In July 2013, I wrote this letter to the Permanent Secretary of
the Ministry of Education and the issues therein were not addressed in the
response.
In the spirit of goodwill, I wrote the letter as a Zimbabwean parent with both high and primary school going children locally and who made a serious study on the education system based on the statistics available.
In the spirit of goodwill, I wrote the letter as a Zimbabwean parent with both high and primary school going children locally and who made a serious study on the education system based on the statistics available.
It
is highly commendable that Zimbabwe has one of the highest literacy rate in
Africa. We thank the government for that. However, I argued that we need to
move beyond the literacy rate and achieve productivity and usefulness of the
products of the public education system.
Background
For
a better reminder of the statistics, here is a selection of the national
performance in the Ordinary Level examinations, as sourced from the local
media:
Year
|
1984
|
1985
|
1989
|
1990
|
1991
|
1992
|
1993
|
1994
|
1995
|
Pass rate
|
21.9%
|
14.5%
|
13.4%
|
14.3%
|
15.3%
|
14%
|
12.9%
|
13.6%
|
12.8%
|
1996
|
1998
|
1999
|
2000
|
2001
|
2002
|
2003
|
2004
|
2005
|
11.8%
|
14.6%
|
15.7%
|
13.2%
|
14%
|
13.8%
|
12.8%
|
10.2%
|
12.2%
|
2006
|
2007
|
2008
|
2009
|
2010
|
2011
|
2012
|
2013
|
14.2%
|
9.9%
|
14.4%
|
19.3%
|
16.5%
|
19.5%
|
18.4%
|
20.7%
|
Notes:
1.
The
statistics of some early years (1980-1983, 1986-88, 1997) are missing
2.
1989 – 39.2% passed no subject at all, and another 36.7% passed
1 or 2 subjects
3.
2003
- full exam localization
Observations
For the years under review,
the lowest and highest pass rate in Zimbabwe's academic ordinary level exams
has been 10% (2007) at the height of an economic crisis and 22% (1984),
respectively.
This means that Zimbabwe
has had between 78-90% failure rate for its ‘O’ Level exams since 1984! If this
is not scandalous, it is a dysfunctional measurement of the academic
performance and human potential of our children.
We need to be
comforted by the specific measures to be taken in addressing this unacceptable
situation. Unfortunately, the purported failure rate of our children has been
wrongly diagnosed. Albert Einstein would say, “No problem can be solved
from the same level of consciousness that created it.”
The Presidential
Commission of Inquiry into Education and Training (Nziramasanga Report) of 1999
is still to be released and implemented other than being mentioned
indiscriminately and casually.
We are in a country
that has been and is still reducing 78-90% of its young people into being
convinced that they are hopeless failures. This creates a citizenry that
surrenders or gives up its own deep sense of human worth, causative power and
responsibility because of such an academic exam failure rate.
In my view, a
one-size education system that fits all is irrelevant and counter-productive.
Our pitfalls
It is my well-considered
view that our education system has a fixation with academic attainment and
therefore is not identified with sporting and non-academic excellence. Schools
are harshly judged around academic performance, as if academic achievement is
the only measurement of being human. This may be the reason why our nation is
doing badly at the Olympics and other competitive tournaments in various
sporting disciplines.
The whole educational
grounding is purposefully producing a hostile or uncharitable attitude towards
entertainment, athletic and sports personalities around the world because they
did not excel academically. Entertainment, athletics and various sporting
disciplines may provide the biggest employment levels and a direct impact on
the economic activities and value (“manufacturing
and construction of sporting facilities, consumer spending, corporate activity
and funding, sporting events, government grants/spending, sports marketing and broadcasting
rights, employment/jobs/salaries, tourism…”).
There are also
instances where sporting excellence has been undermined by the attitude of
seeing non-academically talented as less human. This has caused school and
college top athletes to stop being serious about their sporting talents because
they would want to pursue their academic studies. China, the USA and Australia
are top sporting countries and they offer sporting scholarships and greater learning
flexibility for sporting students.
