Outline

1
Outline

• Introduction
• Conceptual issues
• Theoretical Framework
• African Perspectives and the construction of
  Resilience
• Resilience Strategies in Education Systems
• Some Empirical data on the development of
  Resilience
• Lessons drawn
• Conclusions and recommendations  

2
Introduction

• Masten (2000) points out that a vital quality of
  resilient communities is
• that they foster the development of their
  children into competent
• adults and productive citizens (Masten, 2000).
• But the context of development varies because of
  differences in
• norms, beliefs and values specific to the
  culture.
• Since there exists interaction between biological
  and cultural
• factors, this presupposes both a universal and
  context
• specific view of the development of resilience
  skills.

3
Cont.

• This paper focuses on African indigenous
• approaches to developing resilience in children
  to find
• out the extent to which these can impact formal
  education practices.
• Children in Africa grow up in difficult
  situations that are
• characterized by poverty, war and violence,
  dysfunctional
• families and different forms of natural
  disasters.
• But formal education in Africa is influenced by
  inherited tripartite
• values from western education, Christianity and
  influences from the
• Muslim east.

4
Cont

• African education focuses on developing
  childrens generative
• capacity through its humanitarian values and
  resilient skills.
• It addresses relational norms and obligations
  exemplified in practices
• of exchange and shared values in order to
  inculcate a sense of collective
• responsibility.
• The problem facing current educational practices
  is the much focus on
• western systems to the exclusion of other
  knowledge systems and
• thought processes that can contribute to the
  development of humanitarian
• values in resilience systems.

5
Conceptual Issues

• Humanitarianism education is an attempt to teach
  various social topics that should
• Provide children with sound knowledge on human
  relations and skills.
• Humanitarianism in resilient systems in
  education addresses sustainable education.
• The aforementioned, echoes the position of the
  Dakar World Conference in 2000 that
• emphasizes the rights of children in emergencies.
  It also stresses that education
• programmes should promote mutual understanding of
  peace and tolerance.
• Today in most school systems for example in
  Cameroon, ministries of education are
• expanding the curriculum by enforcing
  environmental education, civic and citizenship
• education and peace and nation building at all
  levels. It is taught as an independent
• discipline or mainstreamed across the curriculum
  in some cases.
• In indigenous African Education, humanitarian
  education is person-centered and
• emphasizes the teaching of spiritual and human
  values such as respect, tolerance,
• solidarity, feeling and support for others, sense
  of responsibility and other skills.

6
Cont.

• Genero (1998) views resilience as a relational
  concept rather than as an individual
• characteristic whereas Walsh (1998) suggests that
  being resilient includes more than
• merely surviving and being a victim for life.
• Resilience is thus a dynamic and multidimensional
  construct that incorporates the
• bidirectional interaction between individuals and
  their environments within the family,
• peer, school and community and society.
  Resilience systems.
• Resilience systems in African context would be
  those structures at home, the
• community, school and society at large that
  ensure that children have access to
• Livelihood opportunities for quality development
  and wellbeing. The end product is a
• focus on the development of positive mental
  health, self-image and reduced access to
• risk conditions.

7
Theoretical Perspectives

• Resilience theory is associated with a reduction
  in emphasis on
• pathology and an increase in emphasis on
  strengths (Rak Patterson,
• 1996). This permit a shift from
  vulnerability/deficit models hypothesis
• when faced with adversity.
• If resilience is developmental whereby children
  continuously acquire the habit of using
• both internal and external resources to ensure
  positive adaptation even in crisis
• situations then there is need to see the
  explanative theoretical framework from an
• interactional perspective.
• Processes employed can be explained from
  cognitive framework (Ionescu, 2006), the
• ecosystem approach (Bronfenbrenner, 1978),
  psychosocial approach (Erikson, 1968)
• and Bowlbys theory of attachment (1977) which
  provides a strong foundation for
• resilience. Such wide perspective in the use of
  explanative theories should pose
• problem for research.

8
African Perspectives and the construction of
Resilience

• Africentric education has as one of its tenets,
  the
• decolonizing of the African mind in order to
  overthrow
• the authority of alien traditions over the
  African (Chinweizu,
• 1987). This is not rejecting foreign tradition
  but it is a denial of
• its authoritative control in the African culture.
  
