Learning Theories

THE INDIGENOUS SYSTEM OF EDUCATION IN CAMEROON

Before the advent of the Whiteman, the Cameroonian society had a curriculum on how to educate their young ones. The indigenous system of education refers to the process used by the indigenes of Cameroon to educate their young ones to acquire knowledge ,skills and attitudes are of .value to themselves and to the society around them. This system of education was based on certain philosophies , which they saw as fundamental to all learning, they included ; Communalism, Preparationism , Perenialism, Holisticism and Functionalism. These philosophies reflected what the indigenes required of their children. Below is a summary of the various indigenous philosophies of education.

Communalism; This was an approach in which children were raised within a community to see one another as their brothers keeper .the well-being of the group was the well-being of the individual, thus the child was taught to be social. Children acquired this socializing attitude by participating in group activities like building and construction. The children were taught a sense of solidarity that is, participating in each others sorrows and joys.

Preparationism; Here the children are trained and prepared to take on future responsibilities according to gender. The boys are trained to become future husbands and the girls future wives. They also learn economic activities such as farming, hunting, building which will help them in sustaining their future families.

Perenialism; This was a philosophical approach in which children were required to learn in order to perpetuate their culture. The culture of a tribe was to be learned by the younger generation so that it should not disappear, it should continue from generation to generation.

Holisticism;This philosophy required that an individual learn all the activities in the

community;farming,building,fishing,craftsmanship,etc without specialization.Thhis approach was possible because of the simple technology that existed at the time.Knowledge was not compactmentalised,that is,divided.All the activities were linked in one way or the other.

Functionalism; This approach held the view that all what was learned had an immediate value in the society. The curriculum was learned and applied immediately in the society, that is a child being trained to cook, cooked, a child who learned to farm, farmed. Since the child saw that what he/she was learning was beneficial both to the society and himself, he needed no motivation. For example,a child learned to make a fishing net because it will help him in catching fish This philosophy required the child to work while learning in order to see its usefulness.

The education of the Cameroon indigenous child starts from birth,with its mother being the sole teacher till about 6 years. But in some areas like the Bamileke, in the Western province, the child is usually under the care of an older sibling aged about 10, who assists his mother in taking care of the child. As the child grows older, extended relatives of the family and the community help in educating the child.

The curriculum was drawn from the physical, economic, social and cultural environments; the norms, values. customs and beliefs of indigenous Cameroon. The children were taught social conducts, that is, how to behave in the community in relation to elders and peers. The children were taught to distinguish between the left and right hand. The child was taught that the right hand was for eating and greeting elders while the left hand was used in handling waste products from the body. The child was taught to take his breakfast only after having his bath, which consisted mainly of washing the face and cleaning the mouth. Sexual intimacy was not tolerated. Stealing was also considered a serious offense as it brought disrepute to the child's family.

Academically the children were taught subjects such as; History, Geography, literature, Music, Science, Mathematics, Religion and Language.

Geography; The children were taught the boundaries of the tribe, the weather , time was calculated by looking at the length of a shadow on a sunny day.. The child was made to be familiar with hills, fertile and unfertile lands and the seasons of farming and fishing.

History; they were taught the origin of their tribe, its ancestors and its evolution. These lessons were delivered by elders For example history lessons in the indigenous education of the Douala child involved reciting the genealogical tree up to the 12th generation. The objective is to teach family solidarity so as to avoid incest.

Literature; This was done mostly in the evening after work. Young people sat in groups to listen to stories told by elders. In the process they learned myths, folklore, riddles. proverbs, poetry and lyrics.

Music; This is one of the most important subjects of the curriculum. The child starts singing and dancing at an early age. Boys learn how to beat drums. Songs are sung during festivals, fishing,wrestling, rituals and funerals.

Mathematics; Counting is taught using the fingers and objects. They were taught to count cowries(which was their legal tender).They had concepts in mathematical notions such as addition, substraction, multiplication and division.

Natural sciences; In Biology children were taught the different kinds of plants and their uses(medicinal and edible). They were also taught how to dissect animals, this is seen when they slaughter an animal and use some of its parts for rituasls.Chemistry was taught during cooking and palm wine tapping.how to ferment palm wine to produce spirits and the propotion of ingredients to put in a pot of soup. Physics was also seen when you produce fire by hitting 2 stones.

Language; Language is taught through contact between mother and child at the home. Children are taught to speak their dialect and are corrected when the make mistakes.

Vocational training was also a part of the Cameroon indigenous educational system. Agriculture, Trade, Crafts and Professions were some of the training handed down to the younger generation.

In Agriculture, children were taught different food crops, suitable and unsuitable soils, when to clear the farm, till, weed, plant and harvest. Mixed farming was the kind of agriculture practiced.

