There is a growing tendency to universal education in India. "It is
computed," says Bishop Hurst, "that in the small area of Calcutta and
suburbs there are 28,000 alumni who have completed the curriculum in
the five Christian colleges. There are about 2,000 who are alumni or
students of the Calcutta University, and there are 1,000 youths
besides who are studying up to the matriculation examinations of the
university." The English language is the medium of instruction in all
these institutions. It may not be wide of the mark to suppose that in
all India there are not less than 40,000 natives who have graduated at
some school of high grade, and that ten per cent. of the number have
passed the university degrees. The number is now more probably 50,000.
These men enjoy the highest respect and are the recognized leaders of
native thought. Already many are, and many more are to be judges,
lawyers, magistrates, professors, teachers, orators, physicians,
engineers, merchants, authors and journalists of the country.
The University of Fez, in Morocco, established in the eighth century,
is one of the oldest universities outside of Asia. The Mohammedan
University at Cairo, in Egypt, has more than 200 instructors and
10,000 students assembled from Europe, Asia and Africa to be
instructed in the Moslem faith.
If we turn to Europe, we find that the planting and enlarging of the
institutions for superior instruction has the most hopeful outlook. In
Great Britain and Ireland there are 11 universities with 834
professors and 18,400 students. Besides, there are the old established
and excellent schools at Eaton, Harrow, Winchester and Rugby.
A new era for the classical schools of Germany began in 1783, when
Baron Sedlitz, encouraged by Frederic the Great, was able to revive
"the dormant sparks planted in them by the Renaissance and they awoke
to a new life, which since the beginning of this century has drawn the
eyes of all students of intellectual progress upon them." Germany had
in 1890, 250 gymnasia and 22 universities. The latter are manned by
2,431 instructors and have 31,803 students, or one student to every
151 of the population.
France has 19,152 students in her professional and technical schools.
There are fifteen institutions of higher learning in the University of
France, with 180 professors and 12,695 students. These are under the
control and patronage of the State. The government appropriated in
1889-90, 12,000,000 francs for university purposes. Besides, there
were expended in the same year 99,000,000 francs for new buildings for
the advancement of higher education. In 1890, there were 598
professional chairs in the several universities, in which were taught
17,630 students, or one student to every 217 of the population.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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