UPSC Prelims 2018 · GS Paper I
Question 19: History and Culture
Regarding Wood’s Dispatch, which of the following statements are true ?
- 1.Grants-in-Aid system was introduced.
- 2.Establishment of universities was recommended.
- 3.English as a medium of instruction at all levels of education was recommended.
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).
Wood's Dispatch of 1854, often called the Magna Carta of English education in India, introduced the system of grants-in-aid to encourage private effort and recommended universities at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras (set up in 1857). It did not make English the medium at every level: it favoured vernacular languages at the school stage, with English used for higher education. Remember: grants-in-aid, universities, a Department of Public Instruction in each province, vernacular schools.
- 1. The grants-in-aid system was introduced.
- 2. Universities were recommended and set up in 1857.
- 3. Vernaculars were favoured at lower levels, with English for higher education.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement 3 is not correct, (b), (c) and (d) go: each of them includes 3.
What you needed to know: Vernaculars were favoured at lower levels, with English for higher education.
The red flag in statement 3 is “all”. In UPSC’s papers, statements with “all” were true 41% of the time (76 statements). A hint, not a rule.
Only (a) is left. You didn’t need statements 1 or 2.
Which options go is worked out from UPSC’s key and the options, not by a model.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Right: grants-in-aid and universities were part of the Dispatch.
- (b) Wrong: English as the medium at all levels was not recommended.
- (c) Wrong: statement 3 is false.
- (d) Wrong: statement 3 is false.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2018, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.