| Description | Papers of a Sub-Committee of the Edinburgh Conference Continuation Committee on "Language Schools in the Field". This Sub-Committee, chaired by Dr Henry Hodgkin of England, sent out a series of questions in 1911 in order to establish the views of missionaries regarding the need for language training schools in the field and missionary methods of language study. These papers include the returns from Japan, India and China. Additional notes and other papers relating to language training and schools for missionaries, apparently unconnected with questionnaire, have been added in the 1920s. Most records date 1911-1913. |
| Administrative History | The Edinburgh Conference was held in 1910 and was attended by representatives of missionary societies under the chairmanship of John Mott. The goal of this conference was to survey the missionary activity throughout the world of non Roman churches. The conference was attended by more than 1000 delegates form all over the world. There was a full discussion of the need for adequate and appropriate language study for missionaries and the Conference recognised the importance of the issue. It remitted the matter to the Continuation Committee of the Conference which, in turn, placed it in the hands of a Sub-Committee chaired by Dr Henry Hodgkin who was Secretary of the Friends' Foreign Mission Association.
References:
J. H. Wyckoff, Language schools for missionaries in South India in The Harvest Field, Vol. XXXI, No. 8, Aug 1911;
Alan N. Siggelkow, The Ecumenical Movement with Special Emphasis on the Lutheran Dialogue on Justification (http://www.wls.wels.net/library/Essays/Authors/S/SiggelkowEcumenical/SiggelkowEcu Accessed April 2002) |
| Custodial History | This collection was formerly held by the Selly Oak Colleges Library although the original provenance is unknown. It was then transferred to the Orchard Learning Resources Centre which was opened in 1997 following the merger of the Selly Oak Colleges Library and the Westhill College Library. In 2000, the custodianship of all archive collections held at the Orchard Learning Resources Centre was transferred to the University of Birmingham |