History Through Archaeology - a Case Study of Zimbabwean History Textbooks
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History through archaeology - A case study of Zimbabwean history textbooks By Bronwyn Bianca Plescia Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magister Educationis in the Faculty of Education, University of Pretoria. Supervisor: Professor Johan Wassermann Co-Supervisor: Dr Denise Bentrovato November, 2019 i DECLARATION I declare that the dissertation, which I hereby submit for the degree Magister Educationis in History Education at the University of Pretoria, is my own work and has not been previously submitted by me for a degree at this or any other tertiary institution. ii ETHICS CLEARANCE CERTIFICATE The author, whose name appears on the title page of this dissertation, has obtained, for the research described in this work, the applicable research ethics approval. The author declares that she has observed the ethical standards required in terms of the University of Pretoria’s Code of ethics for researchers and the Policy guidelines for responsible research. Appendix 1 iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This has been a long, arduous but rewarding journey of discovery. I truly feel that I have grown in many ways through the lessons I have learned on this academic journey. All of this would not have been possible were it not for my supervisor, Professor Johan Wasserman, believing in me, always supporting me and encouraging me to do better than I ever thought myself capable of. I am grateful to you for your words of advice and for pushing me beyond my comfort zone time and again. I would also like to thank my co-supervisor, Dr. Denise Bentrovato, for her encouragement, understanding and willingness to share her knowledge. Thank you both for making this journey possible and for the opportunities you have presented me. To my husband, Lyle, I would like to thank you for always standing by me and believing in me throughout this journey. Without your unwavering support emotionally and mentally, I would never have been able to achieve this degree. Thank you for your encouragement and belief in me. To my mum, Dolores Gomes, thank you for all that you instilled in me as I grew up and achieved my goals. Without your guidance, integrity and encouragement I do not think I would be the person I am today. Another huge thank you for all the proofing that you have done for me, I know it has not been an easy task. iv ABSTRACT Zimbabwe is a country in southern Africa that was formerly known as Rhodesia and was established in 1890 by European settlers. Zimbabwe gained independence from the colonial regime in 1980 and has a rich historical background. This study serves to understand the use of archaeology in two selected Form 3 Zimbabwean history textbooks. The study was a case study with embedded units of analysis situated in the interpretivist paradigm analysing how and why archaeology had been used in Zimbabwean school history textbooks. Content analysis of each unit was employed to better understand this concept and the transdisciplinary relationship between historians and archaeologists is conceptualized in the textbooks. What emerged from the analysis was that archaeology was indeed made use of to explain the prehistory of Zimbabwe, it was just the depth of the archaeological content that differed between the two textbooks sampled. Archaeology was used in a nationalistic manner to show that prior to the arrival of Europeans, Zimbabwe did indeed have a thriving culture with city states, craftsmen and international trade contrary to the Eurocentric views that native Zimbabweans were primitive. In this study, it was shown that without archaeology the prehistory of Zimbabwe would remain fragmented and mixed up in romanticised versions of Great Zimbabwe being built by the Queen of Sheba or being connected to the mines of King Solomon and never really giving credit to the native inhabitants of Zimbabwe who were the true architects of a nation as great as that of Great Zimbabwe. In the light of the recent political transformations in Zimbabwe, it was however evident that the history textbooks have changed, relying less on archaeology and more on a patriotic form of history filled with oral traditions and earlier historical writings of the Arabs and Portuguese traders and explorers of old. Keywords: archaeology and history education, educational archaeology, historical archaeology, archaeology and history textbooks, archaeology in Zimbabwe v LANGUAGE EDITOR DISCLAIMER vi TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE PAGE SECTION A DECLARATION ii ETHICS CLEARANCE CERTIFICATE iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv ABSTRACT v LANGUAGE EDITOR DISCLAIMER vi TABLE OF CONTENTS vii LIST OF APPENDICES ix LIST OF FIGURES ix LIST OF ACRONYMS x SECTION B CHAPTER 1: Foreword to the Study 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 The setting 1 1.3 Rationale and motivation for the study 10 1.4 Purpose and focus of the study 12 1.5 Conceptual and theoretical framework 13 1.6 Research design and methodology 14 1.7 Dissertation outline 15 1.8 Conclusion 17 CHAPTER 2: Literature Review 18 2.1 Introduction 18 2.2 Education and archaeology 20 2.3 School history and archaeology 24 2.4 History education and archaeology in Zimbabwe 29 2.4.1 Syllabus development 29 2.4.2 Education and archaeology in Zimbabwe 36 2.5 Textbooks 38 2.5.1 What is a textbook and what is its purpose? 