Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Adam Throne
3/11/2016
History 184
Thabiti Willis
Final Paper Option 1
2
Introduction
Prior to colonization, European contact with West Africa occurred through the slave
trade, missionaries, and coastal trade. Portuguese activity on the West Africa coast dates back
nearly three hundred years before the widespread European colonization of the entire continent.
However, West African education was not influenced by Europeans until colonies were firmly
established in the beginning of the 20th century. Germany’s holdings were primarily in East
Africa, in Togoland along the Gold Coast, and in Cameroon along the Bight of Biafra. France
possessed a landlocked colony in northwestern Africa which included modern Niger, Chad,
Mali, and Mauritania. Britain controlled Nigeria and Ghana. Each of these empires had
economic, nationalist, and political reasoning for their violent conquests in the region. Yet, each
of them used a desire to improve inferior people to justify colonization. This contradiction holds
true when analyzing Colonial West Africa education. Although colonial governments claimed
that they built schools to improve the lifestyles of the people under their power, education served
Before analyzing the motives behind educating colonies, it is important to appreciate how
colonialism changed education in West Africa. Prior to colonialism, some sort of informal
education existed in most communities. This early education was taught through the lens of
religion. From as early as the eighth century, the spread of Islam heavily influenced North and
East portions of the region through the Trans-Saharan trade routes. As a result, the basis of
education at the time was study of the Quran. Christian religious education was introduced as
3
early as 1805 when the London Missionary Society established its first school.1 Missionary
education focused primarily on Christianizing the indigenous people though.2 Furthermore, only
the wealthiest men and men with strong lineage or potential were accepted into these missionary
schools.3 This esoteric system created a hierarchy and severely limited the breadth of education.
Nevertheless, although they were limited, Muslim and Secular schools built a foundation for
the course of colonialism. By the Interwar Period, each of the overseas administrations
supervised its own school system.4 These schools were more structured than their predecessors;
governments constructed buildings solely for education, required students to wear uniforms, and
missionary schools, focused more on keeping children away from bad influences and improving
personhood than on forcing Christianity.5 White settler children that had not experienced pre-
colonial schools attended different schools than local children.6 African schools focused heavily
on increasing technical skills and educating about European ideals.7 By the 1930’s, education for
following the World Wars affected education as well. Scholars laid out their preferences for the
1
Cohen, Cynthia. 1993. “'The Natives Must First Become Good Workmen': Formal Educational Provision in
German South West and East Africa Compared”. Journal of Southern African Studies 19 (1). [Taylor & Francis,
Ltd., Journal of Southern African Studies]: 117
2
Ibid.
3
Brenner, Louis. Controlling Knowledge: Religion, Power, and Schooling in a West African Muslim Society.
Bloomington, IN, USA: Indiana University Press, 2001. 18.
4
Gamble, Harry. 2009. “Peasants of the Empire: Rural Schools and the Colonial Imaginary in 1930s French West
Africa (les Paysans De L'empire: Écoles. 776.
5
Lindsay, Lisa A. Men and Masculinities in Modern Africa. Edited by Stephan Miescher. 94.
6
Cohen, Cynthia. 1993. “'The Natives Must First Become Good Workmen': Formal Educational Provision in
German South West and East Africa Compared”. Journal of Southern African Studies 19 (1). [Taylor & Francis,
Ltd., Journal of Southern African Studies]: 131.
7
Ibid. Pg 118.
8
Gamble, Harry. 2009. “Peasants of the Empire: Rural Schools and the Colonial Imaginary in 1930s French West
Africa (les Paysans De L'empire: Écoles. 775.
4
future of education even as the concept of decolonization rose. Jules Brévié, a well-known
French social reformer, shared his opinion on colonial education as the glamor of colonization
faded:
“This native school, which we must see one day in each group of villages, is the
rural school, liberated from ambitious academic curricula, it’s a farm and a
with practical realities, with improving native life right on the spot. In order for
Brévié makes it clear that colonial education developed continuously over the course of the
colonial period. The following analysis studies which motives enhanced this interest in
Familiar Motive
The public motivation for educating Africans was improving “native” society for the
better. Following the Berlin Conference of 1885, there was a strong sentiment of Western
superiority over less developed regions. The first few lines from British poet Rudyard Kipling’s
9
Ibid. Pg 781.
