Lord
William Bentinck, the then Governor-General of British India, impressed
upon the East India Company to allocate funds to promote education and
literature in India. Then traditional methods of Hindu and Muslim
education was in practice and the publications were mostly in the
native tongues (Sanskrit and Persian/Urdu). A decision had been made
to support the establishments teaching Western curriculum with English
as the language of instruction. This way they gradually introduced
English as the language of administration and of the higher law courts
(replacing Persian/Urdu). Ultimately English became one of the
languages of India, rather than simply the native tongue of its foreign
rulers. The English Education Act was a legislative Act of the Council of India in 1835 giving effect to a decision in 1835 by Gov. Gen. Lord William Bentinck.
Thomas Babington Macaulay's remark that Western learning was superior was received by the natives with reservation because India holds the distinction of having two highly advanced well structured languages Sanskrit and Tamil and many Indian languages evolved from them. Across India in the past three decades greater emphasis has been placed on the English medium schools and parents want to see to it that their children study at such schools so that it will help them if they go for higher education either in India or abroad. Yet another advantage is, as English is widely spoken globally, there is an ample scope for employment opportunities at the MN companies in India and abroad.
Thomas Babington Macaulay's remark that Western learning was superior was received by the natives with reservation because India holds the distinction of having two highly advanced well structured languages Sanskrit and Tamil and many Indian languages evolved from them. Across India in the past three decades greater emphasis has been placed on the English medium schools and parents want to see to it that their children study at such schools so that it will help them if they go for higher education either in India or abroad. Yet another advantage is, as English is widely spoken globally, there is an ample scope for employment opportunities at the MN companies in India and abroad.
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| St. George’s School , chennai thehindu.com |
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| French piest Fr. Ephrem de Nevers.wikivisually.com |
Fr. Ephrem de Nevers. He was a man of affable disposition and loved by everybody around him. The French missionary was a dedicated worker and loved children very much and that ultimately led him to open a public school for them. However, de Nevers took the honor of having started the first English school in India and it functioned right here in Madras (Chennai). The school came up at his priestly quarters in St. Andrews, a Roman Catholic church which he established in 1642 within the prescient of fort St. George, Madras. The French priest got the necessary permission from the English Company to establish the free English school. Besides, he also ran another school and taught Tamil, Portuguese and Latin to the students. Europeans and Indian students were benefited by this school.
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| 300 pluus years old St.gerge's school, Chennai so.city/chennai/articl |
After the closure of St. Andrews Church (1658) for political reason by the English company in the wake of liberation of St. George fort from the French occupation, Fr. de Nevers was given permission in 1658 to build a second church and a school on a land in the place now called George Town. The Capuchin Preacher Pringle in 1673 started the Portuguese and English language free school to cater to the needs of the English, Portuguese, other Europeans and Indian children resident in the Fort. The Council of Fort St. George in 1678 gave a formal recognition and one Ralph Orde became the ‘Schoolmaster’. Later this school was taken over by St. Mary’s and its name changed to St. Mary’s Charity School and functioned under the Rev. William Stevenson, the Chaplain of Ft. St. George from 1715. Thus. this school earlier functioned in North Black Town, Broadway, Chindaripet and finally shifted to the present location in Shenoy Nagar. In 1787, the school was called the Male Orphans’ Asylum and was meant for orphaned children of British soldiers who had died in India. Under the Rev Joseph Carew in 1839, it became St. Mary’s Seminary.
In 1882, it became a second grade college of the University of Madras carrying the name of St. Mary's college. It became St. Mary’s European High School in 1906. After independence, again the name changed to St. George’s Anglo-Indian Higher Secondary School.
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| Special Cover was released on 23rd April 2015 a Rainbow Stamp Club |
Some Facts of St. George's School:
01. Being the oldest existing western school in South Asia, St. George’s School, in December 1715 started with just 18 boys and 12 girls. It is more than 300 years old
02. This charity institution had a humble start in a house called Jersey House.
03. In the school, now part of the oldest Anglican Church in the city, you will be surprised to find names like Clive, Warren Hastings and Wellesley in its minutes book.
04. The school was shifted in 1904 into a building in the present site. In 1838, the Female Orphans Asylum was shifted to a spacious building of Conway Gardens, The building was known as Conway House (on Poonamallee High Road), where Brigadier-General T.H.S. Conway lived. The school used to be called Conway school. The top military officer died in 1837 and there is a statue in St. Mary's in the Fort in memory of him.
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| St. George’s School, Chennai. .edudwar.com |
06. The school functioned in Coimbatore (1942-1946) during the war time and Stanes School provided accommodation for the students.
07. Catering to the uplift of weaker sections as well, the school has 1300 students and the school still functions as an orphanage for Angelo-Indian children.
08. Following the Angelo-Indian traditions, the school follows Anglo-Indian syllabus and encourages dancing and piano lessons on the sideline.
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