There are two branches of mission-work in Persia that bring the missionaries into close touch with Persian children: one is the hospital, the other is the school. You will hear about the medical work presently; in this chapter we will look at the school work.
There are Europeans in Persia, wanting English-speaking servants and employés; there are rich Persians wanting secretaries who can write French and English; there are business firms trading with England and India who want English-speaking clerks and correspondents; so naturally many Persians want their sons to learn English; and who should teach it better than the Englishman?
But this is not all they want. As they get to know the Christians they see that there is something in English ways and English character that the Persian lacks. And they bring their boys to the missionary, and ask him not merely to teach them English, not merely to teach them book-learning of any sort, but to teach them to be good boys.
They do not so often ask for a girls’ school, for they do not think a girl needs any book education as a rule, and only a few of the Persian women can even read. Yet in some of the Mission-stations girls’ schools have been started with great success, and year by year the demand for them is growing.
English is less taught in these schools, but some of the girls learn it, especially those most closely connected with the mission. The girls, of course, have to give a good deal of time to sewing and embroidery, which are more necessary for them than foreign languages.
But in all the Mission-stations sooner or later, generally sooner, a boys’ school is started, and these schools vary very much according to the needs of the different towns.
In one school Armenians and Muhammadans work side by side, in another we find Muhammadans and Parsees, while a third contains all three.
In one school only English is taught, in another advanced Persian and Arabic are added. In yet another, everything is taught from the Persian alphabet onwards.
One missionary works alone in his own house, another has a full staff of Armenian and Persian teachers and monitors, and a well-built convenient school.
But whatever the race of the boys, whatever the subjects taught, whatever the organisation, there are difficulties to be faced.