• Africentric education equips African children
  with self
• knowledge with the purpose of instilling in them
  a sense of
• agency for the purpose of personal development,
  community
• development and nation building (Shockley, 2007).

9
Cont.

• In other words, children are taught about their
  responsibility to
• forge their development and that of their
  community.
• Despite the lack of support in the notions of
  Africentric systems
• of education, the concept of African agency and
  resiliency
• remains critically important for African
  children.
• In the context of African-centered literature, a
  "sense of agency
• or resilience is understood as a people's or
  persons ability,
• empowerment, and entitlement to control and
  mandate the
• arenas of life around them (Asante, 1988,
  1990Maluccio, 2002).

10
Cont

• According to Asante (1980), western educational
  systems do not inspire
• a sense of resilience and agency in African
  children. Only Africentric
• schools have attempted to imbue a sense of agency
  in African children
• (Akoto, 1992). Africentric education systems
  offer a holistic approach
• for bringing about a sense of agency and
  resilience for African
• children by using education as one vehicle for
  such change.
• Africentric education must be understood not
  simply as a tool for
• improving educational conditions, but as a tool
  for a holistic change in
• the local community. Resilient socialization
  networks in child
• upbringing in Africa nurture a sense of
  responsibility for self and
• others and their functioning.

11
Resilience Strategies in Education Systems

• Since 1972, education reforms have focused on
  relevance and quality through various reforms in
  Cameroon
• Ruralisation of education with the main objective
  to make children self-reliant very early by
  developing in them love for agriculture and
  manual work,
• Environmental education at all levels from
  primary to university education is emphasized
  with more field experiences where children and
  students are involved in different activities in
  the communities.
• Bilingualism posed language barrier for most
  children particularly when none of these
  languages are any of the mother tongues of the
  children. Children become vulnerable and this
  affects school performance. Governments strategy
  is through a policy where English and French are
  taught as both curriculum content and medium for
  instruction.

12
Cont

• Gender sensitive education to increase access and
  progression for girls through school friendly
  system The school friendly policy introduced
  democratic values. Other enhancing strategies are
  the creation of a gender friendly school
  community, provision of healthy learning
  environment with available health centers in the
  catchment areas, good sanitation, borehole
  toilets, pipe borne water, increased partnership
  with the community and more parental involvement
  in school activities.
• Schools, colleges and universities are now more
  disability friendly from divers perspectives, in
  particular infrastructure and pedagogical
  practices.
• Other enabling strategies are the positioning of
  guidance counselors in schools and the
  strengthening of teacher education programmes in
  terms of content and professional development.
• The institution of the New Pedagogic Approach
  (Participatory)

13
Cont

• The participatory approach uses the
• techniques of hands-on, apprenticeship and
• collaboration in group and individual work.
• Through these engagements, children gain skills
• and ability to manage and cope.

14
Cont

• Other nongovernmental and individual structures
  provide support to
• vulnerable children. These institutions use
  community-based and grass roots
• protective strategies to provide social support
  to children who were victims of
• one form of natural disaster or another for
  example . Serve the Orphans
• Foundation "is an example. Effective support
  mechanisms include visits from
• Community leaders, and training for self reliant
  skills.
• Community-based approaches help children cope
  with the feeling of being
• stigmatized, dropping out from school and other
  emotional traumas that
• increase their psychological burden on the
  growing up process. The main
• strategy to achieve this is through individual
  competency skill building.

15
Other Examples Resilience in Education from Africa

• Resilience Strategies in other African Education
  Systems adopted the following
• strategies (Bird 2009) to strengthened
  childrens learning and resilience
• Uganda Education Sector Strategic Plan for
  example,(ESSP, 2004-20015) has put in
• place structures to address the conflict in the
  North of the country through its
• approach which aims to support and guide quality
  education for national integration,
• individual and national development by
  instituting
• Free fees for universal primary education
  programme targeting disadvantaged children and
  children in conflict areas
• Design and help teachers to use curricular and
  instruction appropriate for pupils in conflict
  areas
• Provide sufficient quantities of reading
  materials in local languages to overcome feelings
  of alienation and exclusion
• In Sierra Leone, UNICEF and Save the children
  sector plan (2007-20015) address
• peace building strategy. In Kenya, context based
  indicators are being identified that
• will be integrated into the education management
  Information System (EMIS) for
• disaster preparedness and emergency response.