After the compulsory
basic primary education, the technical and sports secondary education learning
should have general learning of “classical liberal arts” education.
Pillars of an Educational System
There are critical
and defining seven pillars of a public educational system – structure; infrastructure;
content (curriculum); human capital; the efficient administration of the public
examination system; cost and government and incentives for corporate funding
for schools and students; and location of schools.
Structurally and
according to learners’ abilities, there should be three types of schools or streams
for public secondary education:
1.
“Academic Education School” (AES)
(consisting of Arts, Sciences and Commercials), taking one to academic
universities;
2.
“Technical Education School” (TES)
should be considered as an option for secondary education for those of
technical ability: Metalwork and Welding, Woodwork and Carpentry, Agriculture,
Building and Bricklaying, Fashion and Fabrics, Cookery, Music and Dance, Art, and
Technical Drawing taking one to technical colleges and later technical
universities. “The students are expected to get exposure to the industries, gain
basic skills and processes for a particular industry, and develop technical
skills to a degree where they are self-sufficient. An awareness of the industry
and acquisition of basic skills seem to be on extreme ends of the continuum
with advanced skill proficiency”; and
3.
“Sports Education School” (SES)
should be considered as another career route based on individual talent in
various sporting disciplines. This takes one to general or focused sports
institutes/academies and various other tertiary specialised schools.
Apart from a highly
needed public sector investment in the infrastructure (buildings, teaching and technological
resources, extra-curriculum facilities, libraries, and school certification, inspection
and supervision) and human capital (teacher training and remuneration, and
school administrative capacity), the nation needs to reorient and refocus the content
or curriculum so that a fish is not judged by its inability to climb a tree.
Reforming and Transforming the
Education Content
Looking at content,
how can anyone expect the swimmer Kirsty Coventry or athlete Usain Bolt to be a
professor, doctor, lawyer or an engineer? How can anyone say that singer Oliver
Mtukudzi or golfer Tiger Woods are failures in life because they do not hold
university degrees?
Conceptually, seeking
academic excellence from and/or not catering for the non-academically gifted
children, destroys the whole fabric of individual human worth, the capacity to
develop causative and moral agency and the responsibility of the majority 90%
of the next generations of the country. But it is simply not possible to
imagine and therefore to accept that only 10-20% are confident enough to think it
is only them who are set for success just because they succeed academically. “Zimbabwe (is) graduating far too many students whose exam results (are)
not good enough for (academic) university entrance, but who (have) no practical
skills and therefore (cannot) not find employment” (T. Barnes, 2003).
We need to have a
content or curriculum that makes it possible for a person to identify his/her
own natural or inherent abilities and to develop them into a skill, profession
or vocation. This identification should be done at the end of primary school education
in Grade 7 using a combination of scientific career personality tests and a
public examination system. Such tests should be reconfirmed at the end of Form
2.
An educational
content should help young people to shape their inborn or innate essence so
that they can professionally manifest it in due balance, proportion and
orderliness.
The most talented,
innovative and creative people in the world have been found to be the less
academically educated ones while they definitely need the services of technical
and professional people to institutionally manage their talents, innovations
and creations.
The public education content should assist students to “find meaning in our own lives, in other
people, in discoveries, and in experiences. These things make us to have hope,
to care and to love. They help us define what it is to be human. These elements
provide the basis of a fulfilling human life on the here and now.”
It was after
the 16th century that academic “rote learning” was formally
introduced and replaced liberal education which made it possible for children
to be “critical and creative in their thinking” in a rigorous way. Rote
learning, technical or professional education for commercial vocations and
trades allows one to just earn a living but not to become a full human being as
what liberal education does to a person.
Rote
learning is a method of learning by cramming, repetition and memorization.
