Hunter Commission – 1882

Introduction:

Hunter commission made a thorough enquiry on the present condition of primary and secondary education in India. Based on the findings of its enquiry the commission made valuable recommendations to improve the conditions of primary and secondary education in India. Lord Ripon appointed the Indian Education Commission on 3rd February 1882, with Sir William Hunter as its Chairman. It is known as Hunter Commission of 1882. 

The commission was appointed with the following aims: 

· To enquire into the manner in which effect had been given to the principles of the Despatch of 1854. 

· To assess the position of primary education in India and to suggest measures for its reform. 

· To enquire into the position of the State institutions and their importance. 

· To evaluate the work of missionaries in the field of education. 

· To enquire into Government attitude towards private enterprise. 

The Commission also undertook an enquiry into the conditions of secondary education and to suggest measures for its improvement. 

Accordingly the Commission made valuable recommendations for the development of primary education. The recommendations can be discussed under six heads:- 

(a) Policy 

(b) Legislation and Administration 

(c) Encouragement of indigenous schools 

(d) School Administration 

(e) Training of Teachers 

(f) Finance 

(a) Policy: 

(i) Primary education should be regarded as the instruction of the masses. It should be closely related to the practical aspect of the life of the masses. 

(ii) Primary education should be imparted through the medium of mother tongue. 

(iii) The Government should extend more patronage to primary education than before. 

(iv) In selecting persons for appointment to the government post of a lower order, preference should be given to the candidates who can read and write. 

(v) Primary education in backward districts, especially in those areas inhabited by aboriginal races, to be extended by the Department of Education through liberal grant-in-aid. 

(b)Legislation and Administration: 

(i) The control of primary education should be handed over to District and Municipal Boards. 

(ii) The local boards should deal with the whole system for primary education as regards to finance, management, expansion and inspection of primary education of the particular local area. 

(iii) Transfer of all government primary schools to the local boards was considered necessary. 

(c) Encouragement of Indigenous Schools: 

(i) Indigenous schools need encouragement for their improvement. Efforts should be made to encourage these schools. 

(ii) The Commission held the view that the Districts and Municipal Boards consisting of Indians would be more sympathetic to the indigenous schools than the Education Department and recommended that the work of assisting indigenous schools should be assigned to them. 

(iii) The Commission recommended that a system of ―Payment by Results‖ should be adopted in dealing with indigenous schools. 

(iv) The same standard of examination should not be maintained throughout the whole state. 

(D) School Administration: 

Regarding the management of the schools the Commission recommended. 

(i)School houses and furniture should be simple. 

(ii) The managers should be free to choose the text books for their schools. 

(iii) School hours and holidays should be adjusted according to local needs. 

(iv) Instruction in primary schools should be simplified. Practical subjects like native methods of arithmetic, accounts and menstruation, elements of natural and physical sciences, agriculture, health should be introduced. 

(v) Various native games and exercises should be introduced for physical development of the students. 

(vi) Night schools should be established wherever necessary. 

(E) Training of Teachers: 

(i)Normal schools should be established for the training of primary school teachers. 

(ii)There should be at least one Normal School in each division. 

(iii)The cost of Normal schools should be met from provincial fund. 

(F) Finance: 

(i)Every District and Municipal Board should maintain a separate Fund for primary education. 

(ii)The Provincial Government should grant one third of the total expenditure to the local bodies. 

(iii)The cost of maintaining, aiding and repairing of primary schools should be met from local fund. 

Major Recommendations of Hunter Commission of 1882 on Primary Education were. 

· Primary education should be regarded as education of the masses. 

· Education should be able to train the people for self-dependence. 

· Medium of Instruction in primary education should e the mother tongue. 

· Appointment of teachers should be made by the district authority and approved by the government. 

· School houses and furniture‘s should be simple and economical. 

· Normal Schools should be established for the training of teachers. 

· Curriculum should include useful subjects like agriculture, elements of natural and physical science and the native method of arithmetic and measurement etc. 

· School equipments should be economical and less expensive. 

· Spread of primary education for the tribal and backward people should be the responsibility of the Government. 

· Fees should be example to students on the basis of their financial difficulties Recommendations on Secondary Education 

Although the Hunter Commission recognized primary education as the prime concern of the state, it also made important recommendations on secondary education. These recommendations can be divided into two heads 

(A) Administrative Reform, and 

(B) Qualitative Improvement 

A) Administrative Reform: 

The Hunter Commission made some important recommendations to administrative reform of Secondary Education in India. The recommendations can be summed as given below: 

(i)Government should gradually withdraw itself from the field of secondary education. 

(ii)Expansion of secondary education should be entrusted to efficient private enterprise. 

(iii)Government should sanction great-in-aid to improve secondary education. 

(iv) It was felt necessary that the government should maintain some secondary schools, at least one Model High School in those districts where they may be required in the interest of the people. 

(v) To encourage the private enterprise, the commission suggested that the managers of Aided Schools might charge less fees in comparison to the neighbouring Government Schools. 

B) Qualitative Improvement: 

The Commission made many useful recommendations for the qualitative improvement of Secondary Education in India. Following are the major recommendations. 

(i)The Commission recommended that the curriculum at the secondary stage should be bifurcated as ―A course‖ and ―B course. 

(ii)―A course‖ should be prepared for students to go for higher study in Universities. 

(iii)―B course‖ should be of practical type meant for commercial and non-literary studies. 

(iv)The commission did not refer to the use of mother tongue as medium of instruction at the high school stage. It favoured English as the medium of instruction 

(v)The commission did not lay down any definite policy with regard to middle school so far as medium of Instruction is concerned. 

Major Recommendations of Hunter Commission on secondary education were 

· The administrative responsibility on Secondary education should be handed over to the efficient and educated people. 

· English should remain as medium of instruction in the Secondary stage. 

· The fees charged in aided secondary schools should be considerably lower than the fees charged in Government schools.