Masaryk University Faculty of Arts
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STUDENTSMost children began to attend primary schools when they were about six years old as the attendance was made compulsory by the law and what is more free of charge on primary level. Most students stayed at primary schools up to the age of fourteen or fifteen (“1944 Education Act”). Although the students could leave primary schools earlier, the majority of children whose parents did not have the resources to send them to secondary schools in towns stayed until the school leaving age (“King”). The school year for both primary and secondary students in the Caribbean began in September (Rush 36; Kincaid Annie John 29) Furthermore, Rush points out that “the school calendar paralleled that of British schools, beginning in September, breaking for three weeks or so over Christmas, then resuming from early January until April (Easter Break) and from thence well into the intense heat of mid-July” (36). The school day itself began between eight and nine o’clock in the morning and the students remained at school until the afternoon hours, with a break for lunch (Kincaid, Annie John 35). The students in the Caribbean were required to be "dressed, as children in the British Isles did, in school uniforms, typically dark skirts or trousers, light blouses or shirts, school ties and hats" (Rush 36). The novelists describe the school uniforms in a very similar way: “[Anand] had to wear the dark-blue serge shorts, the white shirt, the school tie” (Naipaul, The House 471) or “I [Tee] got into my blue and white uniform…“ (Hodge 72). Furthermore, the students studied from course books which were printed mainly in Britain and which endorsed the British culture among the students. Interestingly, they even used to use ink which was brought over from Britain (Rush 36, 228). The classes, which the students attended based on their age and also abilities, were called “forms” (Rush 36). In general, the number of students attending one class was fairly high and this fact made teaching and learning difficult: “there were twenty of us in my class, and we were seated at desks arranged five in a row, four rows deep. I was at a desk in the third row, and this made me even more miserable. I hated to be seated so far away from the teacher, because I was sure I would miss something she said” (Kincaid, Annie John 37). It is evident from the above description that the classrooms contained only necessary equipment, such as wooden benches and desks (Bacchus 93), which could sit the large number of students attending one form. Moreover, the school building itself made the teaching and learning difficult, too. As Bacchus writes prior to the 1940’s schools were simple buildings with no classrooms in the way we know them nowadays. The situation began to change after the Second World War when money was spent on modernizing school buildings, for example they contained staff rooms, classrooms, toilets, canteen, and so on (Bacchus 93). All students in the novels mentioned here come from working class families of African-Caribbean or Indian origin. Due to the historical background of the Caribbean, education was the only possibility for those students to move among the members of the upper-class society, live a better-quality life, get a well-paid job or even leave their native country in order to work or study in Britain. Therefore, the students were forced to take up additional lessons to succeed academically and later professionally. However, the education which was based on the British model brought with it some problems such as irrelevance of information in the textbooks, lack of knowledge of their own history, background of their ancestors or the question of belonging. Students who left the Caribbean and studied in Britain usually never returned back because they were even more influenced by the British culture, mentality and way of life. For instance, Anand the son of the title hero of The House for Mr Biswas wins the island scholarship and moves to Britain where he attends a university. At first he is sad and often writes to his father but then he gradually stops communicating with his family, avoids visiting them, and even does not return for his father's funeral. It seems that Anand becomes completely immersed in the British lifestyle and he does not intend to go back to the life of his struggling parents. Similarly, Merle Hodge in Crick Crack, Monkey depicts the changes that the heroine, Tee, undergoes when she moves from an ordinary overcrowded primary school to a highly respected secondary school, St. Ann. Moreover, she starts living with her aunt, Beatrice, who seems to belong to the upper-class and who despises Tee's aunt Tantie. Tee begins to change and avoids visits to her poor aunt and her old friends who she cannot relate to any more. In other words, the surroundings and school have gradually changed her views: "[a]ll this I [Tee] was seeing again through a kind of haze of shame; and I reflected that even now Tantie and Toddan must be packed into that ridiculous truck with all those coolies" (Hodge 86). Despite the negative experience of some students with the British-based educational system, the authors also depict eager learners who like learning. For example, Horace Lumpres, the hero of All That Glitters by Michael Anthony represents an eager student who loves going to school and likes to study. The reason is a considerate and inspiring Teacher Myra whose lessons are motivating. Similarly, the students, in To Sir, With Love by E. R. Braithwaite, gradually change from the students who do not care about their academic career to eager those who will do everything to succeed even without upper-class background. They gradually learn from everyday situations to respect each other in terms of gender or race. Moreover, they realise that education can open them doors to a better future, even without the right social status or rich parents. CONCLUSIONAfter examining the Caribbean educational system, it is evident that although the writers describe schooling of different islands, to be specific in the islands of Antigua, Barbados and Trinidad in the first half of the twentieth century, their own school experience and its artistic treatment are very similar as the authors attended schools in approximately the same time and were taught according to the curriculum drawn on British models. For this reason I will compare their novels in terms of the themes related to education, i.e. the teaching process and the character of a teacher. The areas