“Rote” literally means mechanical, fixed or habitual and frequent parrot
repetition of something learned triggering an uncritical and unthoughtful
response to assumptions and their relevance in light of new scientific and
technological discoveries and possibilities. “Rote learning can be an appropriate learning
technique is in a special needs classroom. Students who are mentally
handicapped or suffer from learning
disabilities such as dyslexia or dysgraphia often require repetition in order to
learn new things. In fact, some students with disabilities may only be able to
learn by rote.” – ‘What is Role Learning?’ www.wisegeek.com/what-is-rote-learning.htm
Rote
learning is about reading, writing and recollection of spoon-fed ideas while
lacking curiosity, whereas “classical liberal education” is about “thinking
or disciplined analysis, communication or reasoned arguments, judgment and
value cognition.” A curriculum needs to be “structured with a basis of
rote learning followed by a much lengthier period of applied, practical study
and critical thinking.”
How should the
educational content or curriculum be framed? Let us illustrate using a child
development exercise.
At home, workplace
or any other social setting, do the following game: break yourselves into two
groups.
Within ten
minutes, one group should list the natural (unguided and untaught) fifteen positive
attitudes and attributes of a child less than 5 years old, before conditioned
by the schooling, social and religious system.
The other group
should list the cultivated and learnt positive attitudes, attributes and
tendencies of an adult person “to
live, to prosper, be well.”
The two groups
should not influence each other and they should not use any other resource
other than the intellect of each of the group members.
When the two
groups are done, come together and on a clean sheet, create three columns. In
the first two columns, separately list them. Pick out the common words or terms
and list in the third column. You may find that the listings use different
terms that mean the same. Reconcile the terms so that the two groups agree on
one term in the third column.
At the end of the
exercise, it will be noticed that 75-100%, the unguided and untaught behaviours
of infants and adults’ cultivated and learnt positive attributes “to live, to prosper, be well” are the exactly
same.
The following
have been found out to be common between the two groups – (1) engagingly
active, energetic and passionate, (2) confident but not arrogant, (3)
strong-willed but not stubborn, (4) experimental, adventurous and exploring,
(5) effortful without blaming or excuses, (6) hopeful about possibilities, (7)
joyfully and warmfully courteous towards anyone, (8) sense of sincerity,
authenticity and truthfulness, (9) creative, imaginative and innovative about
solutions, (10) easily adaptive to new situations, (11) a persistently focused
and never give-up approach, (12) free-spirited and social unlimitedness, (13)
observant, (14) inquisitive, exploratory and curious, and (15) open-mindedness
and ease reception to fresh ideas or perspectives.
These
unguided and untaught aspects constitute our “Essence Self” unrelated to the conceited Mind. If these are the unguided
and untaught but highly perceptive behaviours of a child so young and are the same
as the cultivated and learnt positive attitudes and attributes for adults to “to
live, to prosper, be well”, how do they recede as we grew out of childhood? What does
this inform us about our upbringing, conditioning and socialization in the
family and education system as influenced by religion? This may mean the
Essential Self during the ages 5-21 is being destroyed in the families and education
system as influenced by low culture and literalist religions. The destruction
conditions people to be prejudicial, unthinking and vainglorious believers who
avoid the “use of sound evidence and
valid reasoning.”
A
discovered Essential Self makes it possible for us to realize and manifest our own
internal faculties already resident in the recesses of our own humanity. This
drives us to be creative and innovative thinkers of “critical thought, fair-mindedness, self-insight, and a genuine desire
to serve the public good.”
“The term 'education' is the noun form of the
verb educate. It comes from the Middle English ‘educaten,’ itself coming from
the Latin term ‘educare,’ ‘educatus’ meaning 'bring up, rear.' It is linked to
‘educere’ meaning 'to lead forth' or 'bring out'.”
According to Webster's Dictionary: Educate: “to bring up or guide
the powers of, as a child; to develop and cultivate, whether physically,
mentally or morally, but more commonly limited to the mental activities or
senses.” Education: “properly a
drawing forth, implies not so much the communication of knowledge as the
discipline of the intellect, the establishment of the principles, and the
regulation of the heart.”