38 2.5.2 Textbooks and publishing 39 2.5.3 Publishing of textbooks in Zimbabwe 40 2.6 Conclusion 43 CHAPTER 3: Research design and methodology 46 3.1 Introduction 46 3.2 Research design 46 3.2.1 Research paradigm 47 3.2.2 Qualitative approach 50 3.2.3 Ontological assumptions 52 3.2.4 Epistemological assumptions 53 3.3 Research methodology 55 3.3.1 Case study as a research methodology 55 3.3.2 Sampling 57 3.4 Research methods 60 3.4.1 Content analysis 60 3.4.2 Trustworthiness 65 vii 3.4.3 Ethics 67 3.4.4 Methodological limitations 68 3.5 Conclusion 68 Chapter 4: Data Analysis 70 4.1 Introduction 70 4.2 How archaeology was used in the analysed Zimbabwean 70 history textbooks 4.3 Unit one: Later Stone Age and Early Iron Age 71 4.3.1 Theories 71 4.3.2 Chronology and evidence 80 4.3.3 Architecture 90 4.3.4 Economics 93 4.3.5 Society 98 4.3.6 Death rituals 99 4.3.7 Pseudo-archaeology 99 4.4 Unit two: Middle Iron Age villages and Early towns 105 4.4.1 Theories 105 4.4.2 Chronology and evidence 108 4.4.3 Architecture 116 4.4.4 Economics 122 4.4.5 Society 124 4.4.6 Death rituals 125 4.4.7 Pseudo-archaeology 127 4.5 Unit three: Later Iron Age kingdoms 129 4.5.1 Theories 129 4.5.2 Chronology and evidence 130 4.5.3 Architecture 132 4.5.4 Economics 135 4.5.5 Society 135 4.5.6 Pseudo-archaeology 136 4.6 Unit four: Southern African contacts with merchant capitalism 136 4.6.1 Theories 136 4.6.2 Architecture 137 4.6.3 Economics 138 4.7 Conclusion 139 Chapter 5: Discussion and Conclusion 143 5.1 Introduction 143 5.2 A consideration of the textbook sample and units of analysis in 144 context 5.2.1 Meeting points between the findings and the literature 144 5.2.1.1 Archaeological evidence and reference to excavations 145 5.2.1.2 Mode-of-production 147 5.2.1.3 History of Great Zimbabwe 149 5.2.1.4 Shona and Ndebele vocabulary 151 5.2.2 Inconsistencies 152 5.3 Transdisciplinary differences 156 5.3.1 Why the shift between the two sister disciplines? 159 5.4 Why then was archaeology used? 162 viii 5.5 Contribution of the study to research 164 5.6 Limitations 166 5.7 Significance for future research 167 5.8 Personal and professional growth 168 5.9 Conclusion 169 LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix 1 Ethics certificate iv Appendix 2 Turnitin certificate 180 Appendix 3 List of Shona and Ndebele words used in the sample 181 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Image illustrating colonial propaganda 5 Figure 2 Diagram indicating the transdisciplinary relationship between 55 history and archaeology Figure 3 Diagram indicating the case study research design 57 Figure 4 Table indicating sections chosen for textbook analysis 58 Figure 5 Table showing sample names to avoid bias 67 Figure 6 Diagram illustrating the modes-of-production 74 Figure 7 Drawing illustrating the idea of culture in modes-of-production 74 Figure 8 Diagram indicating the structure of a homestead 75 Figure 9 Diagram illustrating the political structure of a tributary mode-of- 75 production Figure 10 Illustration of a painting from Mucheka cave 77 Figure 11 Map indicating migrations of Early Iron Age people 78 Figure 12 Map indicating movement of bantu speaking people from north 80 Africa into southern Africa Figure 13 Drawings of stone tool implements 81 Figure 14 Cave painting illustrating humans and cattle 81 Figure 15 Illustration of a painting showing human transformations 82 Figure 16 Drawings of pottery with no annotations 84 Figure 17 Illustrations of pottery with dates and typology 84 Figure 18 Artist’s impression of an Early Iron Age village in Pelindaba 89 Figure 19 Archaeological excavation at Kumadzulo illustrating a floor plan 91 Figure 20 A zoomed in floor plan of hut 1 at the Kumadzulo site 92 Figure 21 Illustration of a blacksmith at a forge 96 Figure 22 Image illustrating Early Iron Age tools 96 Figure 23 Map indicating rainfall during the Iron Age 102 Figure 24 Image of a detailed floor plan of an excavation at Kgaswe -B55 118 Figure 25 Theodore Bent’s sketches of his findings at Great Zimbabwe 119 Figure 26 Aerial photograph of the Great Enclosure at Great Zimbabwe 121 ix Figure 27 Photograph of the conical tower known as the “Watch Tower” at 121 Great Zimbabwe Figure 28 Illustration of a burial site excavated at Bambadyanalo (K2) 126 Figure 29 Artist’s impression of Rozvi upper class style pottery and