Trade and Crafts; They included weaving, smelting, hunting, carving, painting and decoration, carpentry, building, soap making, trading. These trades were taught on apprentice basis or by families.

Professions; It included doctors. priests, witchdoctors, village heads, tax collectors and, .messengers. These professions included the highest level of indigenous education.

With regards to Levels of education, Cameroon education consisted of three levels-the first level is learning that takes place in the child's home, the second level is learning acquired on your initiation into community and the third level is learning acquired with initiation to secret societies.These levels of education correspond to the western system of Primary, Secondary and Higher respectively.

WESTERN POLICIES OF EDUCATION

Western education was introduced into the Cameroonian society through missionary societies like the English Baptist Missionary Society. Following the scramble for and the conquest of Cameroon by Germany,the English Baptist Missionary Society was replaced by the Basel Mission. With the advent of these Europeans the traditional system of education started declining and was replaced by the colonial system of education.

THE GERMAN-QUASI ASSIMILATIONIST POLICY OF

EDUCATION

The German colonial policy of education was rooted in her master race theory. According to this policy cameroonians of all social classes were taught to regard their German masters as their superiors[Ngoh 1996].Her policy was based on her desire to promote German culture and civilization. They were quick to recognise the fact that language was the key to the promotion of culture and civilization, and so they made the German language the official language which was to be taught in schools.

Reading,Writing and Orthography were taught in all classes and carried a high number of teaching hours per week. Other subjects in the curriculum included, Arithmetic, Moral principles and Behaviour, German history,Geography, Natural history and History of the territory.All these subjects were taught using the German language. The educational system of Froebel influenced the German authorities in Cameroon to include Manual training in the curriculum of German schools.

They solicited the services of experienced teachers who had received training in German schools. The first of such teachers and educationist was Theodore Christaller. The teaching staff were Europeans who had a sound education and professional background.

By 1912,there were four government elementary shools in Victoria, Douala, Garoua and Yaounde. The government operated more of vocational schools so as to have man power in the various services and trade centres created by them. These included Plantations, Diaries, Hospitals, Police,etc.

THE BRITISH ADAPTIONIST EDUCATIONAL POLICY

After the departure of the Germans in 1916, Britain and France partitioned Cameroon between them. Britain attached her part of Cameroon to Nigeria and administerd it as part of Nigeria, and so the educational policy dealing with the creation of schools, the curriculum, finance and the registration of teachers were those of Nigeria. Britain showed a laissez faire attitude toward Cameroon. She relegated her educational duties to the missionaries who bore the burden with no assistance from the British government

The official language was changed to English. German schools were closed down. The Indirect rule system gave birth to Native Administrative structures which began a school system in 1922 for lower levels. Under native supervision the schools used their vernacular in teaching the lower classes. Their main objective was mass education. They introduced a system of training native teachers who taught in the schools. Schools were built and operated by the native Cameroonians themselves through the collection of taxes.By basing the development of education in Cameroon on the adaptation philosophy, a decentralised educational system developed in which government missions and companies like C.D.C, Pamol, operated separate schools under the overall control of the British colonial administration.

THE FRENCH ASSIMILATIONIST POLI CY OF EDUCATION

French educational policy in Cameroon originated from the French desire to transform the Cameroonians into black Frenchmen. They wanted them to inculcate French culture. They taught the natives the French language so that they will think like Frenchmen. To succeed they preached the ideas of Equality, Fraternity and Fatherland. Their policy aimed at eliminating African culture.

The French opened basically three types of schools,the village schools,the regional schools and higher elementary schools at the head quarters. These schools were for the elites who were trained as helpers of the French administration.

The curriculum consisted of Hygiene, Agriculture, Animal husbandry, local crafts, Reading and Writing, Arithmetic, Singing and Drawing, Only the best students were admitted to the regional and higher elementary schools. By 1925 there were 14 government village primary schools and 51 teachers of Cameroonian origin.

The time-table was divided into two sessions.the morning session from 8am-10.15am, while the afternoon session from 2pm-5.15pm.

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO SYSTEMS

The two systems divided knowledge into academic disciplines. They both considered language as indispensible to them. Education was distinguished into levels,that is, Primary, Secondary and Higher. Only the best students were allowed to further their studies. Considering the resources, Agriculture was of utmost importance and ought to be learned.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO SYSTEMS

They differed in their aims and objectives. The western powers educated the Cameroonians so that they could work in their establishments while the indigenes educated their children so that they could be useful to themselves and to the society.

While the indigenes educated their children at home ,the colonial authorities built schools in which pupils could learn.

The children in the colonial era were taught by teachers while those in the indigenous system had the parents, relatives and members of the community as their teachers

REFERENCES

Mac Ojong,T. [2008] Philosophical and Historical Foundations of Education in

Cameroon 1844-1960.

Web-based Resources.

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