Education of women in China,

Front matter

THE EDUCATION OF WOMEN

in china

PRINCETON, N. J.

Preface

Of all the remarkable changes which have taken place in China within the last decade, none is more significant than the change of attitude toward the education of women. Active interest and even enthusiasm have taken the place of the indifference or disapproval of the past centuries. China is coming to recognize that if she is to be genuinely strong, in the new era of her history upon which she is entering, her women must be given such education as will purify and elevate national life at its very source, the home. The character of the great new China will be determined in no small measure by the women of the nation, and what these women will be depends very largely upon whether they receive education, and upon the type of that education.

During a stay of six months in China in 1909 I was much interested in a study of the present conditions in woman’s education, and visited several of the schools for girls, both those conducted by the Mission Boards and 5

Preface those recently established by the Chinese. Since my return to this country I have continued my study, seeking to learn from the best available authorities the character of such education for women as existed before the entrance of Western influences, and to trace the history of modern education, using, as far as possible, original sources. Although these studies have been by no means exhaustive, I have put the results into their present form in the belief that they may be of interest to others as well as to myself. It is with the earnest hope that it may help to a clearer understanding of the power which the Chinese women are capable of exerting, and of their importance to the future of the oldest and most populous of the nations of the world, that this brief sketch of the history of the education of Chinese women is sent forth.

M. E. B.

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