Development of Education Under British Rule — UPSC Level Quiz
Answer all questions carefully. Each question has exactly one correct answer.
hard•10 questions•~14 min
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Question 01
medium
Which of the following correctly matches the early educational institution with its founder and year of establishment?
(a) Calcutta Madrasah — Jonathan Duncan — 1791
(b) Sanskrit College, Benaras — Warren Hastings — 1781
(c) Fort William College — Lord Wellesley — 1800
(d) Calcutta College — Lord Macaulay — 1817
Question 02
hard
Wood's Despatch of 1854 is called the 'Magna Carta of English Education in India'. Which of the following provisions is NOT associated with Wood's Despatch?
(a) Repudiation of the Downward Filtration Theory and acceptance of government responsibility for mass education
(b) Recommendation of a system of grants-in-aid to encourage private educational enterprise
(c) Making most university fellows nominees of the Government and giving Government veto over senate regulations
(d) Recommendation of English as medium for higher studies and vernaculars at school level
Question 03
hard
Consider the following statements about the Hunter Education Commission (1882–83):
1. It was set up to review progress of education since Wood's Despatch of 1854.
2. It recommended transfer of control of primary education to district and municipal boards.
3. It recommended that university education be divided into academic and vocational streams.
4. It drew attention to inadequate facilities for female education outside presidency towns.
Which of the above statements are correct?
Question 04
medium
The 'Downward Filtration Theory' associated with British education policy in India implied:
(a) That modern education should be provided primarily at the primary level and would gradually reach higher levels of society
(b) That Western-educated Indians would transmit modern knowledge downward to the masses through vernacular languages
(c) That the government would progressively reduce expenditure on higher education in favour of mass elementary education
(d) That European teachers would gradually be replaced by trained Indian teachers at lower levels of education
Question 05
medium
Which of the following is the correct chronological sequence of educational commissions/policies under British India?
(a) Hunter Commission → Raleigh Commission → Indian Universities Act → Saddler Commission → Hartog Committee
(b) Raleigh Commission → Hunter Commission → Saddler Commission → Indian Universities Act → Hartog Committee
(c) Hunter Commission → Indian Universities Act → Raleigh Commission → Hartog Committee → Saddler Commission
(d) Raleigh Commission → Indian Universities Act → Hunter Commission → Saddler Commission → Hartog Committee
Question 06
hard
The Indian Universities Act of 1904, enacted during Lord Curzon's tenure, was described by Gopal Krishna Gokhale as a 'retrograde measure'. Which of the following features of the Act most justified this description?
(a) It abolished the affiliation system and required all colleges to become residential institutions
(b) It reduced government grants to universities and transferred financial responsibility to provincial governments
(c) It empowered the government to nominate most university fellows and veto senate regulations, increasing political control over universities
(d) It made Sanskrit and Persian compulsory subjects in all university curricula, reversing Macaulay's Anglicist legacy
Question 07
hard
Consider the following statements about the Wardha Scheme of Basic Education (1937):
1. It was formulated by the Zakir Hussain Committee based on resolutions of the Wardha Education Conference.
2. It recommended English as the medium of instruction from Class I itself.
3. The scheme was based on Gandhi's ideas of 'learning through activity' published in Harijan.
4. It recommended inclusion of a basic handicraft in the school syllabus.
5. The scheme could not be substantially implemented due to the start of World War II and resignation of Congress ministries in 1939.
Which of the above statements are correct?
Question 08
hard
The Saddler University Commission (1917–19) recommended a major restructuring of the school-to-university pathway. Which of the following correctly describes its key recommendation on this?
(a) Students should directly enter university after completing the matriculation examination for a four-year degree course
(b) School course should cover 12 years, followed by an intermediate stage, before a three-year university degree course
(c) All universities should become affiliating bodies only, relinquishing their teaching functions to affiliated colleges
(d) Medium of instruction at university level should shift from English to regional languages
Question 09
hard
Which of the following statements about the critical evaluation of British education policy in India is INCORRECT?
(a) Government promotion of modern education was driven partly by the need for cheap educated Indians to serve in subordinate administrative posts
(b) After 1844, applicants for government employment were required to possess knowledge of English, which accelerated the decline of traditional Indian learning
(c) The illiteracy rate actually improved significantly under British rule, falling from 92% in 1911 to 84% in 1921
(d) The Roorkee Engineering College, one of very few such institutions, was initially open only to Europeans and Eurasians
Question 10
medium
The Sergeant Plan of Education (1944) set an ambitious target related to literacy and educational attainment. Which of the following correctly describes this target?
(a) Achieve universal elementary education within 10 years and eliminate adult illiteracy within 15 years
(b) Match England's level of educational attainment within 40 years; liquidate adult illiteracy within 20 years
(c) Provide compulsory secondary education to all children within 25 years and university education to 10% within 30 years
(d) Establish one university in each district within 15 years and achieve 50% literacy within 20 years