Wood`s dispatch on education in 1854 laid the foundation on which the educational system has since developed. Sir Charles Wood was the President of the Board of control in the coalition ministry of the earl of Aberdeen. According to Charles Wood the English institutions could serve as the useful model for education. In 1854 Wood prepared his comprehensive dispatch on the scheme of the future education in India. The dispatch came to be considered as the magna Carta of English education in India. The Scheme of education as is proposed by Wood`s Dispatch envisaged a co-ordinated system of education on an all India basis.

The Wood`s dispatch proposed several recommendations in order to improve the system of education. According the recommendation, it was declared that the aim of Government`s policy was the promotion of the western Education. In his dispatch he emphasized on the education of art, science, philosophy and literature of Europe. In short the propagation of the European knowledge was the motto of the Wood`s Dispatch. According to the dispatch, for the higher education, the chief medium of instruction would be English. However the significance of the vernacular language was no less emphasized. This is so because Wood believed that it was through the mediums of vernacular language that European knowledge could infilter to the masses. The Dispatch also proposed the setting up of several vernacular primary schools in the village at the lowest stage. Moreover there should be Anglo-Vernacular high schools and an affiliated college in the district level. The dispatch recommended a system of grants in aid to encourage and foster the private enterprise in the field of education. The grants in aid were conditional on the institution employing qualified teachers and maintaining proper standards of teaching. Moreover a Department of Public Instruction under the Charge of a Director in each of the five provinces of the Company`s territories. This Department was entrusted with the charge of reviewing the progress of education in the province and submits an annual report to the government. Universities on the s model of London Universities were proposed for Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. The administrative body of the University was also modeled according to the London University. There was a Senate House, a Chancellor, a Vice Chancellor and fellows- all were nominated by the Government of India. The universities were entitled to hold examinations and conferred degree. Moreover a University might set up professorship in various branches of learning. The dispatch emphasized the importance of the vocational instruction and the needs for establishing technical schools and colleges. Also the construction of teachers training institution was recommended on the model of the training institutions in London. The Woods Dispatch gave cordial support for the promotion of the women education in India.

However the s new scheme of education proposed by the Wood`s dispatch was merely an imitation of the English models. Almost all the proposals of the woods dispatch were implemented. The Department of Public instructions were organized in 1855 and the earlier Committee of Public instruction and Council of education was replaced. Three Universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras came into existence in the year 1857. Later mostly due to Bethune`s effort girl`s schools were set up and brought under the control of the Government of India. Several grants in aid were also provided for the promotion of the women education. The ideals and methods advocated in Wood`s Dispatch was dominated the educational scenario of India for a protracted period of time. During this period India witnessed a period of complete westernization of the educational system. The Western system of education gradually replaced the indigenous methods of education and learning. Most of the educational institutions during this time were run by the European teachers, who were the part of the Education Department of the Government of India. The Missionary institutions played its own part and managed a number of institutions. Gradually private Indian effort appeared in the field of s education.