The Concise Oxford Dictionary
defines ‘educe’ as to "bring
out, develop, from latent or potential existence."
In terms of
content, education is thus a process of two aspirational objectives: bringing
out the child’s inner faculties within and leading forth the child out of
ignorance about the self. In both instances, the idea of social upbringing and education
is that deep hidden within the biological condition amid the conflictual human
sounds, colours and forms about race, culture, gender, ethnicity and religion;
and obscured from the delusion, disorderliness and coarseness of the mental
state, is the latent and embryonic “Essence
or True Self” in every person.
Upbringing should
be about making it possible for a person to later live a life of being a
fair-minded critical thinker capable of building sound relationships, walking
through life confident, true to him/herself and genuine to others, able to discover
and manifest his/her natural genius (one’s own best, highest and greatest).
Through the educational
system, a person needs to be developed and raised in an onward and upward
direction whose disposition is a “moral sense” – understanding and accepting
the impact of own actions on others; and “citizenship
sense” – act responsibly and accept responsibility for own actions, learn
cooperation and show initiative, and know the value and importance of making a
positive contribution to the lives of others.
The purpose of education (“paideia,”
a Greek word meaning “the upbringing of a
child”) can be considered to be fourfold and its
content should be make it possible to:
1. 1. Develop human
genius or grand powers, faculties or
capacities consisting of:
i. Reasoning (the faculty to understand,
think and examine rationally and explore logically, apply knowledge
innovatively and make decisions responsibly to accept the consequences, results
and effects of one’s choices, decisions and actions, i.e. to each person the
fruit of that which he/she sows as "the
fruit lies in the seed") This is
the faculty that makes it possible to inquire, analyse, compare and further
research so that a choice, decision and action is based on sound and sensible
facts. By this faculty, a human being consents to lawful authority, vigorously
explores and continuously re-examines established traditions and customs and
socially conditioned existence according to new discoveries and convictions,
ii. Causation (causative agency, i.e. the faculty of imagination,
innovation and creativity to mentally and physically shape, fabricate, weave,
mould and form) and
iii. Discernment (the faculty of cognizing, freewill or the exercise of
moral agency i.e. the ability to judge and determine what is good and bad,
right and wrong). What is good and bad, or right and wrong? That which sustains
the purpose of life, which is the human well-being or flourishing (“eudaimonia” in Greek). The purpose of
human life was depicted in ancient Egypt at the end of the references of kings’
names or to their household, with a phrase, “ankh, wedja, seneb,” which meant “life, prosperity, health”
or “to live, to prosper, be well.” In
some countries, this has been immortalised e.g. the first and second article of
the Virginia Declaration of Rights adopted in 1776; the declaration of
independence of the United States Declaration of Independence later
incorporated in the US Constitution by way of the Fifth (ratified in 1791) and
Fourteenth Amendments (ratified in 1868); the Chapter III, Article 13 of the
1947 Constitution of Japan; Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (1948) reads, “Everyone has the
right to life, liberty, and security of person,” the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms (1982) states “life,
liberty, security of the person.” A healthy and supportive upbringing
nurtures such a possibility. The result is that of an individual and public
life of a high sense of honour or integrity in the work involved,
dutifulness or responsibility to what is expected of us with
fervency and strong eagerness, and better and sustainably improving
standards of service.
2. Assist in the
discovery of “thyself” for human worth, self-confidence and the actualisation
of one’s potential to the fullest (i.e. “enabled to
understand the processes of nature, the laws of growth, and the central place
of human consciousness”) “For through self-knowledge and
self-awareness not only do we get to know ourselves, but we automatically
become aware of the world or worlds in which we live”; and
3. 3. Assist in the
discovery of one’s talent or develop the competence of an art, craft or skill
to earn a living using the human genius.