5
The British and other colonial powers believed they were responsible for improving the lifestyles
of different races.
However, there seems to be a defining private motivation as well. Yes, the slave trade
had significantly weakened the living conditions of pre-colonial West Africa.11 A large
percentage of the Gold Coast’s population was sold. Additionally, since a large share of the
population worked in agriculture, droughts disrupted both the economy and food output.12 Due to
their direct involvement in the Atlantic Slave Trade, Europeans in particular felt a burden to
improve West Africa and restore its pre-slavery condition. Yet, it seems this reasoning served
more as a scapegoat than as a legitimate source of rational. A sample treaty from 1840 between
the British and any West African country exemplifies how the British overcompensate for their
role in slavery: “There shall be peace and friendship between the people of England and the
people of –– and the slave trade shall be put down forever in ––, and the people of England and
the people of –– shall trade together innocently, justly, kindly, and usefully.”13 The tone of this
excerpt is insincere. It seems that the “White Man’s Burden” is used to cover up other European
motives for educating West African locals and is therefore an insignificant motive itself.
Each colonizer in West Africa had a different fundamental motive for educating native
children in its colonies, but the underlying patterns which connected these motives were greed
10
"The White Man's Burden": Kipling's Hymn to U.S. Imperialism." "The White Man's Burden": Kipling's Hymn to
U.S. Imperialism. Accessed March 07, 2016. http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5478/.
11
Rönnbäck, Klas. "Living Standards On the Pre-colonial Gold Coast: A Quantitative Estimate of African Laborers’
Welfare Ratios." European Review of Economic History 18, no. 2 (2014): 199
12
Ibid. Pg 186.
13
Worger, William H., Nancy L. Clark, and Edward A. Alpers. Africa and the West: A Documentary History From
the Slave Trade to Independence. Phoenix, Ariz.: Oryx Press, 2001. 137.
6
nationalism among natives and increasing economic efficiency. Cynthia Cohen, a director of
Peacebuilding and the Arts, argues that government-controlled missionary schools taught the
German language to improve students’ knowledge and lifestyles.14 The choice of German in the
curriculum served as a way for Germany to gain power over its subjects. The following excerpt
“The following questions had been set as a task: a)The large states of Europe and
their capitals / b)What are the names of Germany’s most important mountains? / c)What
are the names of the most important rivers in Germany and in what direction do they
curriculums. These questions have no practical relationship to the lives of students living in
German colonies. The pro-German bias of these assignments supports a pro-European motive for
education.
Moreover, Otto von Bismarck’s initial lack of interest in colonization discredits the
possibility of Germany colonizing Togoland for the region’s own benefit. Robert O. Collins, a
scholar of African History, claims that Bismarck decided to join partition in order to save his
14
Cohen, Cynthia. 1993. “'The Natives Must First Become Good Workmen': Formal Educational Provision in
German South West and East Africa Compared”. Journal of Southern African Studies 19 (1). [Taylor & Francis,
Ltd., Journal of Southern African Studies]: 119.
15
Worger, William H., Nancy L. Clark, and Edward A. Alpers. Africa and the West: A Documentary History From
the Slave Trade to Independence. Phoenix, Ariz.: Oryx Press, 2001. 249-250.
