Yesterday and Today

States and the Making of Others: Perspectives on Social State Institutions and Othering in Southern Africa and Western Europe

2024-12-12T20:44:17+00:00

No abstract.

Apartheid Remains

2024-12-12T20:52:26+00:00

No abstract.

Poverty, inequality, and atmospheric colonisation: Pointers for the school history curriculum

2024-12-12T19:08:22+00:00

There is an interest in having the school history curriculum cover pressing and interrelated social issues: rising inequalities, even where there is a democracy, and the need to reduce poverty and confront climate change. These focus areas align with another interest among many history teachers: using statistics and data better to understand the past. Since around 1980 income inequalities have worsened after a couple of centuries of decline. This is a key reason why the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations prioritise greater equality. While measures of inequality warrant attention, quantitative and qualitative knowledge about the more normative concept of poverty is arguably easier for secondary school history students to grasp. Remarkable declines in poverty since the Industrial Revolution should be understood against the enormous environmental cost of industrialisation. Moreover, in terms of the increasingly used concept of “atmospheric colonisation”, colonising countries have been inordinately large contributors to changes in the earth’s atmosphere, changes that drive climate change and are likely to worsen poverty. Students need to understand these complexities, in part so they can form opinions around a fair sharing of the burdens of emissions reduction and adaptation to a changing climate. Such matters will become increasingly important when voters must choose between parties in national elections. There are clear implications for history curricula, which are only beginning to receive attention. While the article should be of interest to history teachers anywhere, specific content recommendations are made in terms of the South African secondary school curriculum.

Beyond Reenactment: Exploring the Battle at Egazini with grade 10 history learners using applied theatre

2024-12-12T19:12:23+00:00

The South African grade 10 history curriculum as outlined in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) requires learners to develop historical thinking skills that promote interpretation, analysis, and critical thinking competencies. One way of developing these skills is through revisiting historical events through reenactments to explore untold stories and develop historical empathy. However, reenactments can become sensational, one-sided events that lack the transformative power to offer varied versions of the events such as the Battle at Egazini and its key historical figures. The paper proposes reenactment for learning as an interdisciplinary methodology that draws on art exhibitions, history literature, and applied theatre techniques. The paper shows how these teaching tools actively and creatively engaged the learner-audiences in the reenactment of the 1819 Battle at Egazini between the amaXhosa and the British in Makhanda, formerly Grahamstown. The facilitators moved learner-audiences from four local schools beyond passive reenactment modes of engagement using games, pantsula dancing, facilitator-in-role, enrolling participants, and reflection exercises in one-hour workshops. The activities helped learners explore the relevance of colonial expansion and conquest themes within the Battle at Egazini context. The art-based interpretation framework also helped address misconceptions and cultivated an interest in wanting to know more about Makhanda, the war hero that the town is now named after. The paper argues for a creative and engaging pedagogy that helps learners make sense of broad topics. It contributes to current literature advocating for creative historical interpretation and teaching approaches in and outside the classroom space.

Insights into the implementation of curriculum reforms in Zimbabwe: Heritage Studies and History in Mutare district secondary schools

2024-12-12T19:16:19+00:00

The study provides insights into the implementation of Zimbabwe’s 2015-2022 curriculum, particularly to determine the successful implementation of the Heritage Studies and History curriculum reforms in line with official guidelines. Although Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education issued a circular in January 2017 mandating the implementation of curriculum changes for secondary schools between 2017 and 2022, the directive alone may not have guaranteed successful adoption and implementation. While curriculum reform implementation is meant to ensure national goals, global evidence suggests various factors hinder successful curriculum implementation. The study used a qualitative approach, employing a case of secondary schools in Zimbabwe’s Mutare district to generate data. The conceptual framework adopted a five-step cyclical model for curriculum implementation review. Data was generated through interviews, complemented by document and website analysis. Ten teachers from ten secondary schools in the Mutare district participated in the study. It was established that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has made important efforts to enhance the successful implementation of the new curriculum through teacher workshops and instructional materials. However, the dissemination of curriculum information and the training of teachers through workshops were rushed. The education ministry failed to monitor or evaluate the implementation process at the grassroots level. The study identified challenges, including overloading teachers with work, restricting learners’ choice of subjects, a shortage of instructional resources, and a lack of qualified teachers for the newly introduced subject, Heritage Studies. Based on these findings, recommendations have been made.

Re-Writing His-Story: Exploring the censorship of History through School textbooks and public artefacts

2024-12-12T19:31:08+00:00

This article, titled Re-writing His-Story: Exploring the censorship of History through school textbooks and public artefacts, explores how ideological and political differences of those in power can censor history, affecting how future generations engage with the past. As new regimes ascend, they promote a distinctive cultural narrative that could alter or omit longstanding historical narratives. Textbooks and historic monuments are cultural artefacts created at a specific time, in a space, and a particular context. In South Africa, for example (as in many other countries), historic monuments and public statues have been (re)moved, and selectively replaced by alternative heroes. Likewise, post-apartheid textbooks have been rewritten to include cultural diversity. Our principal concern is the restricted access to key symbols of the past as future generations lose crucial historical facts and a sense of identity as different histories are propagated. Located in the interpretive paradigm, the study utilises a desktop review incorporating critical discourse analysis to understand how meaning is conveyed about textbooks and public artefacts in print media and online platforms. Using a wide range of case studies as its empirical base, the findings indicate that textbook content is censored due to the influence of socio-political, cultural, and religious reasons. Similarly, monuments, statues, and other public artefacts perceived as outdated or representing controversial histories are often targeted for removal.

