中國教育西化始於晚清，官方對主要對手英國教育的接觸，則遲至光緒朝初。本文旨在探討甲午前七位使英外交官對於英國教育的觀察，進而分析其認識程度及影響。主要史料為諸人日記或筆記，其範圍涵蓋中小學、大學、海軍學堂、女子學校、職業學校及師範學校，地區以英格蘭為主，另提及教育行政制度及學制。七人中有二人通曉英語，餘人參訪時需透過翻譯，以致產生理解差異。其所留紀錄，甲午前多已出版，數位後使英者曾看過前人之書。限於當時社會反洋的氛圍濃厚，以致諸人在英國的一手教育見聞，實難大量引介至國內，以帶動教育革新。以教育遷移理論觀之，此過程只能視為教育借入前的醞釀階段。

The westernization of Chinese education was emerged since late Ch’ing; however the contact with the British education was not made until 1876. The aim of this paper is to inquire the educational experiences of seven Chinese diplomats in Britain before 1894. Their diaries and notebooks were analyzed. The main findings are as follows. Elementary and secondary schools, universities and colleges, naval academy, girl’s school, vocational school and teacher training school were introduced, and most of them were located in England. Only two diplomats knew English, so others needed translators’ help when they made school visit; therefore, different understanding of the same matter happened among them visited schools. Most records were published before 1894, and some were read by successive diplomats. Because the anti-westerners atmosphere was severe, it became difficult to introduce the diplomats’ observation of the British education, not to mention any stimulation of the reform in Ch’ing China. From the viewpoint of educational transfer theory, those experiences can only be understood as the brewing stage of educational borrowing.