The
word, ‘humanitas’ is associated with
Roman philosopher-politician, Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BCE), which means a
“better human being.” As an attitude
and approach to life, ‘humanitas’
asserts a human’s importance as a virtuous cultivated being, confident of
his/her human worth, courteous and genuine to others, honest in his/her social
conduct, and active in his/her citizenship role.
A
human being becomes a better human being by refining and respectably
cultivating him/herself (Cicero, “De
Legibus,” Book 1:25) through education and altruism.
According
to Rabbi Moses Maimonides, “One whose
merit surpasses his iniquity is a tzaddik” and every person can reach this
level.
Therefore, ‘humanness’ means ‘a life with moral values’. ‘Morality’ is the system of the (1) Duties
to Self (“Know thyself”) and Others
(“Golden Rule”); (2) Fully
comprehending the Cosmic Laws of Nature (the
enduring perennial and self-evident
Truths) and the Law of Causation, and (3) Living a full life of civic
excellence (virtue and integrity) and active citizenship.
In a book “The Global
Achievement Gap” (Basic Books, August 2008), the Harvard Innovation
Education Fellow Tony Wagner set out seven core competences that every academic
and non-academic student must master before the end of high school: (1) Critical
thinking and problem solving (the ability to ask questions); (2) Collaboration
across networks and leading by influence; (3) Agility and adaptability; (4) Initiative
and entrepreneurialism; (5) Accessing and analyzing information; (6) Effective
written and oral communication; and (7) Curiosity and imagination. This is not
achieved through rote learning but “classical liberal arts” education.
Daniel H. Pink points out that today’s graduates need to master six
critical skills, aptitudes and competencies to succeed in a “conceptual economy” of the 21st
century: (1) Design – the ability to
conceptualize and think creatively; (2) Story
– the ability to tell a story, to use metaphor and to write and speak clearly;
(3) Symphony – the ability to
summarize and synthesize information, to bring various ideas and people
together to work as a team; (4) Empathy
– the ability to immerse yourself in someone’s else culture, and to be tolerant
of ideas contrary to one’s own cultural tradition; (5) Play – the ability to imagine, to be humorous, and to utilize game
strategies in everyday problem solving; and (6) Meaning – the ability to seek out meaningful, non-material
activities, to appreciate symbolism, and to develop lasting meaningful career
skills – ‘A Whole New Mind: Why
Right-brainers Will Rule the Future’ (Riverhead Books, 2005), www.d.umn.edu/cla/deanwelcome/whatare.php Again, rote
learning is not the route for this conceptual mindset.
There is
something about us that is natural, untaught and innate and we have lost it
through rote learning, the kind of education we have received.
The “instinct, inclination or predisposition”
to have a full life and live well is natural, untaught and born within. Our
instinctively driven ability to cry and suck our mothers’ breasts for milk soon
after birth is natural, untaught and born within.
Our ability to
sit up, crawl, stand and then walk is only perfected but the beginnings are
natural, untaught and born within. The conception in the womb, the
multiplication of cells into billions and the full development of the body and
its parts till birth are natural, untaught and born within.
That which is natural, untaught and born within is our "primordial state"
or natural condition! This state or condition about us arises out of an indwelling "consciousness, intelligence and
creativity." While these
three are innate or inborn, they need to be discovered so that each of us can
evolve towards our best and highest.
Conclusion
It is a national interest to understand and
immediately do something about 78-90% of our young people every year who are
full of despair about their employment prospects because of a structure and
curriculum of an education system built on 100% academic pursuits. An
increasing number of the unemployed and a highly informalised economy is
unsustainable and a serious threat to political legitimacy of the gains of the
liberation struggle as it debases and demeans the social and moral fabric of
our country.
Our young people can easily become the entry
points of a distorted national discourse, and easy targets for those intending
to threaten and destabilize the nation. Such political destabilization uses the
social frustration arising out of high unemployment largely driven by the lack
of technical skills and the capacity to create jobs.
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