British Mandate: A Survey of Palestine: Volume II - Page 636

CHAPTER XVI.

37. In the two and a half years from 1918, when the British Occupation of Palestine began, to July 1st, 1920, when the civil administration was set up, the Military Government began the work of educational reconstruction. Schools that had existed before were re-opened in the larger towns, training colleges for men and women were instituted in Jerusalem, and Arabic was made the medium of instruction in Government schools, i.e. the ex-Ottoman public schools. The Christian and Jewish schools remained "private". In 1919 the Military Administration voted £E.53,000 for the education budget, which was increased in the financial year 1920/21, the first year of Civil Government, to £E.78,000.

38. Since 1920 a dual system of national education has gradually developed, formed on a linguistic and racial basis, according to the language of instruction, Arabic or Hebrew. Into one or other of these systems all schools, except some of those maintained by foreign bodies, naturally fall. The Arab system includes all schools, Government and non-Government, public or private, where Arabic is wholly or chiefly the medium of instruction; while the Hebrew or Jewish system includes all schools, whether under the Va'ad Leumi or not, where Hebrew is the language of instruction or at least is regarded as the predominant feature of the curriculum.

Those schools which are conducted by foreign bodies and in which a foreign language is the principal medium of instruction are classed as Arab or Jewish according as the second language learnt by the majority of pupils is Arabic or Hebrew.

In statistics of attendance ex-Ottoman races other than Arabs and Jews (e.g. Armenians, Greeks, Syriac Christians) cannot be distinguished from the Arabs and are included with them. The number of pupils in these minor communities is not significant.

39. Each of the two systems thus distinguished by the medium of instruction may for practical purposes be divided into

(a) public schools, supported mainly by public funds (i.e. taxes and/or rates collected under statutory authority);

(b) private schools supported mainly by fees and/or charitable endowments and gifts.

On the Arab side the large majority of public schools of all grades are administered direct by Government and are supported mainly from general revenues but local authorities contribute both to buildings and to the cost of supplementary teaching staff. A small number of public schools are entirely supported by Local Education Authorities (Municipalities, Local Councils and Village Councils). All are under close Government inspection.

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