By ELSIE EYAKUZE

More by this Author

Last week, in discussing anti-intellectualism in Tanzania, I focused on the state. I did this because we have to highlight that the Tanzanian state is a continuation as well as an evolution of the colonial project which gave rise to us as a state in a globalised world.

Part of this state project has to be carried out through the public education system. We have many slogans around education: it is the ‘‘Key to Life,’’ it is for ‘‘Self-reliance’’.

What I have come to suspect about our public education system is that the repression of “too much” originality, creativity, independence and critical thinking — all of these naturally occurring elements of human intellect — is not entirely intentional, but it is certainly beneficial to the government. There is a subtle encouragement of docility that makes dirigisme easier to get away with, a vestige I suspect of the colonial days.

But long before we even get to the formalities of public education, there is the family. Through a recent online discussion about the role of the parent/guardians in a child’s education, I got the opportunity to listen in on an incredibly informative debate about parenting techniques. I say “debate”but really it was a series of polite but deeply felt deliberations about how to raise a child to become a successful adult. In other words: social reproduction.

And in that debate there was a strong underlying theme of fitting in and being part of “our society,” which implied Tanzania in general and Tanzanian conservative middle/upper-classness in particular, due to the nature of the participants of the discussion. It was very pleasing that language came up as a consideration, even if we still seem to struggle with the fact that children are more comfortably multilingual than adults.

The family — biological or not, extended, even institutional in the form of an orphanage — is the nexus between the individual and society. This is where we start setting the conditions for individuals to approach intellectualism as a good thing or as a threat.

Long before their first day in school or pre-school, a child has already had formative learning experiences. While toddlers might initially balk at the prospect of nursery school, they tend to get over it quickly, and by the time they go to Standard 1 whether or not they went to pre-school, they tend to be enthusiastic about the project.

This is the sweet spot: fresh young minds and happy little souls, nothing but pure potential and already bearing great expectations. Like South Africa in 1994.

This is where, and I say this lovingly, we mess up. To make some gross generalisations: we are stuck in our ways. We are too conservative, too trusting that the authorities know what they are doing, too static.

One example: for a long time educators have warned about the perils of grade systems, especially for younger children. So countries like Norway simply threw official grades out of the window for basic education. They adopted other more holistic ways of assessing a student’s development, banished corporal punishment. There is more, dear reader, but I can already feel some of you recoiling in horror as you consider the implications.

Conversely, I learned long ago during government school visits around the country that somewhere along the line children can get their spirits broken. Standard 1 pupils sparkle with excitement when asked to talk about school. By Standard 7 students are 14 and older and they are seasoned veterans. They know. They will be culled into those who make it to secondary school and those who don’t. Their love of learning has either flourished or they are wounded by the system; suspicious, bored and under-served.

Or worse yet: a spoonful of that antagonism towards wasomi and usomi has already been fed to them by life and circumstances and society itself. Like South Africa in the 2010s onwards.

Thus we are sorted to fit perfectly into our narratives of those who have and have not, those who are leaders… and the wanyonge who are led.

On to the good news. While we struggle to figure out the formal education system there is one thing that can be done at the family level that is unbelievably effective in nurturing the intellect and development of children and youth.

Reading

I will let you find out for yourself by cornering and quizzing an educator, or wielding the might of your internet search engine, but it is a commonly known practice.

Reading to a child and then reading with them and eventually having them read to you as they grow up works wonders for them… and for you as a parent/guardian. This goes far beyond literacy. Whether you are an admirer of the draconian Asian systems that yield incredible results in Stem (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) alongside high teenage suicide rates, or a vegan nonbinary hippie who thinks all structure is oppressive — try it out and see.

What about sports and arts and community service, those Factor X activities that help to deliver well-rounded confident adults?

So glad you asked. Next week again?

Stay safe from Covid, and keep your mind open and well-nourished.

Elsie Eyakuze is a consultant and blogger for The Mikocheni Report: E-mail: [email protected]