where the influence of Britain is particularly apparent are the content of individual school subjects and examinations. Even though, some writers provide more detailed description of teaching the core subjects than the others, from all the novels it is obvious that Religion, History, English Language and Literature or Geography leave an important imprint of the British way of life on all Caribbean children. Since all course books are published in Britain, the students need first of all to master English. Therefore, they start their reading and writing skills by learning the English alphabet, and later when they get older, they begin studying English nursery rhymes, poems, plays or novels; for example, William Wordsworth's "Daffodils", Milton's Paradise Lost or William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Teaching English and Literature mentioned in different novels do not undergo any significant changes as apparent from The House for Mr Biswas in which the title character attends school at the beginning of the twentieth century and his son a few decades later. As far as the teaching of history and geography is concerned the novels set in the span of the first four decades of the twentieth century focus predominantly on the British Empire (Growing Up Stupid under the Union Jack, Amongst Thistles and Thorns, The House and In the Castle of My Skin), whereas those set in the 1950's also include Caribbean themes (Annie John, The House and All That Glitters). Unfortunately such an approach to the history of the region is exceptional and the account of history remains fairly unchanged as demonstrated in Annie John. In other words, the perspective of various historical events still celebrates the British standpoint, actions or behaviour. Therefore, it is not surprising that some historical issues, such as slavery, were omitted from the syllabus altogether. The preparation for the exhibition, its significance for all participants in educational process as well as its close connection to the syllabus is a recurrent theme in the majority of novels of childhood mentioned here. For instance, Growing Up, The House, Crick Crack, Monkey, In the Castle provide a detailed description of exhibition classes, private lessons and the day of the College Exhibition examination, whereas The Mystic Masseur, Growing Up, The House, In the Castle also deal with the Senior Cambridge Examination taken by secondary school students. All the above mentioned novels reveal the high importance of the two examinations. The former determines whether the children of working class parents will go to one of the top secondary schools on the island without the obligation to pay fees and the latter decides whether they will become teachers, inspectors or will live in obscurity as those who did not succeed. All writers also describe teachers and headmasters as one of the most important and influential members of the local community. This is particularly evident in The Schoolmaster, Amongst Thistles, The House or To Sir, With Love. The villagers seek their guidance and express gratitude for their valuable advice which enhances even more teachers' position among the members of the upper-class society. However, a highly respected position of teachers and their imitation of the British way of life and admiration of British culture, language and education often result in unfavourable description of teachers' behaviour, as apparent from Growing Up, Amongst Thistles, The House, The Mystic, Annie John, The Schoolmaster or Crick Crack. Although the majority of authors portray discouraging teachers who use their authority to discipline their students, very often by using whips, belts or verbal abuse, none of the writers describe such an extreme expression of cruelty as A. C. Clarke in Amongst Thistles. However, this does not mean that all the teachers in Caribbean schools were the same. Michael Anthony, E. R. Braithwaite, A. C. Clarke, George Lamming, Merle Hodge also portray encouraging, considerate, caring teachers for whom the well-being of their students is of the highest importance. That is demonstrated on the behaviour of the headmistress of a girl school Miss Brewster who helps Milton after being seriously flogged by Mr. Blackman (Amongst Thistles). Similarly, Braithwaite (To Sir), Teacher Myra (All That Glitters) or Lamming's secondary school teacher (In the Castle) are admired or even loved by their students, i. e. Braithwaite for accepting his students as his equals or standing up for them against other personnel who are not afraid of using physical punishment; Myra for her nice nature and interesting valuable lessons and Lamming's teacher for his encouragement and explanation of the importance of knowledge and good education. The majority of authors show teachers using teaching methods which are based on drilling and memorization of key facts. This is shown, for example, on Ganesh's way of teaching when he is telling the students only the basic information without making any connections to real life situations (The Mystic). Similar experience with rote learning is portrayed by A. C. Clarke, Merle Hodge, Jamaica Kincaid or George Lamming. Yet, some of them depict teachers who use more innovative techniques and encourage their students to actively participate in lessons. Unlike Ganesh, his colleague Leep (The Mystic) gives the students as much knowledge as possible by explaining and illustrating everything. Therefore, it is not surprising that Leep is upset that Ganesh's ignorance has spoiled all his good work. Similarly, Teacher Myra (All That Glitters) uses maps for illustration and asks questions to elicit answers from her students; or Sir (To Sir) uses authentic materials such as magazines, takes his students to exhibitions or has debates on current issues with them. In other words, Leep, Sir and Myra connect their lessons with real life situations to create a positive attitude to learning process as such. Nevertheless, none of the above stated negative aspects of education, i.e. discouraging teachers, rote learning or English based curriculum, undermine teachers' professionalism or the importance of education in the eyes of both parents and their children. The writers concur that the students are grateful to their parents for the money they invest into their education which, in the end, will improve their living conditions and social status. So they do everything they can not to bring shame on their families and themselves. Download 179.88 Kb. Share with your friends:
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