Today I was browsing through US national archives microfilm reels containing state department records related to British Asia, 1910-29.1 There is always fun and unexpected materials in these collections and I thought I would share one that offers a little snapshot of what children in “Vernacular” (Chinese language) middle and primary school students were assigned to study in 1920s.
In February, 1929 the US consul to Hong Kong 1926–29, Harold Shantz composed a report on “Educational System of Hong Kong” which runs to some 34 pages, including a nice (but incomplete) list of the sources used. At the time, the report claims that there were an estimated 977,900 people in Hong Kong, 50,490 students, of which 37,417 students were in Chinese schools. Most of the British government materials can easily be found elsewhere, but I was particularly interested by the enclosures which purported to be (examples of?) syllabi for each year of “the Higher Primary division” and “the Middle School Division” for what I believe are the private Chinese schools for boys and girls. Shantz claims that there were 590 urban and 185 rural schools in operation as of 1927, with a third of the former and over half of the latter receiving subsidies from the Hong Kong colonial government. The report includes the form used to register schools, along the detailed ordinances for their regulation, including the requirement that “floors be washed at least once a week”, desks arranged “so that light falls upon the left of the pupils”, smoking prohibited, spitting only in spittoons, corporeal punishment of girls forbidden, detailed regulations for the administration of corporeal punishment to boys, etc.2
Below I have transcribed the material from the enclosures with the primary school and middle school syllabi, which I think are a great way to explore the focus of education in Hong Kong Chinese language schools, as depicted in these syllabi. It is not clear to me if this is from a particular school’s submission or an example drawn from patterns found across schools. The report doesn’t say anything about the origins of the syllabi:
Higher Primary First Year Class:
Classics:
(1) Cho’s Commentaries [ Zuo Zhuan? 左傳 ]
(2) Mencius
Chinese History: 高級小學新選歷史教科書 一二册
Chinese Literature:
(1) The Kwok Man Reader with notes and Explanations Book 1 (The World Press)
(2) Selections from 古文評註補正
Chinese Composition & Letter Writing
Arithmetic: 高級小學新選教科書[專?]一册 [incomplete title?]
Geography: 高級小學新選地理教科書一二册
English Reading: “First Year English for Higher Primary School”
English Dictation from the reading book
English Writing – Vere Forster’s [sic Foster’s] Copy Book, Medium Book 1 & 2
English Conversation – daily & common expressions
English Composition – making sentences
Moral Lessons: 朱子小學集解
Nature Study: 高級小學新選自然教科書一二册
Chinese Writing: copying model specimens
Chinese Painting: Flowers & Landscapes
Higher Primary Second Year Class:
Confucian Classics:
(1) Mencius (continued from First Year Class)
(2) Confucian Analects
Chinese History: 高級小學新選歷史教科書三四册
Chinese Literature:
(1) The Kwok Man Reader with notes & explanations Book 11. [2?] (The World Press)
Chinese Composition on simple subjects & Letter Writing
Arithmetic: 高級小學新選算術教科書二册
Geography: 高級小學新選地理教科書三四册
English Reading: “Second Year English for Higher Primary School”
English Dictation – from reading book.
English Writing – Vere Forster’s [sic Foster’s] Copy Book, Medium Book IV.
English Conversation – on chosen subjects or lessons of the reading book
English Composition – making sentences
Moral Lessons: 朱子小學集解 (continued from First Year Class)
Nature Study: 高級小學新選自然教科書三四册
Chinese Writing: Copying model specimens
Chinese Painting – Flowers & Landscapes
Higher Primary Third Year Class:
Confucian Classics:
(1) Mencius (continued from Second Year Class)
(2) The Analects (continued from Second Year Class)
Chinese History: The Earliest Times
Book:
(1) 鑑史提綱
(2) 通鑑輯覽
Chinese Literature:
(1) The Kwok Man Reader with notes & explanations Book 111. [3] (The World Press)
(2) Selections from 古文評註補正
Chinese Composition on simple subjects
Arithmetic: 高級小學新選算術教科書三四册
Geography:
(1) Notes on Hong Kong Harbour [Notes on the harbour of Hong Kong by F.J. de Rome and N. Evans?]
(2) 初中教書地大學
English Reading: China’s New Century Readers, Second Reader [China’s New Century Readers by L. T. Yoen, Hanson Lee and Fong F., 1915?]
English Dictation – from reading books
English Grammar: Nesfield’s Grammar Book 1 & II. [possibly a chopped up school edition of Manual of English Grammar and Composition by John Collison Nesfield]
Conversation – on chosen subjects or lessons of the reading nbook
English Composition – on elementary subjects
Moral Lessons: 朱子小學集解
Hygiene: 生理衛生學 [claims to be translation of Physiology and Hygiene John W. Ritchie
Chinese Writing: Copying model specimens ([臨碑?])
Chinese Painting: Flowers & Landscapes
Middle School First Year:
Confucian Classics:
The Four Books (continued from Third Year Class Higher Primary Division)
Chinese History – continued from Third Year Class, Higher Primary Division.
Books:
(1) 通鑑輯覽
(2) 本國史中學教科書
Chinese Literature – Selections from the following books;-
(1) 古文辞[類纂?彙纂?]
(2) 古文評註補正
Chinese Composition:
(1) Essays on simple Classical & Historical Subjects
(2) Essays on miscellaneous subjects
General History – 中學用教科書西洋史上卷
English Literature: Aesop’s Fables
English Grammar – Nesfield’s Grammar Book III.
