Historical Background of education in the Indian subcontinent

The history of education in the South Asia began with teaching of traditional elements such as Indian religions, Indian mathematics, Indian logic at early Hindu and Buddhist centres of learning such as Taxila (in modern-day Pakistan) and Nalanda(in India) before the common era. Islamic education became ingrained with the establishment of the Islamic empires in the Indian subcontinent in the Middle Ages while the coming of the Europeans later bought western education to colonial India. A series of measures continuing throughout the early half of the 20th century ultimately laid the foundation of education in the Republic of India, education in Pakistan and much of South Asia.
Early History
Early education in India commenced under the supervision of a guru.^[1] Initially, education was open to all and seen as one of the methods to achieve Moksha, or enlightenment. As time progressed, due to superiority complexes, the education was imparted on the basis of caste and the related duties that one had to perform as a member of a specific caste.^[1] The Brahmans learned about scriptures and religion while the Kshatriya were educated in the various aspects of warfare.^[1] The Vaishya caste learned commerce and other specific vocational courses while education was largely denied to the Shudras, the lowest caste.^[1] The earliest venues of education in India were often secluded from the main population.^[1] Students were expected to follow strict monastic guidelines prescribed by the guru and stay away from cities in ashrams.^[2] However, as population increased under the Gupta empire centres of urban learning became increasingly common and Cities such as Varanasi and the Buddhist centre at Nalanda became increasingly visible

 Education before the British rule , advent of Muslim rule and introduction of Muslim education in the sub-continent

Pakistan traces its history of education to the advent of Islam and Islamic/Arabic culture to the Indian subcontinent with the invasion of Muhammad bin Qasim in Sind in 712 A.D.. By that time, the Arabs had already distinguished themselves not only as conquerors and administrators over vast territories in the Middle East and North Africa but even more significantly as creators of a culture replete with literature, art, architecture, and religious studies. With the establishment of Muslim rule at Delhi in 1208 A.D., the Islamic culture made extensive inroads on the subcontinent, converting a quarter of its population to Islam over the next five centuries.

With the advent of Islam in India the traditional methods of education increasingly came under Islamic influence.^[16] Pre-Mughal rulers such as Qutb-ud-din Aybak and other Muslim rulers initiated institutions which imparted religious knowledge.^[16] Scholars such as Nizamuddin Auliya and Moinuddin Chishti became prominent educators and established Islamic monasteries.^[16]Students from Bukhara and Afghanistan visited India to study humanities and science.^[16]

Islamic institution of education in India included traditional madrassas and maktabs which taught grammar, philosophy, mathematics, and law influenced by the Greek traditions inherited by Persia and the Middle East before Islam spread from these regions into India.^[17] A feature of this traditional Islamic education was its emphasis on the connection between science and humanities.^[17] Among the centres of education in India was 18th century Delhi was the Madrasa Rahimiya under the supervision of Shah Waliullah, an educator who favored an approach balancing the Islamic scriptures and science.^[18] The course at theMadrasa Rahimiya prescribed 2 books on grammar, 1 book on philosophy, 2 books on logic, 2 books on astronomy and mathematics, and 5 books on mysticism.^[18] Another centre of prominence arose in Lucknow under Mulla Nizamuddin Sahlawi, who educated at the Firangi Mahal and prescribed a course called the Dars-i-Nizami which combined traditional studies with modern and laid emphasis on logic.^[18]

The education system under the rule of Akbar adopted an inclusive approach with the monarch favoring additional courses: medicine, agriculture, geography, and even from texts from other languages and religions, such as Patanjali's work in Sanskrit.^[19]The traditional science in this period was influenced by the ideas of Aristotle, Bhāskara II, Charaka and Ibn Sina.^[20] This inclusive approach was not uncommon in Mughal India.^[18] The more conservative monarch Aurangzeb also favored teaching of subjects which could be applied to administration.^[18] The Mughals, in fact, adopted a liberal approach to sciences and as contact with Persia increased the more intolerant Ottoman school of manqul education came to be gradually substituted by the more relaxed maqul school.^[21]

The Middle Ages also saw the rise of private tuition in India.^[20] A tutor, or Riyazi, was an educated professional who could earn a suitable living by performing tasks such as creating calendars or generating revenue estimates for nobility.^[20] Another trend in this era is the mobility among professions, exemplified by Qaim Khan, a prince famous for his mastery in crafting leather shoes and forging cannons.^[20]