Education for Renaissance in Africa- Large Format

About the Book

The African continent is in the midst of a renaissance of monumental proportions... ...As a result, the dawn of the new millennium constitutes an exciting period of change and opportunity for all those interested in the future evolution of the African continent and its peoples (Schraeder, P.J. African Politics and Society (2000: 2)

President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, the current Chairman of the African Union, is being associated in a special way with the concept of African renaissance. Mbeki's notion of renaissance is fundamentally "African political renewal and economic regeneration" (Ajulu, R. 2001 in Review of African Political Economy Vol. 24 No. l 87, February: 27-42)

The concept of African renaissance, which is in vogue in political and academic circles, encapsulates a vision of rebirth of Africa as the African peoples come to terms with the challenges of the 21st. century. It is a vision that eschews the dictatorships, economic mismanagement, suppression of the civil society and ascendancy of state monopoly of power that have hitherto characterized the operations of post-independence African governments. It is a vision that rejects, according to the Constitutive Act of the African Union, the policy of tolerating in its membership those African leaders who obtain power in their countries undemocratically, unlike the toleration of dictators that characterized the Organization of African Unity, the predecessor of the African Union.

This book aims at being part of that vision, and that is why its title is Education for Renaissance in Africa. It aims at showing the centrality of education in the achievement of that vision. Indeed it is obvious to all that African renaissance is primarily a mental achievement or simply an educational achievement. If we are to contribute anything to the political or economic order for the development of Africa we must have acquired certain kinds of knowledge and attitudes that involve commitment to our goals as prerequisites for any action that can change society. However, it is the contention of this book that education for the renaissance of Africa must not be haphazard. It must be conceptualized in a manner that lays foundations for its effective working in the practical order.

The philosophy of education envisaged here has to be liberating, characterized by creativity and social commitment, which presupposes social consciousness. Here we define the notions of liberation, creativity and social consciousness, and strives to situate these concepts within a historical trajectory that not only includes Africa but other parts of the world as well. We have tried to show the suppression of African subjectivity during the colonial period with the result that liberation, creativity and social consciousness were inhibited in both the educational and other spheres of life. We argue that humans are radically free and that they need not succumb to this kind of socialization, which has tended to negate their subjectivity. We note in particular that Kenyan educational commissioners have been cognizant of the harm that was done to African subjectivity by the colonial and missionary experience.

We also consider to what extent, if any, the philosophy of education as an academic discipline has prepared teachers for the challenging task of making education liberating, creative, and imbued with social consciousness. We suggest ways in which the training of teachers can best fulfill these worthy goals of education.

We address the nature of social consciousness, which we consider to be central to the learner's involvement in development of his or her country. We have endeavored to discuss the minimal and heroic forms of consciousness as exemplified in such leaders as Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, and leaders of African liberation struggle. An attempt is made to come to terms with diversity in social consciousness and to seek ways of living on the basis of unity in diversity. We discuss the role of education in the development of social consciousness taking into consideration the manner in which the learners are socialized into various moral, political and religious values, while at the same time identifying the controversies that bedevil value education. Chapter eight tries to come to terms with the problem of value education as an educational objective. We have shown the efforts that have been made in educational research to find out how value education can be carried out effectively.

We treat the role of education in the enhancement of African continental consciousness, emphasizing the need for ethical education within the different African countries to have continental, pan-Africanist orientation. Salient features pertaining to the role of education in the development of global consciousness are identified in the context of the cognitive, ethical, dialogical and creative dimensions of education.

The book concludes with the treatment of some of the problems that have hindered African development, especially the shortcomings of African subjectivity, which has been negatively impacted by colonial and missionary experience. Given the polarization of the African continent in the realm of values, the last chapter of the book proposes that African leaders should take into consideration three factors. First, working together they need to cultivate transcendent affectivity, a form of suspension of judgment before all the facts of a decision-demanding situation are obtained. Second they need to have allegiance to the dialogical principle by virtue of which Africans would pragmatically seek for solutions to national and continental problems. Third, they should use their continental unity as a pragmatic tool for making their influence felt in global forums for the good of African and the entire world. The form of thinking encapsulating these three ideals is best described as the "Philosophy of African Dialogical Pragmatism."

About the Author

Raphael J. Njoroge is a philosopher, educationist and social scientist. He has been Professor of Philosophy and Education at the University of Nairobi and Kenyatta University where he was Chairman of the Department of Educational Foundations and Dean of the Faculty of Education. He is an author and co-author of five books and numerous articles in Journals. In the United States he was a Visiting Scholar at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where he was a resource person in the Philosophy of Education Research Department. Currently he is a visiting professor in the Worcester Consortium of Colleges and Research Associate in the Worcester Polytechnic Institute.