This thesis is an examination of the particular role that education has played in the development of colonialism in New Caledonia. The focus is on the role of education in the developing relationship between the colonised people and the colonial power. It will be shown that France's education policies closely paralleled its political objectives in New Caledonia. Similarly, the changing Kanak attitude towards education can be seen to reflect changes in their political aspirations and developments in their anti-colonial struggle.