The Role Of Missionaries In Colonial African Education History Essay

The Role Of Missionaries In Colonial African Education History Essay The home page of Compassion Canada is that of a stereotypical Northern charity: showing pictures of suffering children alternating with those of post-intervention, happy children. Included on the website is information about the charitys programs, such as their Leadership Development Program in which participants earn a degree in their chosen field of study, and participate in Christian leadership training, enabling them to become a fully developed agent of change in their nation (Compassion Canada 2011). It is interesting to note that this project is not a new concept. As a member of the Church of England, it interests me to see echoes of Christian educational efforts by organizations such as Compassion Canada in the educational efforts of the missionary branch of the Anglican Church, the Church Missionary Society, or CMS. A member of the CMS, Henry Venn, boasted that the mission schools of Nigeria would produce an educated African elite that could form an intelligent and influentia l class of society and become the founders of a Kingdom which shall render incalculable benefits to Africa (Venn cited in Bassey 1991:37). That there are parallels between contemporary Christian organizations efforts and the missionary efforts of the mid-nineteenth to mid- twentieth centuries is a reason for concern, considering the similar impact of missionaries of all Christian denominations on the education of Africans in the British and Italian colonies in Africa. Although it can be said that Christian missionaries benefitted Africans by bringing in the more advanced Western education to the European colonies in Africa, it is believed that the mission schools in fact had a negative impact on the native peoples. Not only did mission education strengthen colonial rule, but it also weakened traditional societies and implemented poor standards of Western education. The missionary impact on education would have far-reaching consequences, as their creation of a weak basis of education would slow down the political and educational development of many former colonies in Africa. While missionaries could sometimes clash with colonial governments, for the most part missions were important tools for colonial governments. As Sir Henry Johnston, a key figure in the Scramble for Africa says, they [the mission stations] strengthen our hold over the country, they spread the use of the English language, they induct natives into the best kind of civilization, and in fact, each mission station is an essay in colonization (Johnston cited in Sheffield 1973:10). One of the missions most important contributions to the colonial regimes was their role in educating the native Africans. Mission schools provided a steady stream of educated Africans capable of filling the lower levels of the colonial administration and operated vocational and agricultural schools (Ayandele 1966: 295; Foster 1965: 90-91; Sheffield 1973: 10-11). The academic education purposely did not train Africans for the higher level positions of colonial administrations, which were mostly reserved for Europea ns (Ayandele 1966:295; Sheffield 1973:42), a practise which created dependency on the colonizers, as without them the colony did not have qualified administrators. In addition, while missionaries did run many academic primary schools, they provided little secondary education, a practice which prevented natives from becoming too educated (Ayandele 1966:286) and potentially subversive. Even if secondary education was provided, it was often reserved for the sons of local chiefs (Oliver 1952:212; Beck 1966: 120), an elite the colonial government could then call upon to help rule the colony, a common practice in colonial Africa. The latter, non-academic form of education provided by the missions has stimulated much interest among scholars, who are particularly interested in the failure of many of these schools and the hypocritical government support for the schools, seeing as the import of cheap goods from the mother countries caused many vocational school graduates, such as seamstresses, to be unemployed (Ayandele 1966:296; Foster 1965:134). However hypocritical, government support for the schools should not be surprising, considering the benefits the colonial governments stood to gain. Even when governments discouraged domestic industries, graduates of vocational schools contributed to the economy of the colonies -and therefore indirectly the mother countrys as well. Instead of needing to import skilled workers such as carpenters, the mission schools provided colonial governments with workers capable of building and maintaining the colonys infrastructure and basic technology, a contribution that kept the c olonies running smoothly. The agricultural schools the missions ran would have been even more advantageous to the colonial governments considering the discouragement of local industries that might have competed with the motherland. Agricultural school graduates did not compete with European industries or European farmers, as they mainly grew crops that could not be grown in European climates. Furthermore, they were skilled farmers that could grow cash crops to be consumed back in the mother country, such as cocoa from Ghana (Foster 1965: 153). Moreover, it was not in the colonial powers interest for the natives to become too educated, as they might become self-reliant and could conceivably demand independence from the colonial power, so encouraging the less intellectual agricultural