Class 8 History Chapter 6 HOTS Questions - Civilising the “Native”, Educating the Nation

Q1: Why did Thomas Macaulay emphasise the need of European Education in India?
Ans: Thomas Macaulay was a great critic of the orientalist vision of learning. He saw India as an uncivilised country that needed to be civilised. 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 emphasised 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. Teaching of English could be a way of civilising people, changing their tastes, values and culture. 

Q2: What were the views of other Company officials?
Ans: Other Company officials did not approve the ideas of the Orientalists. They began to criticise 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. 

Q3: 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. 

Q4: 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 ought 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. 

Q5: 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 institutiohs 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.  

Q6: What measures were taken by the British after issuing of Wood’s Despatch?
Ans: Following measures were taken: 

• Education departments of the government were set up to extend control over all matters regarding education. 
• A system of universities education was introduced. Universities were established in Calcutta, Madras and Bombay. 
• Attempts were also made to bring about changes within the system of school education. 

Q7: 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. 

Q8: How did Tagore and Mahatma Gandhi differ in their thought about western education?
Ans: Mahatma Gandhi was highly critical of western civilisation and the worship of machines and technology. Tagore wanted to combine elements of modern western civilisation with what he saw as the best within Indian tradition. He emphasised the need to teach science and technology at Shantiniketan along with art, music and dance. 

Q9: How can you say that the system of education in pathshalas was flexible?
Ans: In pathshalas there were nofixed 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. 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.  

Q10: Write a note on Rabindranath Tagore and his school Shantiniketan.
Ans: Rabindranath Tagore, like Mahatma Gandhi, also did not approve 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 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 ideals in mind, Rabindranath Tagore established Shantiniketan in the year 1901. He regarded it as an ‘abode of peace’. He set up his school 100 kilometres 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 good teachers who could understand them. By establishing an institution like Shantiniketan he did a great job in the field of education. 

Q11: 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 numbef 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 time table. 
• Teaching was now to be based on textbooks and learning was to be tested through a system of annual examination. 
• Students were asked to pay a regular fee, attend regular classes, sit on fixed seats, and obey the new rules of discipline. 

Q12: What were the provisions of Wood's Despatch?
Ans: 

• The Court of Directors of the East India Company in London sent an educational despatch 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, it came to be known as Wood’s Despatch. ‘ Wood’s Despatch outlined the educational policy that was to be followed in India. It criticised the Oriental knowledge and emphasised the need of European learning. 
• The Despatch made it clear that European learning would enable Indians to recognise 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 raliable and thus supply trusted civil servants to the Company. 
• The Despatch strongly criticised 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.