Racism and subordination have been rife in education since the early days of colonialism and the era of the 1820 Settlers. Mission education practiced segregation and had a lack of respect for the local African culture. The curriculum was usually based on the European curriculum and local culture and history was excluded from the curriculum. Let’s look at three aspects of mission education which are often criticized: Industrial and manual education, racism and subordination, racism and women’s subordination.
Many black people were motivated to come to the mission schools for a variety of reasons. Many people who were seeking employment attended mission schools. Some individuals were searching for safety from problems in their neighbourhoods. People were welcome to join several African tribes.
Mission education was criticized for its industrial and manual education because it was not of high enough standards to prepare people to take up skilled work. Despite the missionaries giving a lot of industrial training, most of the training could not prepare people to take up skilled work as it was not nearly enough. The missions moulded learners to resist the Apartheid Government and to become leaders of the resistance. Free State colleges that taught many of the nationalists were Narysec College and Tarton College.
Crowded, harsh living conditions at the missions contributed to the Indians’ health problems, and infant mortality and death rates among young children soared. It was the tribes of the coast, the “Mission Indians,” who were most drastically affected. It has been argued by Christie that mission schools taught the value of discipline and hard work which meant that social class position were often reproduced. Learners in working class schools often ended up in low paid, working-class employment. School buildings and classrooms were often badly constructed.
Some missionaries believed that blacks were inferior and that they must not have too much academic education. The students/learners were to be trained to work as labourers. Church mission schools attempted to replace the preliterate tribal education of native Africans in the South African colonies. Established from 1789, they were dedicated to converting the indigenous peoples to Christianity and generally inculcating an attitude of service and subservience to whites.
Usually, the prominent mission schools taught a European-style curriculum but also included industrial training and manual work in the curriculum. But most mission schools did not emphasize secondary and higher education. Missionary education expanded during the 19th and 20th centuries (until 1953/4) mainly due to British and European missionaries. What was taught in schools in the 19th Century? Basic literacy, workers, artisans and tradespeople. Mostly, the missionaries taught basic reading and writing, along with Christian doctrine. Manual work and practical training were also an important part of mission education.
Mandela spent two years as a student at Healdtown. This elite Methodist institute epitomized an exclusive black academic institution. The Christian missionaries of different missionary societies made a tremendous contribution to education in South Africa. Their arrival in South Africa was aimed particularly at spreading the Word of God. They therefore set about to achieve this through introduction of formal education among the Batswana people.
They treated African religions as evil and did everything possible to ensure that it was ousted. The western missionaries believed that traditional religious beliefs and practices were inferior, and together with the traditional customs, had to be done away with before the acceptance of Christianity. Lack of transport from the coast to the interior parts of West Africa was one of the major difficulties encountered by the missionaries. There were only bush paths, and no roads in the early times. Their luggage and other necessities had to be carried on heads and took a long time before reaching the missionaries.
Without question, missionaries were an important factor in promoting economic change. They introduced and encouraged the use of foreign products (clothing, tea, etc.) which undermined the former self-sufficiency of the subsistence economy. This brought Africans more and more into a market economy.
It is found that the weakest links are the facts that primary and secondary education enrolment ratios are not followed through to the higher education level; that input, particularly financial input, does not render a commensurate return in terms of the quality of teaching and learning, and learning outcomes. Missionaries gave birth to African writers, whose focus changed from traditional celebration to colonial vilification and some upholding Eurocentric notions like Christianity.
Ubuntu is an ancient African word meaning ‘humanity to others’. It is often described as reminding us that ‘I am what I am because of who we all are’. Teaching diversity exposes students to various cultural and social groups, preparing students to become better citizens in their communities. These culturally responsive teaching strategies will help you to promote diversity in the classroom. Afrocentric education refers to a pedagogical approach to education designed to empower people of the African diaspora with educational modes in contact and in line with the cultural assumptions common in their communities.
The five core values of Ubuntu as identified by Mbigi (1997:33) are: survival, spirit of solidarity, compassion, respect and dignity. Survival enabled African communities, during harsh environmental conditions, to rely on each other for existence despite differences they might have had amongst themselves. Ubuntu is a philosophy based on the idea that all humanity is connected. The thinking originates in southern Africa but forms part of many African belief systems and serves as a foundation for education. With ubuntu, the relationship between a person and her/his community is interdependent and mutually beneficial.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healdtown
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu_philosophy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_school
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bessie_Head