GBL in history education: Insights from Dogs of War

2024-12-12T19:42:44+00:00

Game-Based Learning (GBL) is increasingly recognised for its ability to enhance educational outcomes through interactive and immersive experiences. However, there is limited empirical data on its effectiveness in promoting historical thinking and SelfDirected Learning (SDL), particularly in history education. This study examines the impact of the Dogs of War (DoW) card game on historical thinking skills and SDL among history student teachers. It also explores the potential of GBL to enhance history teaching by fostering critical analysis skills. A qualitative research approach was employed, analysing playtest sessions with 15 history education students who played DoW. An open survey collected participants’ experiences, focusing on the game’s complexity, rule clarity, engagement level, effectiveness in conveying historical content, and stimulating interest in World War II history. The DoW game effectively increased players’ interest in historical subjects and promoted strategic thinking and problem-solving skills. While responses varied regarding the game’s complexity and rule clarity, the study identified a need for modifications to maximise educational benefits. Participants reported heightened motivation to explore World War II history further due to the game. This study highlights the importance of GBL in history education, demonstrating its potential to improve historical thinking and SDL. Balancing challenge and clarity in game rules is crucial. Further research is needed to enhance game design and implementation for better educational outcomes in history and other fields.

Can history be used to build the nation? An analysis of the idea of a compulsory school history curriculum in post-apartheid South Africa

2024-12-12T19:56:35+00:00

Despite the critical role of education in peacebuilding, few studies in South Africa have interrogated the role of the school history curriculum on nation-building, leaving a critical gap in our understanding of the impact of a wrongly designed, developed, and implemented history curriculum. This conceptual paper, informed by the sociological foundations of education, responds to one question underpinning this study: What opportunities and threats are there for making school history compulsory in a country composed of diverse histories? Using the case of South Africa, the paper deploys document analysis to explore the risks and possibilities for making a school history curriculum compulsory. The findings replicate that making school history compulsory can be useful for nation-building. The study also argues that school history has two faces: rather than promoting nationalism and social cohesion it can also be a wedge that divides and fragments the society. Considering these findings, the study argues that the curriculum is a product of people and recommends that the school history curriculum in any country must be a selection from the history of all people. Significantly, this study extends and enriches the yet small number of studies that debate making school history compulsory for nation-building. The paper contributes practical insights into how the school curriculum can be designed, developed, and implemented for the good of the whole nation.

The pros and cons of history as a compulsory subject in South Africa from the lens of history teachers in the Frances Baard District

2024-12-12T20:03:12+00:00

The recommendation by the Basic Education Ministerial Task Team to phase in history as a compulsory school subject from Grades 10 to 12 in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase has been one of the most controversial curriculum topics in South Africa in recent years. This uproar can be connected to the fact that the importance of history as a school subject has been topical at local and international levels including certain countries phasing out the subject. This study aimed to establish the views of history teachers from the Frances Baard District on the effectiveness of the call to make history a compulsory subject in South Africa particularly during the FET phase. This study used a qualitative research approach that employed an interpretive paradigm. Semi-structured interviews were employed for data collection and a thematic analysis technique was used to distinguish different themes. Social constructivism was adopted as the theoretical framework to nuance the findings and determine what influenced the teachers’ perspectives. The findings indicated that history is still full of great worth in the social and academic fabric of South Africa and for this reason it should be made a compulsory subject in school. The study also assumes that implementing history in the FET band will give more dignity to the discipline leading to improved teaching slots and times.

Iingoma (tradtitional songs) and izibongo (traditional poems): Implications for history teaching and learning in South African schools

2024-12-12T20:07:52+00:00

This article examines the embedding of iingoma and izibongo as valuable historical sources that should be utilised by educators in history classrooms in South African secondary schools. It shows how these sources can be used effectively by history teachers to re-enact the past in the classroom. Interviews with elderly people and iimbongi as well as written sources showed that traditional songs and izibongo are valuable historical sources that can be used to present a balanced account of the past in the classroom. Iimbongi claim that the use of izibongo in teaching history enhances understanding of South African history. Thus, iimbongi gave their own perspective on the significance and implications of employing izibongo as historical sources in the decolonisation of history. Written sources and interviews with iimbongi and elderly people were used as a basis for arriving at why and how sources like iingoma and izibongo may be incorporated into the history classroom to decolonise South African history. Using these historical sources in the teaching and learning of history helps to present different perspectives on the history of South Africa. The incorporation of iingoma, freedom songs, and izibongo in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase, as well as in Social Sciences, is a strategy to acknowledge and address the biases that exist in written history. It became evident that there is a link between written history on the one hand, and iingoma and izibongo on the other hand. The link is critical for engaging in the process of transforming and decolonising South African history. It is recommended that the Department of Basic Education (DBE) should conduct in-service training/workshops for history teachers.

Editorial

2024-12-12T18:44:13+00:00

No abstract.

Strengthening the history curriculum by reimagining what we teach in the classroom: Scaffolding through the FET phase, using the work of historians from a decolonised perspective

2024-12-12T20:56:11+00:00

No abstract.