An important driving force behind the growth of Kerala Was its education. The contributions made by missionaries in this field are highly valuable. They played a big role in expanding education. In the first decade of the 19th century, the London Mission Society (LMS) and Church Mission Society (CMS) started working in Travancore.
Rev. Mead was a missionary of CMS, who devoted his entire life in expanding education here. In 1817 the CMS College and a seminary were founded at Kottayam. To encourage women’s education, the missionaries established a grammar school and other schools.
The first school in Kochi was established in 1818 in Mattan cherry. A missionary named Rev. Dow son was its founder.
At the same time, Rev Twinkle Tab, a Spanish Missionary in the Salvation Army founded English schools in the southern parts, including Nager coil.
It was Basil Evangelical Mission (BEM) that spread education in Malabar. In 1848, they established a primary school in Kallai and in 1856, another school at Thalassery.
The contributions made by the Christian missionaries encouraged the governments of Kerala to take up education more seriously. In 1817, the ruler of Travan core, Gauri Parvati Bai, started free, compulsory primary education. In many areas of Travancore, schools were established. In 1839, during the reign of Swathi Thirunal, the first English school was begun. Another school was started in Thalassery.