schools was in the governments interest. The missions agricultural schools were especially beneficial for colonial governments considering that governments believed that manual labour was a means to prevent discontent and unrest i n the tribes (Hansen 1984:232). Thus by training Africans to fill only the lower levels of the colonial administration and providing skilled workers from the vocational and agricultural schools who contributed to the economy and were less likely to question colonial rule than more educated Africans, mission schools helped to strengthen colonial rule. Another negative impact of mission education was that it weakened traditional societies, which in many ways further served the colonial cause. The weakening of traditional societies was not simply a consequence of the efforts of missionaries but one of their main objectives, stemming from their belief in the civilizing mission. Supporters of the civilizing mission believed that European colonial enterprises were justified as the Europeans were imparting their superior Western culture and ideas to the ignorant heathens of Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australasia. For this reason, missionaries believed they were doing their students a favour by discouraging traditional practices and promoting Western ones. One method of discouraging traditional practices was to give students a fully Western education. As a mission school graduate noted, local history was almost totally ignored. We were expected to accept the European language as the superior one, and this was reinforced throughout my school career (Abu cited in Berman 1974:536). Being ignorant of ones history causes one to lose part of ones identity and pride in that identity, and one is therefore more vulnerable to attacks denouncing ones culture as inferior, especially if at the same time one is being taught the noble history of another culture. Furthermore, mission schools discouraged traditional ways of life outside of the classroom. One Liberian student recalls that we were taught to dress properly, to eat properly, to speak properly. Properly meant by Anglo-Saxon standards. In short, it was a very successful mission in making us little black Anglo-Saxon Protestants. Cultural deprivation is what many of us suffer from []. After a time the idea becomes ingrained -it is heathen and unchristian to be an African culturally (Awori cited in Berman 1974:536). Through academic lessons and lessons on Western etiquette and hygiene, mission students were isolated from their traditional cultures, a traumatic experienc e that would continue to trouble many students for the rest of their lives. It is interesting to note that while in many ways missionaries sought to isolate students from their cultures, missionaries often insisted in teaching in the native languages. Some earlier scholarship on mission education has taken this as a positive impact of the missionaries. For instance the scholar E.A. Ayandele (1966:283), writing in the 1960s, says, By their [the missions] efforts the main languages of Nigeria have been preserved as a lasting legacy to the Ibo, Yoruba, Efik, Nupe and Hausa. However, this practice was in fact probably more due to stereotypes of African ignorance than an interest in being culturally respectful: missionaries may have believed that it would take too long to teach a superior European language to the unintelligent natives when the natives souls were in such desperate need of saving. Indeed, once the souls had been saved and since the students must have been considered clever enough, European languages were almost universally the languages of instruct ion in the later primary years and in secondary schools (Beck 1966: 120; Foster 1965: 159; Miran 2002:127). Teaching in the vernacular had an additional use as it further strengthened colonial rule, of which missionaries were often agents, for as the Kikuyu people of Kenya were aware, [the] inability to communicate in English would be a crucial factor in the perpetuation of their subordinate status in the colony (Berman 1974:531). It is much easier to interact on an equal basis or even challenge the authority of another group when one is able to communicate in that groups language, instead of having to rely on an interpreter or non-verbal gestures, which undermine ones ability to show authority or express ones beliefs. In short, the impact of teaching in the vernacular was more negative than positive, as it reinforced colonial rule and no doubt did very little to preserve native cultural identities, seeing as missionaries promoted European languages as superior and only used the ver nacular because conversion and religious instruction were such high priorities. That missionaries used the vernacular illustrates the fact that missionaries were principally evangelists, and that they considered their other roles, including their role as educators, as less important. Given their priorities, it should thus come as little surprise that missions often provided poor education to the African pupils. There were several reasons for this poor education, some intentional and some not. First, missions saw education foremost as a means of conversion (Ayandele 1966: 286; Bassey 1991: 36; Berman 1974:527; Foster 1965:85; Sheffield 1973:11). The missionaries believed that in order to stabilize the faith of converts and to assist in character development, it was necessary that they should be able to read the scriptures or other books of religious instruction, translated by the missions. This involved learning to read in the vernacular (Hadfield cited in