WHY THE BRITISH COLONIAL GOVERNMENT DID NOT INTERVENE EARLY IN THE EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

The era between 1842 and 1882 is regarded in history of Nigeria education as period of exclusive missionary enterprise. Within this period the various missionary organizations in Nigeria run the education according to their respective philosophies, level of manpower available, as well as the availability of material and financial resources. The colonial government was silent over the educational activities of the missions then. The non- interference of the British colonial government in Nigeria at the period under review could be attributed to the following factors:

1.  Political factor: Religious interest preceded political interest at this early British contact in Nigeria. For instance the missionaries settled in Nigeria for pure evangelical work in 1842. From this period until 1851 and 1861 when Lagos was bombarded by and ceded to the British government, respectively, there was no British political control over any part of Nigeria. This means that the British Colonial Government took over Lagos as a colony in 1861. It was then that she became visibly present in the politics of the country; 
2.  British Government Policy on Education: In Britain then, education was decentralized and the private and religious organizations were allowed to establish and run schools on their own. The same attitude was upheld by the colonial authority in Nigeria; 
3. Financial Factor: The British Colonial Government in Nigeria was not ready to interfere on the establishment and management of schools, early because of the cost effects (Amaele, 2003). 

 Minimal Grants-In-Aid

In 1872, the British Government released the sum of £30 to each of the three active missionary societies in Lagos. These missionary organizations were the Church Missionary Society, the Wesleyan Methodist and the Catholic. The money was meant to support their missionary activities. This was the beginning of financial grants-in-aid to education which became the major educational financial policy of the colonial government in Nigeria. The grant was increased in 1877 to £200 to each of the said missions. This amount remained an annual assistant till 1882. Due to the above little grant given to assist the educational activities of the missions schools, the colonial administration decided to gradually intervene in the policy making in education, through what they called education ordinance. But what actually, was the aim of colonial education in Nigeria?

Exercise 2:

• What would you think to be the reasons why the colonial government releases grants-in-aid? 

Aims of Colonial Education in Nigeria

The colonial education in Nigeria was purely elitist, utilitarian and conservative. It differed slightly from that of the missionaries. The aim of colonial education could be broken into the following objectives:

• To produce low level manpower that could be cheaply used as interpreters, messengers, artisans and clerks; 
• To produce some indigenous youths who could help the rural farmers in planting, harvesting and processing some needed cash crops which were exported to Europe as raw materials to their industries; 
• To produce semi-literate citizens that could conform and be absorbed as instruments for actualizing the British philosophy of colonialism (Nduka, 1975). 

Exercise 3:

• Comment on the aim of the colonial education in Nigeria. 

1882 Education Ordinance

The Education Ordinance of 1882 was the colonial government’s first formal document aimed at the control of education by government. This ordinance covered Lagos and Accra which were under one colonial Administrative authority.

The ordinance had the following provision:

• The constitution of a General Board of education at such places as they may consider desirable; 
• The constitution, powers and duties of the local Board of Education; 
•  Classification of schools into: a. Government schools which were maintained entirely through public funds. b. Assisted schools established by private persons and aided from public funds. 
•  Freedom of parents as to religious instruction of their children;
• Grants to be used for school buildings and teachers salaries; 
• Conditions of grants-in-aid to private schools-based on managerial control, attendance of children and examination results in specified subjects; 
• Appointment of an Inspector of Schools for all the British West Africa. When appointed the Inspector would spend most of his time in the Gold Coast. While Lagos would contribute one-third of the inspector’s fixed annual salary of £400; 
• Special grants to be made to industrial schools; 
• Admission of pauper children into government and assisted schools; 10. Defining school curriculum to include Reading, Writing, English Language, Arithmetic and Needlework for girls. (Osokoya, 1995 p. 63); 11. Grants to training colleges and institutions for teachers. 

Exercise:

• Suggest some of the areas that should have been included.