16
Cont.

• Another example comes from the new Afghan
  National Education
• StrategicPlan (2010-2015), focusing more on
  references to school protection,
• community participation and human rights,
  suggesting that peace messages
• should be mainstreamed both in the national
  curriculum and in teacher training. The
• cross cutting issues are peace education, human
  rights, elimination of violation of
• children and womens rights, environmental
  protection, and HIV. These will be
• addressed in the textbooks (Afghan National
  Education Strategic Plan, p.5).
• Incorporating the participation of the local
  elders and community leaders is important
• for success. Tchad is emulating this model.
•  
• Christie and Potterton (1997) mentioned the
  characteristics of resilience schools in
• South African society as a sense of
  responsibility, leadership and management style,
• flexibility, commitment to teaching and learning,
  improving programme, safety and
• organisation, authority and discipline, culture
  concerns, governance and community
• relationship and parental involvement.

17
Some Empirical data on the development of
Resilience

• Research findings are highly congruent with a
  growing world literature
• on what makes a difference in the lives of
  children whose development is
• threatened by adversity (Cowen, 2000 Glantz
  Johnson, 1999 Luthar,
• Cicchetti and Becker, 2000 Masten, 1994 Masten
  Coatsworth, 1998).
• Some of the most frequently reported "protective
  factors" in the literature
• provide clues about the processes that lead to
  resilience. Protective systems for
• human development having implications in
  resilience studies are attachment
• systems, self regulation systems and spirituality
  among others.
• Findings from resilience research suggest that
  the greatest threats to children
• are those adversities that undermine the basic
  human protective systems for
• development. Programmes and policies that support
  effective parenting and the
• availability of competent adults in the lives of
  children are crucial.

18
Cont.

• Literature is replete with research findings on
  what can be
• learnt from cultural practices to enhance the
  development
• resilience in formal education.
• Even in Latino culture and Indian First Nation
  culture in the US
• (Stutman, Baruch, Grotberg Rathore, 200238)
  the rich values and
• experiences provide good examples for the
  development of resilience. Heavy
• Runner and Morris (1997) comment on these values
  and their relationship to
• the development of resilience in children through
  oral tradition such as for
• Examples, songs and storytelling. Listening with
  patience and respect
• creates opportunities for developing resilience.
  The traditional Indian
• family like most African family traditions are
  rich with profound values and
• norms.

19
Cont.

• Grotberg (1992) in his study of Sudanese and
• Norwagian child-rearing practices also found
• variations in parental attitudes towards
  resolving
• childrens problems with peers.
• The use of song, music and dance has a strong
  tradition in
• South Africa as a vital pedagogic mechanism
  (Sæther
• 2002),. They are valuable indigenous pedagogical
  tools
• for learning in school and about cultural
  traditions.

20
Lessons drawn

• Lessons from the review illustrated that
  resilience varies as a
• function of the culture. Cultural strategies for
  building
• resilience are many and rich.
• Network such as the family, school and the
  community are major partners in developing
  vulnerable childrens resilience.
• Use indigenous pedagogy approaches and
  techniques
• Use more participatory pedagogic strategies
• Strengthening childrens resilience skills for
  the development of their self-image.
• Identity and self-esteem are central processes in
  resilience.
• Furthermore, it is important to build such skills
  based on pupils entry characteristics and what
  obtains in the culture.

21
Conclusions and Recommendations

• The standards by which parents, teachers, and
  community
• members judge how well a child is developing,
  though may
• vary across cultures, are based on developmental
  tasks. These
• tasks are the broad expectations parents and the
  societies
• have for children of different ages.
• More research is required for better
  understanding of
• vulnerable childrens resilience. A study of the
  cognitive
• functioning of vulnerable children and the impact
  the
• development of resilience skills would provide
  added
• knowledge on directions for interventions.

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END

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