Indigenous Knowledge Systems and the Teaching of Climate Change in Zimbabwean Secondary Schools

Resource type
Journal Article
Author/contributor
Title
Indigenous Knowledge Systems and the Teaching of Climate Change in Zimbabwean Secondary Schools
Abstract
Indigenous African education grew out of the immediate environment, real or imaginary, where people had knowledge of the environment. Indigenous education inculcated a religious attitude that imbued courtesy, generosity, and honesty. At colonization, Africans were thought of as primitive although they had their own systems, contents, and methods of education. Colonialism signified the decline in the importance of indigenous knowledge systems (IKS). By shifting focus in the core curriculum from teaching/learning based on Western science to teaching/learning through IKS as a foundation for all education, it is anticipated that all forms of knowledge, ways of knowing, and world views be acknowledged as equally valid, adaptable, and complementary to one another in equally valuable ways. The uniqueness of indigenous people and their knowledge is inextricably connected to their lands, which are situated primarily at the social-ecological margins of human habitation such as tropical forests and desert margins. It is at these margins that the consequences of climate change manifest themselves in the following sectors: agriculture, pastoralism, fishing, hunting and gathering, and other subsistence activities, including access to water. Government policies in Zimbabwe often limit options and thus undermine indigenous peoples’ efforts to adapt. IKS is very important for community-based adaptation and mitigation actions in the agricultural sector for maintenance of resilience of social-ecological systems at a local level. This article, through interviews, document analysis, and personal observations, proposes that it is best for Zimbabwe to develop her own climate change curricula and modes of delivery that incorporates IKS.
Publication
SAGE Open
Volume
9
Issue
4
Pages
215824401988514
Date
2019-07-01
Journal Abbr
SAGE Open
Call Number
openalex:W2981480468
Extra
openalex:W2981480468 mag:2981480468
Citation
Tanyanyiwa, V. I. (2019). Indigenous Knowledge Systems and the Teaching of Climate Change in Zimbabwean Secondary Schools. SAGE Open, 9(4), 215824401988514. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244019885149