Post 3: The Role of
Education
The Ragged School Museum
Early morning on the first day of June, I made my way towards the
Ragged School Museum. My commute took over an hour and I had to switch at
multiple stops, alternating between the Tube and the National Rail system. The
museum was located in the suburbs of London and I had no idea what to expect.
Next to a park, the first thing I noticed were the crowds of children lining up
for the museum. I was very confused until I realized it was a holiday week and
schools were on vacation. I was really debating whether or not to wait in line
to get my face painted like all the kids, but then I realized that I'm
technically an adult and probably shouldn’t be walking around London with a
butterfly on my face.
I had arranged to speak with Erica Davies, the director of the
museum, beforehand and she was very gracious to speak with me, especially since
this was the busiest time of year for the museum. I got to ask her a lot of
questions about the history of ragged schools and their role in the changing
social conditions of Victorian London. The Ragged School Museum is located
in a group of three canal side buildings that used to be part of the
largest ragged school in London. These warehouses were also used for industrial
purposes until the museum was set up to preserve this historic site in the
1980s .The museum had actually recently received a $4.3 million grant from the
Heritage Lottery Fund in 2016 for urgently needed restoration work and parts of
it were still under construction when I visited. Erica told me that this place
was more of a heritage site rather than a museum, focused on interactive
lessons for children. And as I saw, this relatively small museum was very
engaged with its community and schools. Afterwards, a lovely volunteer
named Bryn gave me an individual tour of the museum and was very patient with
all my questions. He was actually friends with someone whose father attended
one of the ragged schools! I learned a lot about the history of ragged schools
and the museum in particular.
“Then there is the Slum Street, usually an alley with a gully and
a common sink somewhere about the middle, so as to give fair play to the foul
emanations all around. About this drain swarms a crowd of small,
pinched-looking creatures, drinking-in typhoid, inhaling diphtheria…THIS IS THE
NORMAL PLAYGROUND OF THE SLUM CHILD”- The Quiver, January 1895
The
population of London grew exceedingly through the 19th century. At the same
time, the supply of inexpensive housing declined as homes were knocked down to
build commercial and industrial buildings, railways and roads. More and more
people moved into the East End, which was the nearest affordable district. By
the 1880s, the East End was known for its horrible conditions: overcrowding,
inadequate waste disposal systems, poor waterways, and high rents made it the
worst part of London for people to live in.
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| Ragged schools were named after these children who were so poor that their clothes were ragged |
Ragged Schools first began in the late 18th century. Small tradesmen and
members of the public began to start Sunday and day-schools for children who
would otherwise be out in the streets. The ragged schools grew from recognition
that many children from inner-city areas had no access to schooling. Reading,
writing and arithmetic were emphasized; bible study was also important.
Whatever buildings that could be afforded, such as stables, lofts, or even
railway arches, were converted into these schools. These schools wanted to
provide more than just education for the children, providing food and clothes
as well. Training in industrial and other skills were also provided, allowing
children to fare better in the labor market. This phenomenon grew into a
nationwide movement and the foundation of the Ragged School Union was formed in
1844.
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| Photograph of Barnardo's Boys |
Lord
Shaftesbury, the President of the Ragged School Union, hoped that schools would
make the lowest rung of society into more productive citizens, much like Thomas
Coram and his Foundlings. By making these children economically productive,
they were also less likely to become criminals, allowing the streets to be
safer.
The ragged
schools expanded rapidly: there were around 200 teachers in 1844, and over 1600
in 1851. In 1867, the 226 Sunday Ragged Schools, 204 Day Schools and the 207
Evening Schools had an average attendance of 26,000 children. The evening
schools offered practical skills that were recognized as important to finding
employment.
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| Thomas Barnardo (1845-1905) |
Thomas Barnardo devoted his life to
helping the poor, especially the children. He was born in Dublin and came to
east London in 1866 to train as a medical missionary but was so shocked by the
conditions that he refocused his life to focus on the poor. Even after his
death, the charity he created continues today with helping the needy. In 1876,
Thomas Barnardo began to lease part of an old warehouse storage site and turned
it into the first ragged school. The Copperfield Road Ragged School educated
thousands of local children during the time it was open. The classes were
divided into a mixed infant’s school, a boy’s school and a girl’s school. The
lessons were the same as those of government schools: reading, writing,
arithmetic and religion. The school was overcrowded due to demand. The day
schools were shut down in 1908 after Government inspectors said the buildings
were unsuitable for the amount of students.
Dr. Barnardo
needed to raise large amounts of money to constantly expand his organizations.
In 1868 he established the East End Juvenile Mission at Hope Place to further
help support children in poor health. He was an ingenious fundraiser. He
produced many pamphlets and published a journal titled Night and Day. This
journal documented his work and appealed for funds. For instance, he described
the plight of Louisa and Ellen C, who were pupils at his school.
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| Excerpt from Barnardo's Night and Day |
The late
nineteenth century was a time of mass migration all over the world. Between
1867 and 1912, more than 24,000 children left Barnardo’s homes to go abroad,
mostly to Canada. The idea of a “Greater Britain” was very popular at the time.
Many Victorians thought that sending poor children to the colonies would not
only save them from poverty and poor health, but also build the Empire. People
that were victims of social problems could now become citizens of an
ever-expanding world.
The system
for ragged schools was very much like the system of the Foundling hospital.
Before emigration, boys were trained in trades that would benefit their host
country. Trainings centers were set up to teach skills like baking, carpentry
and shoe-making. Girls were assigned jobs like domestic servants. They were
taught skills like cooking, laundry, needlework and similar skills.
The Education
Act of 1870 created the Board Schools that soon educated most of London’s
children. Attendance was compulsory for 5 to 10 year olds and national
standards for curriculum and teachers were established. There were fees
(usually a penny a week) for children to attend. Children also had
to be presentable, owning clothes and shoes. Therefore, most of the children of
the poor did not attend or attended sporadically.
In 1880, the
Elementary Education Act established attendance officers to enforce the minimum
leaving age. Additionally, all children between 10 and 13 had to meet a minimum
standard of education before they could leave school or enter employment. In
1893, the Elementary Education (School Attendance) Act raised the legal leaving
age to 11 and later 13. It wasn’t until 1902 with the Balfour Act that School
Boards were abolished in favor of local education authorities. Fees were also
abolished, allowing the schools to be truly public. With the enforcement and
official opening of these Government schools, the ragged schools gradually
started to close down in the early 1900s as they were less needed.
I had a
wonderful visit to the Ragged School Museum and was able to experience a bit of
what Victorian life was like for the poor urban children of East
London. The operation of these ragged schools required innovation in
terms of philanthropy in order to serve the public good. Awareness about the need for change in the living conditions of these children facilitated the beginnings of public education in London at that time. The importance of education was also fundamental because the children of the poor needed to have equal opportunities as other children to be fully integrated into society.
I then met up with Carmella and we spent the rest of the day exploring downtown London. The weather was amazing (not rainy at all). It was so much fun being tourists and being able to see so many London landmarks. Pictured below: Buckingham Palace, Leicester Sq, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben!
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