Bone 1969:7). Missionaries were no doubt also aware that Africans came to associate European technological a chievement with Western education (Bassey 1991:45) and therefore offered Western education as a means to attract Africans of this belief and then convert them. However, the motivation behind teaching Africans basic literacy and mathematics might not have been a cause for concern if not for the fact that the religious motivation curtailed education. As Ayandele points out (1966:285), the ideal of many of the missions was to make their converts live literally as the unlearned and ignorant apostles of old. This ideal, combined with the fact that many missionaries discovered that Africans with only basic education were best at spreading the Gospel, meant that missionaries were reluctant to provide higher primary or secondary education (Ayandele 1966:286). Seeing as missions in the British and Italian colonies had monopolies on education for the nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries, this reluctance meant that there were few secondary schools at all (Ayandele 1966:287; Beck 1966: 120). A s long as the Africans could read the Bible, the missionaries were satisfied that they had had enough academic education. A second reason for the poor education of the mission schools was that in many cases the teachers in mission schools were unqualified as teachers, but were instead preachers by training. For instance, in the Salisbury region of Rhodesia, it was reported in 1924 that no male teachers had educational qualifications (Bone 1969:28). Third, rivalry between the various Christian denominations also contributed to the poor standards of education. Edward Berman notes that contemporary critics of the missionaries felt that missionaries were more interested in increasing enrolments in their respective churches than in pooling their resources for the benefit of African education (Berman 1974:533). Because of rivalry, instead of building one common, multi-denominational school in a village that really only needed the one school, missionaries each built a school for their particular denomination and competed for students (Berman 1974:533). Furthermore, each denomination had differing policies on education, so standards in education fluctuated across each colony, depending on what denomination had schools in each area. For instance, in southern Nigeria, the CMS policy was to teach in the vernacular at the primary level, while the Roman Catholic Missions policy was to teach in English (Bassey 1991:42). In addition to contri buting to fluctuating educational standards across the colony, inter-denominational rivalry caused a disparity in access to education. In regions where a denomination felt threatened by another denomination, the denominations were more likely to establish more schools in an attempt to gain more converts than their rival, while in regions such as northern Nigeria, where colonial policy prevented too much rivalry, schools were scarce (Bassey 1991:45). Thus, because of the motive of proselytization, unqualified teachers, and inter-denominational rivalry, missions frequently provided poor education. Indeed, the quality of the education could be so poor that the colonial governments complained, as in the case of the Nigerian government, which complained that the secondary school graduates provided by the missions were illiterate and ignorant and therefore poorly suited to fill the lower levels of the administration (Ayandele 1966:294-5). However, as Jonathan Miran (2002) argues in his work on the roles of missionaries and the Italian state in Eritrean education, missionaries should not be held solely accountable for the poor standards of education. As much as the governments liked to assign blame to the missions, they were also accountable for the poor education through their educational policies. As one Eritrean student remarks, Our sisters [the Italian Sisters] would have undoubtedly taught better and more, but the Italian government in the colony did not permit Eritreans to get good instruction (T.T. cited in Miran 2002:128). The colonial Eritrean government ensured that nativ e Eritreans received poor education by permitting them to only attend school up to the fourth grade (Miran 2002:127). Governments are also not free from blame even if they had a laissez-faire educational policy, as in Ghana, where until 1944 the registration of schools was not required and no attempt was made to exert detailed control even over the activities of grant-aided [by the government] institutions except for a series of minimal registrations (Foster 1965:114). If a government fails to regulate schools at all, they have no right to complain that the education in their colony is poor. Therefore, whether through their rigid educational polices or lack thereof, colonial governments contributed to the poor education, though there is no denying that missionaries also contributed to the quality of education to a great extent. In conclusion, the educational enterprise of the Christian missionaries in the British and Italian colonies of Africa during the mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries was primarily negative for the African pupils. Both the academic and vocational forms of education the missions provided served to strengthen the rule of the colonial powers, so that the native inhabitants were second-class citizens in their own land. Furthermore, missionaries, believing in the civilizing mission, attempted to disintegrate traditional society through education by choosing academic subjects, such as the histories of the