Incorporating cultural action models in university-based adult education: the Ghanaian experience
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International Journal of Lifelong Education
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Within the past two decades, mainstreaming culture in education has taken centre stage in Africa. This development has been facilitated by the fact that western education introduced in Africa during the era of colonialism marginalised indigenous knowledge systems. Although since independence African governments have made several attempts to reform education in order to make it more culturally relevant and responsive to the needs of Africans, the education system in Africa continues to reflect western values and knowledge sources. Non-western knowledge production sources continue to be neglected in universities in Africa. This paper discusses the philosophy behind the establishment of university-based adult education in Ghana and its trajectory since its establishment. The paper argues that although adult education is dynamic and transformational, there is a need to incorporate indigenous sources of knowledge. The paper proposes that cultural action models such as communalism and spirituality should be incorporated into the teaching of adult education.
Incorporating cultural action models in university-based adult education: The Ghanaian experience | Request PDF. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239790746_Incorporating_cultural_action_models_in_university-based_adult_education_The_Ghanaian_experience [accessed Sep 19 2018].
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... Some researchers have argued that African values and practices tend to be more pre- occupied with the cultivation of social responsibility and nurturance (Adjei 2007;Gyekye 2004;Ndofirepi and Ndofirepi 2012;Tagoe 2012) and yet, efforts to socialise chil- dren into 'virtuous children', appears to be failing as there is a growing trend of childhood maladjustment -disrespect for adults, childhood crime and immoral behaviours such as early sex among 8-year-olds (Gyekye 2004;Kanu 2007;Tagoe 2012). These authors blamed the current trend partly on the gradual decrease in communal upbringing of the child in which moral-rich storytelling forms the core component of traditional peda- gogic practice for children to imagine and conceptualise good behaviour (Gyekye 2004;Ndofirepi and Ndofirepi 2012). ... ... Some researchers have argued that African values and practices tend to be more pre- occupied with the cultivation of social responsibility and nurturance (Adjei 2007;Gyekye 2004;Ndofirepi and Ndofirepi 2012;Tagoe 2012) and yet, efforts to socialise chil- dren into 'virtuous children', appears to be failing as there is a growing trend of childhood maladjustment -disrespect for adults, childhood crime and immoral behaviours such as early sex among 8-year-olds (Gyekye 2004;Kanu 2007;Tagoe 2012). These authors blamed the current trend partly on the gradual decrease in communal upbringing of the child in which moral-rich storytelling forms the core component of traditional peda- gogic practice for children to imagine and conceptualise good behaviour (Gyekye 2004;Ndofirepi and Ndofirepi 2012). ... ... In his perspective, an individual is valued based on his/her involvement in the interests, aspirations and welfare of the group. Communalism in the African sense focuses on the activities and successes of wider society rather than on the individual although not exclusively ( Ndofirepi and Ndofirepi 2012;Tagoe 2012). For example, the state of one child affects the state of others. ...