EDUCATION, COLONLAL. A term used to indicate educational systems and practices in colonial dependencies. There is no special type either of ideas or of systems that can be in dieated by this term, which consequently is used in a most general sense. However, of recent years it has become a very important phase of educational activity, since the various colonizing nations have established systems of schools as a valuable means in governing colonies and in bringing dependent peoples into closer sympathy with the home nation, or at least have accepted educational endeavor as a means of raising the standard of civilization among subject races. Previous to the nineteenth century colonizing gov ernments took little or no direct interest in edu cation, and such efforts as were made were whol ly those of the colonists themselves or of indi Tiduals and religious bodies at home. Such efforts naturally resulted in direct imitation of institutions existing in the parent country, and find their best illustration in the American col onies of England previous to the Revolution of 1776. Here the elementary or dame school, the secondary or grammar school (q.v.). and the college were English institutions transferred to American soil. and it was not until well into the eighteenth century that these English in stitutions were so modified that they became schools. known as the district school, the acad emy, and the American college. Of these the college was most distinctly American from the first. and hence underwent the least change. Naturally, at the present time, the character of education, in the colonies of any nation, or in any particular colony of a given nation, is de termined by the general character of the Colonial Government. The colonies of Great Britain, as being the furthest developed and most systema tized, best present the various types. In self governing colonies, those possessing responsible governments, the edueational system is wholly under the control of the Colonial 1overnment. and is only to a slight extent an imitation of the English institutions. Hems- the educational sys tems of the Australian and Canadian provinces do not differ in the character of their origin or of their control from those of the Stales of the American Union. Mere is. it is true. a higher degree of central control in all of thee than in the systems of American commonwealths. but this is in no wise connected with the Homo Government in London. In the second class of colonies, those that possess some representative institutions. but in which the public °Alves are controlled V the Home Government, such as Natal and the Orange River colonies. the most important educational institutions are for the most part transplanted English institutions, modified in non-essentials to suit local conditions, supported from colonial revenues, and controlled by the home-appointed colonial officials. Profit ing by earlier experiments, especially in 'India, more regard is now had for existing educational institutions, practices, and prejudices. Native institutions are fostered, and there usually exist the two types of schools, the English schools and the vernacular ones, the former being for the most part secondary and higher schools, to which greater attention is given. India furnishes
a good illustration of this. There were in 1900 5 examining universities, 17S colleges, 6172 see ondary and special schools, and only 100,965 primary schools that were supported in whole or in part by the Government. in the Crown colonies, those wholly under the control of the Home Government, a somewhat similar eondition exists. English schools are established, native schools are assisted, and numerous private, es peeially missionary schools, are found. As in the previous class of colonies, greater attention is paid by the authorities to the English school than to the native, and consequently to secondary and higher education than to elementary. This condition, which is now being reversed, has re sulted from the fact that the elementary schools have been begun largely by missionary or native effort, and the Government has followed the home policy of assisting them to some extent; while seeondnry and higher efforts have awaited the direct initiative and support of the Government. In 1901 the Board of Education of the British Government presented a special report of almost 2000 printed pages, giving a detailed account of education in the more important colonies.
The French Government supports schools in most of its colonial dependencies, though none of the colonies are self-supporting, few have any extensive European population, and most of them are sparsely settled or are peopled by distinctly inferior races. Algeria is excluded from this statement, since no distinction is made in educa tion between it and the other departments of France in Europe. So far as possible, the French system of schools is extended to the colonies, but on account of the conditions mentioned above there is little demand for secondary or higher education, save of a technical or professional character, and consequently most attention is paid to elementary schools. In French India, Indo-China, Annam. Coebin-China. 'Conking. Madagascar, Congo, Alayotto, SSassal, Guinea, and the islands of both the East and the West Indies, schools are maintained of both pri mary and secondary type. These secondary schools are usually normal or agricultural schools, infrequently the French Lyeses.
The (ninnies of the German Empire have all been aequired since ISS4, are sparsely settled, usually by distinctly inferior races. and are for the most part in the troldes. Hence the possibility of influencing the state of civilization by schools is slight. Besides missionary schools, the Govern ment supports at school at Topiland, two in Kamerun, a system of 40 or 50 schools in East Africa, and a similar one in southwest Africa. Such schools as exist in the German possessions among the Pacific islands are main tained by missionaries. both Protestant and Ro man Catholic. No other country has seen the h»portan•e of education as a means of colonial rule so clearly as the United States. 'Hence, in the short time during which the Government has held the colonies, great progress has been made. This progress is here presented in detail.