The Advisory Committee on Education in the [British] Colonies 1924‐1961

A cynical postcolonial age should probably not judge too harshly the long‐range contributions of this committee or the spirit in which it went about its work. This article traces the origins and influence of the Advisory Committee on Education in British colonies. Established fo advise the British Government, the committee met on a regulär basis for thirty‐seven eventful years (1924‐1961). During that time British coloniai policy underwent momentous changes. When the Committee first met British rule extended to all continents and encompassed a vast multitude of diverse races and cultures. By the time the Committee met for the last time in June 1961, the Empire was fast disappearing in the wake of decolonization. The Second World War acted as the catalyst for a fundamental reas‐sessment of British coloniai policy. Nowhere was this more clearly reflected than in changing educational priorities in the colonies affer 1945. The Advisory Committee played a key role in this process as illustrated in this account of its activities.