7
reputation.16 It makes sense, given Bismarck’s other aggressive actions, that he would also be
interested in the economic benefits of a colony. Through education, the German colonial
government could actively fill otherwise empty positions in the Togoland economy with
artisans.17 Wazi Apoh, a scholar of archaeology and heritage, has his own stance on the
economic motives of German colonization in West Africa: “The German colonial masters see
themselves as people on a civilizing mission. . .to. . .help them to develop using the rich natural
resources with which the continent is endowed”18 Apoh argues that school masters believed
economic development benefited students. Yet, it makes sense that masters would try to cover
their own greed. Due to high taxes, almost all resources were exported back to Germany. Later,
Apoh changes his perspective to match this argument more directly: “The local people were not
only expected to be faithful disciples of Western religion, but to work hard on their farms to
produce cheap cash crops for export to Europe to feed their industries.”19 There was clearly a
desire for economic exploitation, and education made this endeavor more efficient. In German
West African colonies, naturalization and economic exploitation through education overwhelmed
The goal of education in French colonies of West Africa was to “civilize natives” while
simultaneously building subordinance for direct rule. France did not focus education on
developing the workforce like Germany did, since the size of it’s empire was enormous and it
possessed economic resources at home in Alsace and Lorraine. Instead, through education,
16
Collins, Robert O., James McDonald. Burns, Erik Kristofer. Ching, and Robert O. Collins. Historical Problems of
Imperial Africa. Princeton: M. Wiener Publishers, 1994. 31.
17
Cohen, Cynthia. 1993. “'The Natives Must First Become Good Workmen': Formal Educational Provision in
German South West and East Africa Compared”. Journal of Southern African Studies 19 (1). [Taylor & Francis,
Ltd., Journal of Southern African Studies]:134
18
Apoh, Wazi,, and Bea Lundt. Germany and Its West African Colonies: 'excavations' of German Colonialism in
Post-colonial Times. Berlin: Lit, 2013. 119.
19
Apoh, Wazi,, and Bea Lundt. Germany and Its West African Colonies: 'excavations' of German Colonialism in
Post-colonial Times. Berlin: Lit, 2013. 127.
8
“natives” were drawn closer to France.20 W. Bryant Mumford, an author of African Affairs,
believed that Africans in French West-African colonies had developed a different style of
thinking from the French through their pre-colonial educations and family traditions.21 They
were not capable of developing an education system of their own.22 An education system that
focused on allowing the locals to develop at their own pace shared the liberal ideals of the
French Revolution by promoting liberty and striving for equality.23 This positive reasoning
makes sense until one realizes that the education system instilled in French colonies was similar
to the one set in place in German colonies. All lessons were taught in French with the goal of
making the Africans subordinate to their agents.24 Curriculums also included French history and
etiquette. The French governed their colonies using direct rule. This means that a French agent
had direct power over the people of the colony.25 In order for this system to succeed, the locals,
whom greatly outnumbered their direct rulers, had to feel significantly inferior to their overlords.
Replacing West African culture with French culture through education had this effect. Again,
personal desire for control made the excuse of improving inferior peoples invalid.
The British colonial government used education to exert its influence as the primary
source of power in Nigeria and Ghana. Differing from the French, the British practiced indirect
rule; chiefs appointed by the British were supervised as they controlled day to day governance.
This was highly successful in gaining support of locals, but it limited the power British officials
held. The London Missionary Society and Christian Missionary Society controlled education in
20
Mumford, W. Bryant, and Granville St. John Orde-Browne. Africans Learn to Be French; a Review of
Educational Activities in the Seven Federated Colonies of French West Africa, Based upon a Tour of French West
Africa and Algiers Undertaken in 1935. New York: Negro Universities Press, 1970.
21
Ibid. Pg 28.
22
Ibid. Pg 100.
23
Ibid. Pg 29.
24
White, Bob W.. 1996. “Talk About School: Education and the Colonial Project in French and British Africa,
(1860-1960)”. Comparative Education 32 (1). Taylor & Francis, Ltd: 11.
25
Whittlesey, Derwent. 1937. “British and French Colonial Technique in West Africa”. Foreign Affairs 15 (2).
Council on Foreign Relations: 362–73. doi:10.2307/20028773. 367.
9
British West-African colonies much longer than missionaries did in other colonies.26 As the
schools of these missionaries began to gain influence, the British realized they had to intervene.
A dual system of education was created with mission schools and state schools co-existing.27 On
top of this motive, like in German colonies, the curriculum of the new state schools contained
subjects which improved commercial capability.28 This proves the following theory of V.Y.
