Development of Missionary School in Sarawak 1840-1960

Abstract

This study discusses the development of missionary schools in Sarawak during the period of 1840-1960s. For this study the qualitative method was used to analyze primary source documents involving a few missionary schools in and around the main towns of Sarawak. The development of basic education and secondary missionary schools in Sarawak during the Brooke era administration in 1840 very much involves the missionaries actively propagating Christianity in order to change the living standards of the rural population which were then still very much lagging behind in terms of education, skills, and modern livelihood.  The existence of various medium of missionary schools such as English medium, vernacular, rural Anglican and Catholic missionary schools symbolized the determination of the Brooke administration to ensure the local populace to obtain education and become a source of civil servants for the government’s administration machinery. All the data obtained would be arranged into a meaningful source of historical narrative. Overall, this study is very important to further increase our understanding on the missionary school’s effort in bringing development to education in Sarawak.