History of women's education

THE DEVELOPMENT OF WOMEN'S EDUCATION IN INDIA — 1850-1920: Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, Joseph Bara, Chinna Rao Yagati, B. M. Sankhdher-Editors; Kanishka Publishers Distributors, 4697/5-21A, Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110002, in association with Educational Records Research Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Rs. 1,495.

THIS COLLECTION of documents (1850-1920), relating to the development of women's education during the 70 years from 1850, gains in value because it draws from unpublished material at the National Archives of India.

It is significant that the views of the British colonial government are presented along with those of Indian nationalists.

One remarkable fact that emerges from the work is that female education depended much on non-governmental funding sources in the early years.

Not only that. Women's education was not smooth inasmuch as several traditional and orthodox forces came in the way.

For instance, Sardar Dayal Singh, speaking on behalf of the Indian Association of Punjab, stated "the object of female education in this country is not to make sound scholars but to make better mothers, sisters and wives''.

Girls should be taught suitable subjects and "not be made to swallow history and geography indiscriminately'', opined Lahore Arya Samaj.

Another feature is that during the period, the participation of Indian Christians and Parsis was much higher than that of Hindus, and it was the lowest among Muslims.

A committee set up by the Bombay Government recommended in 1917 that in the education of Muslim girls "in ordinary circumstances purdah is not required'' in primary schools but it was desirable in middle schools.

The 134 documents and the 135 statistical tables in this volume are rich storehouses of information for all those interested in knowing how the education of women in the country had to undergo a tortuous course.

It is in a way a stroke of good luck that many enlightened bureaucrats and national leaders took much interest in this area and strove hard to bring about a change in the mindset of the people.

As Prof. Sabyasachi Bhattacharya states in the introduction, he has tried to relate the empirical evidence in the documents to an analytical approach that focuses on the intersection of gender/class/caste issues. It must be said to his credit that he has largely succeeded in the effort.

The volume forms part of a series of documentary publications on the history of education in modern India by the Educational Records Research Unit of the Jawaharlal Nehru University and will be found valuable by educationists, researchers and those keen on gender studies.

T. RAJAGOPALAN

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Features
Previous : Case for judicial activism
Next     : Talent management