British?
Ans. These Oriental institutions were viewed as temples of darkness that were falling of themselves into decay.
Q 42 –Where were classes held under the system of pathshalas?
Ans. Classes were held under a banyan tree or in the comer of a village shop or temple or at the guru’s home.
Q 43 –What did Jones and Colebrooke think about Indian civilisation?
Ans. They felt that Indian civilization had attained its glory in the ancient past, but had subsequently declined.
Q 44 –Name the places where the British established universities.
Ans. Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay.
Q 45 –What did Thomas Macaulay urge the British government in India?
Ans. Thomas Macaulay urged the British government in India to stop wasting public money in promoting Oriental learning for it was of no practical use
Q 46 –What type of education was given to the children in pathshalas?
Ans. Children were given oral education in pathshalas.
Q 47 –What were Asiatick Researches? Who started it?
Ans. Asiatick Researches was a journal started by William Jones together with Henry Thomas Colebrooke and Nathaniel Halhed.
Q 48 – What task was assigned to the pandit by the Company?
Ans. The Company assigned the pandit to visit the pathshalas and try to improve the standard of teaching.
Q 49 –Why did the British use the term ‘vernacular’?
Ans. The British used the term ‘Vernacular’ to mark the difference between the local languages of everyday use and English, the language of the imperial masters.
Q 50 –Why were classes not held during harvest time?
Ans. It was because rural children had to work in the fields during harvest time.
Q 51 –What do you mean by Tagore’s abode of peace?
Ans. Tagore’s Shantiniketan was established in a rural setting, 100 kilometers away from Calcutta. As it was far from the din and bustle of the city it was an abode of peace.
Q 52 –What was the task of the government pandits?
Ans, Their task was to visit the pathshalas and try and improve the standard of teaching
Q 53 –Why did Thomas Macaulay emphasize the need for European Education in India?
Ans. Thomas Macaulay was a great critic of the orientalist vision of learning. He saw India as an uncivilized country that needed to be civilized. He thought that no branch of Eastern knowledge could be compared to what England had produced. He urged that the British government in India stop wasting public money in promoting oriental learning for it was of no practical use. He emphasized the need to introduce European education in India. He felt that knowledge of English would allow Indians to read some of the finest literature the world had produced. It would make them aware of the developments in Western science and philosophy. The teaching of English could be a way of civilizing people, changing their tastes, values, and culture.
Q 54 –What were the views of other Company officials?
Ans. Other Company officials did not approve of the ideas of the Orientalists. They began to criticize the Orientalist vision of learning. They saved that the knowledge of the East was full of errors and unscientific thought. They saw Eastern literature as non-serious and light-hearted. So, they argued that it was wrong on the part of the British to spend so much effort in encouraging the study of Arabic and Sanskrit language and literature.
Q 55 –What type of education did Tagore want to give to children?
Ans. Tagore hated going to school. He found it suffocative and oppressive. He felt that childhood ought to be a time of self-learning, outside the rigid and restricting discipline of the schooling system set up by the British. Teachers had to be imaginative, understand the child and help the child develop her curiosity. According to Tagore, the existing schools killed the natural desire of the child to be creative, her own thoughts and desires.
Q 56 –Why did many Company officials in India want to promote Indian rather than Western learning?
Ans. Many Company officials felt that institutions should be set up to encourage the study of ancient Indian texts and teach Sanskrit and Persian literature and poetry. These officials were of the opinion that Hindus and Muslims taught to be taught what they were already familiar with and what they valued and preserved, not subjects that were alien to them. They believed that only by doing this the British could win the hearts of the Indians, only then they could expect to be respected by their subjects.
Q 57 –What measures were taken by the English Education Act of 1835?
Ans. The following measures were taken under the English Education Act 1835:
• English was made the medium of instruction for higher education.
• Promotion of Oriental institutions like the Calcutta Madrasa and Benaras Sanskrit College was stopped. These institutions were seen as temples of darkness that were falling of themselves into decay.
• English textbooks began to be produced for schools
Q 58 –Define the term ‘vernacular’. Why did the British use this term in colonial countries like India?
Ans. The term Vernacular’ refers to a local language or dialect as distinct from what is known as the standard language. In colonial countries like India, the British used this term to mark the difference between the local languages of everyday use and English, the language of the imperial masters
Q 59 –How did Tagore and Mahatma Gandhi differ in their thought about western education?
Ans. Mahatma Gandhi was highly critical of western civilization and the worship of machines and technology. Tagore wanted to combine elements of modern western civilization with what he saw as the best within the Indian tradition. He emphasized the need to teach science and technology at Shantiniketan along with art, music, and dance.
Q 60 – How can you say that the system of education in pathshalas was flexible?
Ans. In pathshalas, there was no fixed fee, no printed books, no separate school building, no benches or chairs, no blackboards, no system of separate classes, no registers, no annual examinations, and no regular timetable. In some places classes were held under a banyan tree, in other places in the corner of a village shop or temple, or at the guru’s home. The fee depended on the income of parents. Teaching was oral and the guru decided what to teach, in accordance with the needs of the students. Students were not separated out into different classes. They sat together in one place. During harvest time when rural children were busy in the fields, classes were not held. The pathshalas started once again when the crops had been cut and stored.