From the Deed of Cession to Decolonisation: Re-examining the Historical Evolution of Education in Fiji

The evolution of formal education in Fiji is inseparable from the broader historical processes of colonisation, cultural encounter, and socio-political transformation that have shaped the nation since the nineteenth century. This paper critically re-examines the historical trajectory of education in Fiji from the Deed of Cession in 1874 to the contemporary era of decolonisation, with particular attention to the roles of missionary enterprises, colonial administration, and the indentured labour system in structuring educational access, curriculum content, and social stratification. Drawing on historical and postcolonial scholarship, the study analyses how early indigenous systems of knowledge transmission were marginalised through the imposition of Western epistemologies, Christian moral instruction, and racially differentiated schooling models designed to serve colonial economic and governance objectives. The paper further explores how education functioned as a tool of social control during the colonial period, reinforcing ethnic divisions between Indigenous iTaukei communities and Indo-Fijian descendants of indentured labourers, while simultaneously limiting pathways to higher education and leadership for colonised populations. Following independence in 1970, Fiji’s education system entered a complex phase of reform marked by efforts to expand access, promote national cohesion, and reassert cultural identity, yet continued to reflect deep-seated colonial legacies in curriculum design, language policy, and assessment practices. By situating Fiji’s educational development within wider global debates on decolonisation and postcolonial education reform, this paper highlights the enduring tensions between inherited colonial structures and contemporary aspirations for culturally responsive, inclusive, and equitable education. The study contributes to the growing body of Pacific and global South scholarship by offering a historically grounded, critical analysis of education in Fiji, and by identifying key lessons for current policy and curriculum reform initiatives aimed at decolonising knowledge systems and repositioning education to meet the social, cultural, and developmental needs of a postcolonial society.