Western colonial powers, that illustrated the superiority of the Western culture, as well as by teaching about the superiority of the West in non-academic matters such as hygiene. These attempts were traumatic for the students and threatened the survival of unique cultures. Last, missionaries provided a very poor education, causing their students to be ill-equipped for social or mater ial success, as they believed education to simply be a means for proselytization, were unqualified teachers, and allowed inter-denominational rivalries to interfere. As negative as all these impacts of the missionaries undoubtedly were for the African pupils, the long-term consequences are arguably as serious. The reservation of high-level positions in the colonial administrations for Europeans and the corresponding mission education that provided education fit only for lower positions meant that the withdrawal of European rule could cause serious political instability in the newly independent colonies. While colonial administration in colonies such as Kenya attempted to some degree to provide training for Kenyans to fill the high-level positions (Sheffield 1973:86), the attempts in many cases fell short, and when the European administration left, Kenya, for instance, had few sufficiently educated replacements (Sheffield 1973:88). Thus missionaries, by imparting education that promo ted dependence on colonial rule, arguably contributed to the political instability that continues in the present day in many former African colonies, such as Kenya and Eritrea. Moreover, mission education formed a poor foundation for future educational conditions in the former colonies. Given the fluctuating standards between schools and regions and the lack of qualified teachers in the mission schools which had monopolies in well into the mid-twentieth century, it should come as little surprise that the quality of education continues to be a concern in many former colonies. For instance, in Nigeria in 2006, approximately only 51.2% of primary school teachers of either gender were trained as teachers, and the enrolment rate in primary education for both genders in 2000 stood at about 62.7%, compared to 99.5% in Canada (UN Data 2010). Therefore, considering that the impact of mission education continues to have serious repercussions today, one must question whether the First World sh ould continue to interfere in African education. Volunteers and donors to organizations such as Compassion Canada believe that they are being humanitarian when they build schools in Africa, volunteer as teachers or help in other ways to improve the quality of education in African nations, yet missionaries and colonial governments were similarly lauded as performing a great work of humanity (Beck 1966:117) and likewise believed that they were helping their African pupils. However the superficial motivations and ideologies have changed, at the most basic level both contemporary Northern charities and nineteenth century missionaries share the belief that the North must come and save the suffering natives, which in the case of the missionaries, has been proven to have inflicted more harm than provided relief. Thus, despite what the images of suffering African children on websites such as that of Compassion Canada might lead one to believe, it is time for Africans to educate their own, w ithout any interference.

Soft Drugs

Soft drugs should not be legal Drugs have been a problem for the society for a long time and it is still a going subject. Different kinds of organisations work hard to try keeping people from using drugs, however a new problem has occurred. During the last years there have been discussions in some European countries to legalise so called soft drugs. Soft drugs usually means cannabis, which is the name for drugs made from the plant called â€Å"Cannabis Sativa†. Several countries have a very liberal attitude to these light drugs and think that it would be better if they were legal.I think it is wrong to legalise any kind of drug and that nothing good can come out of it. We all know that drugs are bad for us, so why would we want to expose ourselves to them? Why? There are already serious problems with legal drugs, like alcohol and tobacco. There is a reason why drugs are banned. It is because they are dangerous to our health. These laws are there to protect us and they are for our own good. It is known, and proved, that drugs can do damage to our physical and mental health. For example it can weaken the immune system, lung capacity and memory.It can cause depression and changes of personality. And these are just a few examples. Drugs are also very addictive and to stop the abuse is very hard, because the withdrawal symptoms are very strong and painful. There is also the risk of taking an overdose which can lead to serious harm or even death. Another argument against legalising cannabis is that it will get more accepted if it is legal, which will lead to the fact that more people will use it. If more people use drugs it will increase the number of people who get addicted.It is also proved that people who abuse cannabis often try heavier drugs later, when the effect from cannabis gets weaker. Legalising soft drugs would be awfully expensive for society. If more people use drugs, then the need for medical care and detoxification clinics will increase. Both a re very expensive, but they will be necessary because addicts need treatment. The costs related to crime will also increase, because many drug addicts start committing crimes to be able to afford the drugs they need. Those who abuse drugs tend