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Tanzania Post-Colonial Educational System and Perspectives on Secondary Science Education, Pedagogy, and Curriculum: a Qualitative Study

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Tanzania Post-Colonial Educational System and Perspectives on Secondary Science Education, Pedagogy, and Curriculum: a Qualitative Study DePaul University Via Sapientiae College of Education Theses and Dissertations College of Education Fall 11-2014 TANZANIA POST-COLONIAL EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND PERSPECTIVES ON SECONDARY SCIENCE EDUCATION, PEDAGOGY, AND CURRICULUM: A QUALITATIVE STUDY Eugenia Lucas Wandela DePaul University Follow this and additional works at: https://via.library.depaul.edu/soe_etd Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Lucas Wandela, Eugenia, "TANZANIA POST-COLONIAL EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND PERSPECTIVES ON SECONDARY SCIENCE EDUCATION, PEDAGOGY, AND CURRICULUM: A QUALITATIVE STUDY" (2014). College of Education Theses and Dissertations. 71. https://via.library.depaul.edu/soe_etd/71 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Education at Via Sapientiae. It has been accepted for inclusion in College of Education Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Via Sapientiae. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DePaul University College of Education TANZANIA POST-COLONIAL EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND PERSPECTIVES ON SECONDARY SCIENCE EDUCATION, PEDAGOGY, AND CURRICULUM: A QUALITATIVE STUDY A Dissertation in Education with a concentration in Curriculum Studies By Eugenia L. Wandela ©2014 Eugenia L. Wandela Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education November 2014 We approve the dissertation of Eugenia L. Wandela. ~ ,~,..t'I~(r Date G~-yle Min es, Ed.D. Professor, Early Childhood Education DePaul University .~ _~?":~=~(wf Karen Monkman, Ph.D. Date Professor, Educational Policy Studies & Research DePaul University < .. ~c~> Richard Kozoll, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Elementary Education DePaul University iii ABSTRACT The development of technology and innovation in any country depends on a strong investment in science education from the lower to the upper levels of education. In most of the Sub-Saharan African nations, science education curriculum and teaching still faces many issues and problems that are inhibiting the growth of technology and innovation in these nations. In order to address these issues, an interpretive qualitative study that aims to examine how Tanzanian secondary science educators perceive secondary science education was conducted in the summer of 2013. The purpose of this study is to investigate problems and educational issues that might be limiting the growth of science, technology, and innovation in the Tanzanian society. Additionally, this research investigates the impacts of the colonial legacy that relates to language, politics, and economics, as they affect science education in Tanzania secondary schools. This study focuses on the governmental four-year ordinary level secondary science education; it took place in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania. The researcher interviewed nine secondary science educators: three secondary science teachers and six secondary science education administrators. The researcher also conducted classroom observations. The data results from both interview and classroom observations were contextualized with data from existing documentation on Tanzanian secondary science education and data from previous research. The emergent themes from the study indicate that most of the problems and issues that are currently facing secondary science education are historically connected to the impact of the colonization period in 19th and 20th centuries. This study suggests that in order to improve science education in Tanzanian society, the people, especially iv the elites, need to break away from an “Orientalist” mindset and start integrating the Tanzanian culture and science into the still existing Eurocentric science curriculum. In addition, the Tanzanian government needs to invest in industries and economic initiatives that will support strong science education at all levels of education, as well as the graduates produced through this system. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 Rationale for Study .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Research Questions ............................................................................................................................................. 9 Location and Climate of Tanzania ................................................................................................................. 9 Land Coverage, Population, and Economy ............................................................................................. 10 Tanzanian Educational Background ......................................................................................................... 11 General Objectives of Education in Tanzania ........................................................................................ 11 Language of Instruction .................................................................................................................................. 13 Theoretical Framework of this Research ................................................................................................ 14 What is Post-colonial Theory? ..................................................................................................................... 14 What is Scientific Inquiry Theory? ............................................................................................................. 17 Organizational Structure ................................................................................................................................ 19 Chapter 2: Literature Review ..................................................................................... 21 Tanzanian Educational System before Colonialism ........................................................................... 21 Tanzanian Educational System during Colonialism ........................................................................... 24 The Tanzanian Educational System after Colonialism ...................................................................... 26 Tanzanian Current Educational Practices: Achievements and Problems ................................. 29 Secondary Science Curriculum Reform ................................................................................................... 31 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................ 36 Chapter 3: Research Methodology ............................................................................. 37 Research Design ................................................................................................................................................. 37 Data Collection .................................................................................................................................................... 39 Documentation ................................................................................................................................................... 39 Classroom Observation ................................................................................................................................... 40 vi Interview ............................................................................................................................................................... 41 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................................................................... 42 Access to Research Sites ................................................................................................................................. 43 Participants Sampling Procedure ............................................................................................................... 45 Ethical Considerations .................................................................................................................................... 48 Research Subjectivity ...................................................................................................................................... 49 Summary ............................................................................................................................................................... 51 Chapter 4: Tanzanians’ Perspectives on the Post-colonial Educational System ........... 52 The Tanzanian Educational System after Colonial Rule ................................................................... 55 The Colonial Legacy in the Current Tanzanian Educational System………………………………62 Secondary Science Content ........................................................................................................................... 62 Socio-economic Status .................................................................................................................................... 63 The Existence of Social Alienation ............................................................................................................. 66 The Language of Instruction in Secondary School .............................................................................. 68 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................ 73
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