Translation – simple exercises
English Dictation – from English text or simple story books
Arithmetic – Beginning with Hall & Steven’s School Arithmetic
Algebra – beginning with Hall & Knight’s Elementary Algebra
Geography – [left blank]
Chinese Painting – Flowers & Landscapes
Nature Study: 中學用教科書植物學
Middle School Second Year:
Confucian Classics:
The Four Books (continued from First Year Class)
Chinese History – continued from First Year Class
Books:
(1) 通鑑輯覽
(2) 本國史中學教科書
Literature: Selections from the following books:
(1) 古文辞[類纂?彙纂?]
(2) 古文評註補正
Composition:
(1) Essays on Classical & Historical subjects
(2) Essays on miscellaneous subjects
General History – 共和國教科書西洋史下卷
Geography – 中學用外國地理教科書上下卷
English Literature: Stories from Arabian Nights
English Grammar:
The parts of speech & simple parsing
Book – Nesfield’s Grammar Book III
Translation of short pieces
English Composition – exercises on simple subjects
English Dictation from English text or story books
Arithmetic – continued from First Year Class.
Book; Hall & Steven’s School Arithmetic
Algebra – continued from First Year Class
Book; Hall & Knight’s Elementary Algebra
Nature Study – 中學用教科書礦物學動物[每?]一冊
Middle School Third Year:
Confucian Classics:
The Four Books (continued from Second Year Class)
Chinese History – continued from Second Year Class.
Books:
(1) 通鑑輯覽
(2) 中學用教科書本國史
Literature: Selections from the following books:
(1) 古文[類纂?彙纂?]
(2) 六朝文絜
(3) 古文評註補正
Composition:
(1) Essays on Classical & Historical subjects
(2) Essays on miscellaneous subjects
General History: Great Men and chief events of the world.
Book: “Scenes from European History” by G. B. Smith
Geography: General Geography of the World
Book: Long’s Geographical Series Book 1.
English Literature: Lamb’s Tales from Shakespeare.
English Grammar: The parts of Speech, simple Parsing & Analaysis
Book: Nesfield’s Grammar Book IV.
Translation: E. to C. & C. to E.
English Composition
(a) “Specimens of Short Essays” Book 1
(b) Exercises
English Dictation: Seen & Unseen pieces
Arithmetic – continued from Second Year Class
Book: Hall & Steven’s School Arithmetic
Algebra – continued from Second Year Class
Book: Hall & Knight’s Elementary Algebra
Geometry – to begin with Hall & Steven’s School Geometry Parts I – IV.
Physics – to begin with Gorton’s “A School Course in Physics”
Principles of Economics:
Book:
中學用經濟學教科書 (supplemented by English Notes)
Chinese Painting: Flowers & Landscapes
Middle School Fourth Year:
Confucian Classics:
(a) The Four Books (continued from Third Year Class; to be completed to cover up [to?] the University syllabus)
(b) One section of the “Five Classics” as required by the University syllabus for the year concerned.
Chinese History:
The Earliest times to the Sui Dynasty or the Tang Dynast to the Ming Dynasty as required by the University syllabus of the year.
Books:
(1) 通鑑輯覽
(2) 本國史中學教科書
Literature: Selections from the following books:
(1) 古文[類纂?彙纂?]
(2) 文選
(3) 駢文筆法百篇
(4) 唐詩三百首
(5) 十八家詩鈔
Composition:
(1) Essays on Classical & Historical subjects
(2) Essays on miscellaneous subjects
(3) Ping Man
(4) Poetry
General History:
The outlines of European History in the nineteenth Century
(this period has been stuck to in order to make the students understand the growth of modern nations & the sources of modern systems).
Book: History of Western Europe by James Harvey Robinson (to be helped by summary & supplementary notes given by the teacher)
Geography:
General geography of the world as required by the University syllabus.
Book: Longman’s Geography series Book II.
English Literature:
Set book or books as required by the University syllabus of the year
English Grammar:
The parts of speech & their uses; Parsin; Analysis; Explanation of Idioms as required by the University syllabus
Book: Nesfield’s Grammar Book IV. (supplemented by notes on Idioms).
Translation: E. to C. & C. to E. Encluding [sic] passages from the Four Books.
English Composition:
(a) “Specimens of short Essays” Book II
(b) Exercises
English Dictation:
Seen & Unseen pieces
Arithmetic: As required by the university syllabus of the year
Book: Hall & Steven’s School Arithmetic
Algebra: As required by University syllabus
Book: Hall & Knight’s Elementary Algebra
Geometry: As required by University syllabus
Book: Hall & Steven’s School Geometry
Trigonometry: so far no time could be spared for this subject
Book Keeping – so far this subject not yet taught.
Principles of Law:
Book: 中學用法治教科書 (supplemented by English notes)
Chemistry:
Book: “An Elementary study of Chemistry” by Mc Pherson & Henderson (Chinese equivalents for technical terms supplied by the teacher).
Interestingly, the report also includes works assigned for teaching training (“normal school”):
Normal School First Year:
Normal School Second Year:
From this we can get a closer look of the distribution of the mix of Chinese classical education with integration, increasingly, of English language materials and Western history in Chinese and English. Some of the textbooks can be found online and I have linked to online editions from before the year the report came out, where I think I have found something similar.
The title of a book there should be revised.