adminMorris Mtisi
WHILE independence in 1980 brought to an eternal end a dark colonial era, it was the beginning of new struggles against institutional slavery embedded in various aspects of people’s lives in Zimbabwe, education being one of them.
At once the education sector saw itself faced with a mammoth task of literally changing white minority education to black majority education. This was one major war our young democracy would have to fight for an unforeseeably long time into the future. Almost single-handedly President Robert Mugabe, then Prime Minister of the newly independent Republic of Zimbabwe, led an education-for-all campaign which saw a calculated proliferation of primary schools, secondary schools and high schools being built all over the country. Universities increased from a mere single university (University of Rhodesia) at independence to several more in all provinces of the country after Uhuru.
To date we have 17 State and private universities. More teachers were trained. Government did its best to urge all Zimbabweans, including freedom fighters who had cut their studies to join the armed struggle, to go back to school. Schools doubled between 1980 and 85.
Throughout the first decade of independence, Zimbabwe became an admiration of the whole world, boasting the highest literacy level in Africa. Zimbabwe soon became a most envied factory of human capital, exporting skilled personnel and professionals to all international communities of the world. Thanks to Cde Robert Mugabe’s personal advocacy for democratisation of education in Zimbabwe. We all remember the relentless efforts of the first captains of the new educational ship to assist the President steer the vessel from a dark deep colonial sea to an independent dock and shore; Dzingai Mutumbuka and Fay Chung both highly skilled and educated directors of the education sector of the armed struggle.
Then Edmund Garwe, Aeneas Chigwedere, David Coltart! On the Tertiary and Higher Education side, the late Dr Stan Mudenge, Dr Ignatius Chombo and Dr Olivia Muchena; very recently to date Lazarus Dokora at the helm of the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and Mrs Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri (Tertiary and Higher Education). All of these stalwarts at various stages of our independence tasted, others still tasting, the challenges of leading this major ministry for national development, as expected some of them most visibly having performed or performing far better than others.
Yet one thing was abundantly clear; every minister’s, every permanent secretary’s and director’s aim to achieve the same for Zimbabwe through an efficacious best practice. All of them in their different ways, peculiarities and policies, again some more sound than others as much as some were more ridiculous than others, made relentless effort to give education a new meaning in the process of development.
They all proffered policies aimed at not only liberating but weeding out what was undesirable in the colonial system; what was trivial, colonial dead wood from the past and everything perverse.
These torch-bearers had the formidable task on their shoulders to omit colonial poison and in the process select the best for Zimbabwe and strive to reinforce the power of best practices.
They were tasked with the reorganisation of aims and interests into conscious deliberating and desiring; to illustrate ingenious observation and reorganisation, to find a way out of colonial educational shenanigans and move on. With the rapid change of political, scientific and economic interests, provision had to be made for new aims, interests and values. Independence, educationally, asked the question of concern about reorganisation of schools, materials and methods (policies) intended to achieve breadth, accessibility and purposefulness of knowledge and knowing.
Various epochs of the colonial past had engraved their values, characteristics and interests into the education system. Each of these ‘‘great’’ epochs had left a trail of cultural deposit, what John Dewey called “geologic stratum” which had found their way into education institutions in the form of selective curricula and types of schools. It was the business of a new education system in a new democratic Zimbabwe to struggle against irrelevance and tendency of apartheid values.
To show how the president of the Republic of Zimbabwe was serious about changing white colonial education to black democratic education, Cde Mugabe set up a commission of inquiry into the country’s education led by none other than Dr Nziramasanga, a distinguished Zimbabwean academic and fundi. It was going to be known as it is famously known today, The Nziramasanga Commission. In the 644-paged report the learned doctor left no stone unturned in recommending a best practice for Zimbabwean education.
There is surely no doubt that our independence broke the chains of education for slaves and designed a new and clear agenda of democracy in education, demanding new values, aims and interests. But whether these new values representing new interests and concerns, even as recommended by education guru Dr Nziramasanga, have been used to transform the agenda, method and aim of all instruction by those tasked and privileged by government to do so, is one huge subject for debate.
Why? Because the task ahead was never about talking beautifully or displaying an emotional temper to introduce a new agenda and revolution, but responsibly, sincerely and genuinely answering the question how to secure this revolution without sacrificing efficiency, effectiveness and efficacy.
And also honourably and honestly answering the following two questions: “How can art, science and politics reinforce one another in an enriched temper of mind instead of constituting ends pursued at one another’s expense? How can interests of Zimbabwean life and the studies which enforce it enrich the common experience and aspirations of Zimbabwean men and women instead of dividing them from one another?
Next week don’t miss the final personal views and suggestions of an ideal school curriculum of education for Zimbabwe.
Morris Mtisi is The Manica Posts’ guest columnist and educational materials writer. He is an independent consultant in the teaching and learning of English Language, Literature in English and English Literature. His views, comments, opinions and suggestions about education policy and what goes on in the schools and institutions of tertiary and higher learning are, please note, independent and therefore not necessarily those of The Manica Post.
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