to stop caring about anything else but the drugs.That could result in that they neglect their jobs and other responsibilities. The number of accidents caused by being under the influence of drugs will very likely increase, because there will be more substances that affect a person’s concentration and abilities. Alcohol will no longer be the only dangerous substance which is associated to accidents in traffic or risky jobs. This will be one more cost related to drugs, and someone will have to pay for it. Some say that alcohol is just as dangerous as cannabis, but alcohol is legal.So why not legalise cannabis? True, but why would we want to introduce another harmful substance, when we have enough troubles with the first one? There are oth er ways to have fun than smoking pot. Others claim that just because someone smokes a joint every now and then it does not mean that he or she will get addicted. That is right, but the higher the number of people that use drugs sometimes, the higher the number of people that get addicted. Drugs are not good for people or for society. As I have established, no good can come from legalising soft drugs.It would be a great danger to our health, it would bring more and larger costs for society and it would increase the number of people who get addicted. Why would we want that? Soft drugs should be legal There are two ways to try and sort out the drugs problem. One is to legalise and regulate the supply, and the other is to leave it in the hands of criminals. For years we have tried the second option. Banning all forms of soft drugs or lightly regulating them, not allowing them as such but not banning to the extent where people know it is seriously wrong.This is the situation we have foun d with drugs such as nicotine and tobacco and alcohol. Another major problem we face is the use of soft drugs especially by the younger generations. A survey revealed that 1 in 12 twelve year olds have tried drugs moving up to 1 in 3 fourteen year olds and 2 in 5 sixteen year olds. This means that about 40% and rising of our secondary school pupils have broken the law. In years to come at this rate the percentage will move up and then those 16 year olds will become adults and this problem will therefore become ever more significant as they become more influential.We saw a very parallel instance of this dilemma during 1920s America. Drink related crimes had become so numerous that the only way out that the American government saw was to ban it outright. This is what wed have tried in Britain and it has almost exactly the same consequences. Gun crime has soared like it did in America in the 20s. We see far too many shootings related to ‘turf wars' or punishment crimes such as wh en an employee of a drug dealer makes a mistake. At some point we have to look at the problem and realise that all crimes, in the major scheme of things are somewhat drugs related.Whether it is a burglar stealing someone's possessions to fund their drug habit, or the death of a drug abuser, unable to keep up with the payments to his dealer. We have to realise that getting rid drug dealers is the only way to go. Often they are the centre of the crime in their area. They are loan sharks to the poorer people and the people who organise the protection rackets for the business owners. No matter where you go you will always find them to do with it. The fact is that people do like to take drugs.The thing about alcohol is, your liver is designed to cope with it and so as long as you drink in moderation then your body is able to recover perfectly fine. With drugs, this is a lot less likely to happen. That being said, I'm all for legalising the softer drugs for several reasons – the ma in one being that it will remove a lot of the appeal of â€Å"rebelling† and so you're less likely to want to do it because it's â€Å"forbidden† (it's the same with drinking, as soon as you can legally drink you no longer have such a strong desire to do so)Also, places like the netherlands have legalised the soft drugs because it just means that they can spend more time cracking down on the harder ones and from what I've heard from some people that live there, the majority of people that use it are actually tourists that go there especially for that (so it would also mean an increase in tourism and stimulate the economy) Legalising it would also make it a lot safer because you never know what's actually in the drug you are buying, I recently watched this very ducational program on the effects drugs have and out of a random sample of pills only half actually contained the drug they were meant to. Legalising means that it will be regulated and also means that it is like ly to be a lot less expensive and so you also won't have the problem of people having to resort to illegal activities in order to get money for it. Quite a few drugs have also been shown to have medicinal benefits and so even partially legalising them for medicinal purposes only (for which you would need a prescription) would be beneficial.The bottom line though is that people are going to do them whether they are legal or not so if you at least legalise the softer ones, it allows you to regulate and control them a lot more than before and also if you make drugs legal then it will also help reduce all the gangs revolving around supplying drugs because they will no longer be needed and will no longer make money and so that's also a positive benefit. I feel I should also point out here that I'm not a fan of drugs, not even the â€Å"legal-highs† as I don't like the idea of altering my mind and not being in full control of my body.