Mudimbe, a Congolese philosopher and professor: “The colonists, as well as the colonialists,
have all tended to transform non-European areas into fundamentally European constructs.”29
Mudimbe believes that Europeans, and particularly the British, changed local policy in their
West African colonies solely because it was different. The British wanted to be the only source
government schools. Like in French and German colonies, this example of self-interest contrasts
sharply with the publicly claimed responsibility to improve education for the betterment of West
African civilians.
Conclusion
The underlying motives for European education caused it to be ineffective for Colonial
Africa natives. Intervention in the pre-colonial system upset the natural development of Africa.
Inhabitants were given a glimpse of European culture, but they were never able to obtain it. Only
an elite portion of the population was able to attend the small number of government-sponsored
26
White, Bob W.. 1996. “Talk About School: Education and the Colonial Project in French and British Africa,
(1860-1960)”. Comparative Education 32 (1). Taylor & Francis, Ltd: 12.
27
Ibid. Pg 13.
28
Ofori-Attah, Kwabena Dei. 2006. “The British and Curriculum Development in West Africa: A Historical
Discourse”. International Review of Education / Internationale Zeitschrift Für Erziehungswissenschaft / Revue
Internationale De L'education 52 (5). Springer: 415.
29
Mudimbe, V. Y. The Invention of Africa: Gnosis, Philosophy, and the Order of Knowledge. Bloomington: Indiana
University Press, 1988. 1.
10
only 19% of the student body at the University of Sierra Leone is female due to the economic
gender divide also created by colonialism.31 West Africa is stuck in a middle ground where equal
education is not found. This is one region why Sub-Saharan Africa is the poorest region of the
world today.32 The self-interests of colonies in education was a leading factor in causing this
30
Apoh, Wazi,, and Bea Lundt. Germany and Its West African Colonies: 'excavations' of German Colonialism in
Post-colonial Times. Berlin: Lit, 2013. 120.
31
Assie-Lumumba, N’Dri. Empowerment of Women in Higher Education in Africa: The Role and Mission of
Research. UNESCO Forum Occasional Paper Series Paper no. 11 (2006). 15.
32
Rönnbäck, Klas. "Living Standards On the Pre-colonial Gold Coast: A Quantitative Estimate of African Laborers’
Welfare Ratios." European Review of Economic History 18, no. 2 (2014): 185.
11
Bibliography
- Apoh, Wazi,, and Bea Lundt. Germany and Its West African Colonies: 'excavations' of German Colonialism in
- Assie-Lumumba, N’Dri. Empowerment of Women in Higher Education in Africa: The Role and Mission of
-Brenner, Louis. Controlling Knowledge: Religion, Power, and Schooling in a West African Muslim Society.
-Cohen, Cynthia. 1993. “'The Natives Must First Become Good Workmen': Formal Educational Provision in
German South West and East Africa Compared”. Journal of Southern African Studies 19 (1). [Taylor & Francis,
- Collins, Robert O., James McDonald. Burns, Erik Kristofer. Ching, and Robert O. Collins. Historical Problems of
- Gamble, Harry. 2009. “Peasants of the Empire: Rural Schools and the Colonial Imaginary in 1930s French West
- Lindsay, Lisa A. Men and Masculinities in Modern Africa. Edited by Stephan Miescher.
- Mudimbe, V. Y. The Invention of Africa: Gnosis, Philosophy, and the Order of Knowledge. Bloomington: Indiana
- Mumford, W. Bryant, and Granville St. John Orde-Browne. Africans Learn to Be French; a Review of Educational
Activities in the Seven Federated Colonies of French West Africa, Based upon a Tour of French West Africa and
- Ofori-Attah, Kwabena Dei. 2006. “The British and Curriculum Development in West Africa: A Historical
- Rönnbäck, Klas. "Living Standards On the Pre-colonial Gold Coast: A Quantitative Estimate of African Laborers’
-"The White Man's Burden": Kipling's Hymn to U.S. Imperialism." "The White Man's Burden": Kipling's Hymn to
- White, Bob W.. 1996. “Talk About School: Education and the Colonial Project in French and British Africa,
- Worger, William H., Nancy L. Clark, and Edward A. Alpers. Africa and the West: A Documentary History From