Reports on the State of Education in Bengal (1835-38)/Second Report on the State of Education in Bengal/Section 4

SECTION IV

 

English School

 

In the report of 1st July, 1835, mention is made of an English school at Bauleah, the capital of this district, but no information was then possessed respecting it. That school was in operation when I entered the district, but for want of funds was suspended about the beginning of November last. Although the school does not now exist, its revival may be hoped for, and with that anticipation it may be desirable to record the following particulars of its origin and management.

The school was established in July, 1833, and placed under the care of an English teacher receiving eighty rupees per month, with an assistant receiving twenty rupees and a Bengali teacher receiving eight rupees. The English teacher, in addition to his salary, had a bungalow built for him at a cost of eight hundred rupees which he occupied rent-free; and a school-house was built at an expense of one thousand and two hundred rupees. With economical repairs and proper care, both the houses might last fifteen years. The expense of books, pens, paper, ink, and sweeper, to keep the school-house clean, was estimated on an average at twelve rupees per month. The current monthly expenditure thus amounted to one hundred and twenty rupees.

The teachers’ house and the school-house were built by subscription and the current expenses were defrayed by the same means. The subscriptions never amounted to more than one hundred and thirty-eight rupees per month, and at the time the school was suspended they had fallen to eighty-six rupees per month, in consequence of several friends to the institution having left the station. Even the latter amount could not be regularly realized from the nominal subscribers, the unpaid arrears amounting to 663 rupees, and a balance being due to the school-establishment of 274 rupees. The subscribers were public functionaries, indigo-planters, zemindars, and native otheers of the courts; Christians and non-Christians in nearly equal proportions.

When the school was suspended, the number of scholars was 134, of whom about two-thirds were in regular attendance. Eighty-five were learning English and forty-nine Bengali. The age of the Bengali scholars varied from five to fourteen; and that of the English scholars from eight to twenty-four. All the Bengali scholars were from Bauleah and its neighbourhood. A majority of the English scholars were not natives of Bauleah, but had relations attached to the courts there; and a few who had no relations at Bauleah had come from Pubna, Commercolly, Nattore and Moorshedabad.

The Bengali scholars were taught writing, reading, and accounts in the native way. The writing materials were at first supplied at the expense of the institution, and afterwards the scholars were required to bring them at their own expense, in consequence of which twenty-five of them discontinued their attendance. If this requisition had been made from the first, it is probable that no objection would have been made to it.

The English scholars were first taught to read and spell, and afterwards to write and to translate from English into Bengali. They were next carried on to the simplest rules of grammar and arithmetic and still further to Murray’s abridgement and the rule of three; and they were afterwards introduced by verbal instruction to some knowledge of geography and astronomy. The highest class read English History and Ancient History and an Introduction to Natural Philosophy.

I examined this school in the middle of July last, and found it in a very inefficient state, the obvious cause of which was the want of superintendence. If it had been continued, it was essential to its usefulness that there should be some effectual supervision over the teachers and over the system of instruction; and with that view an attempt was made to form a committee of superintendence amongst the gentlemen resident at Bauleah; but it was found impracticable.^[1]

 

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1. The following is an extract of a letter which accompanied this Report, relating to the English School at Bauleah:—
   
   “2. In conformity with the wishes of the friends of native education at Bauleah I beg respectfully to solicit the particular attention of the General Committee to the account given in the Report of the late English School at that station. The hope is entertained that it may be consistent with the plans of the Committee to establish an English School there similar to those which exist at other stations under the patronage of the Committee.
   
   3. Besides the assumed general agreement of such a measure with the plans of the Committee, two circumstances appear to recommend it. The first is that throughout the district there is not at this moment a single institution of education of European origin. The second is that a school-house and a teacher’s house already exist and would be immediately made over to the Committee if a school were to be established; whereas if not occupied, they will fall into disrepair and ruin; and the same expense will be necessary at some future time.
   
   4. I fully concur in the opinion that the district will derive very great advantage from such an institution, and I cordially recommend its establishment, if the Committee have funds applicable to such a purpose. I beg to add that I believe its usefulness will be increased ten-fold if an equal amount of expenditure is at the same time incurred on well-considered measures for promoting education throughout the district by means of the vernacular language.”
   
   
   (Sd.) W. Adam.