The Insider Secrets for Paper Help Revealed

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Dorothy Height Quotations

Dorothy Height, a key figure in the American civil rights movement, worked for many years for the YWCA, and also headed the National Council of Negro Women for more than 50 years. Selected Dorothy Height Quotations †¢ If you worry about who is going to get credit, you dont get much work done. †¢ Greatness is not measured by what a man or woman accomplishes, but by the opposition, he or she has overcome to reach his goals. †¢ I was inspired by Mary McLeod Bethune, not only to be concerned but to use whatever talent I had to be of some service in the community. †¢ As I reflect on the hope and challenges facing women in the 21st century, I am also reminded of the protracted struggles of African-American women who joined together as SISTERS in 1935 in response to Mrs. Bethunes call. It was an opportunity to deal creatively with the fact that Black women stood outside of Americas mainstream of opportunity, influence, and power. †¢ I want to be remembered as someone who used herself and anything she could touch to work for justice and freedom.... I want to be remembered as one who tried. †¢ A Negro woman has the same kind of problems as other women, but she cant take the same things for granted. †¢ As more women enter public life, I see developing a more humane society. The growth and development of children no longer will depend solely upon the status of their parents. Once again, the community as the extended family will rekindle its caring and nurturing. Though children cannot vote, their interests will be placed high on the political agenda. For they are indeed the future. †¢ 1989, about using the term black or African-American: As we move ahead into the 21st century and look at a unified way of fully identifying with our heritage, our present, and our future, our use of African-American is not a matter of putting down one to pick up the other. It is a recognition that weve always been African and American, but we are now going to address ourselves in those terms and make a unified effort to identify with our African brothers and sisters and with our own heritage. African-American has the potential of helping us to rally. But unless we identify with the full meaning, the term wont make a difference. It becomes merely a label. When we started using the term Black, it was more than a color. It came at a time when our young people in marches and sit-ins made the cry Black Power. It represented the Black experience in the United States and the Black experience of those throughout the world who were oppressed. We are at a different point now. The struggle continues, but its more subtle. Therefore, we need, in the strongest ways we can, to show our unity as a people and not just as a people of color. †¢ It was not easy for those of us who had become symbols of the struggle for equality to see our children raising their fists in defiant contradiction of all we had fought for. †¢ No one will do for you what you need to do for yourself. We cannot afford to be separate. †¢ We have to see that all of us are in the same boat. †¢ But were all in the same boat now, and weve got to learn to work together. †¢ We are not a problem people; we are a people with problems. We have historic strengths; we have survived because of family. †¢ We have to improve life, not just for those who have the most skills and those who know how to manipulate the system. But also for and with those who often have so much to give but never get the opportunity. †¢ Without community service, we would not have a strong quality of life. Its important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. Its the way in which we ourselves grow and develop. †¢ Weve got to work to save our children and do it with full respect for the fact that if we do not, no one else is going to do it. †¢ There is no contradiction between effective law enforcement and respect for civil and human rights. Dr. King did not stir us to move for our civil rights to have them taken away in these kinds of fashions. †¢ The Black family of the future will foster our liberation, enhance our self-esteem, and shape our ideas and goals. †¢ I believe we hold in our hands the power once again to shape not only our own but the nations future -- a future that is based on developing an agenda that radically challenges limitations in our economic development, educational achievement, and political empowerment. Undoubtedly, African-Americans will have an integral role to play, although our path ahead will continue to be complex and difficult. †¢ As we move forward, let us also look back. So long as we remember those who died for our right to vote and those like John H. Johnson who built empires where there were none, we will walk into the future with unity and strength. More About Dorothy Height Dorothy Height BiographyWomen and the Civil Rights MovementMary McLeod Bethune About These Quotes Quote collection assembled by Jone Johnson Lewis. Each quotation page in this collection and the entire collection  © Jone Johnson Lewis. This is an informal collection assembled over many years. I regret that I am not able to provide the original source if it is not listed with the quote. Citation information:Jone Johnson Lewis. Dorothy Height Quotes. About Womens History. URL: http://womenshistory.about.com/od/quotes/a/dorothy_height.htm.