AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY IN TEACHING AND LEARNING

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The ODL set-up is not always conducive for the application of critical thinking skills

The final finding is that the open and distance learning (ODL) setting in which students study is not conducive to the acquisition and application of critical thinking skills.
Below is an in-depth analysis of the findings in relation to the sources of information described in Section 5.2, supported by the original unedited quotations from students‟ assignments. Chapter 2 provided a discussion on what African philosophy is and what it is not. The discussion below will confirm how students perceptions deviated from the conclusions made in the chapter on African philosophy.
In answering the assignment questions, students tended to conflate African philosophy with traditions and cultural practices of the African people, and to equate African philosophy with ubuntu. Oruka‟s (2002:120-124) formulation of the four trends of African philosophy shows that African philosophy cannot be simply reduced to traditions and cultural practices of African people or be equated with ubuntu. African philosophy is made up of four trends, namely, ethno-philosophy, philosophic sagacity, nationalist-ideological philosophy and professional philosophy. Among the four trends, ethno-philosophy is the only trend that consists of the cultural, religious and moral beliefs of the Africans (Oruka, 2002:121; Higgs & Smith, 2006b:45). The other three trends have nothing to do with traditions, religion, culture or customs as discussed earlier. When the students discuss African philosophy, they concentrate on ubuntu, which can be classified under ethno-philosophy, at the expense of sage philosophy, nationalist-ideological philosophy and professional philosophy.
In discussing the advantages and disadvantages of using African philosophy, students tended to quote verbatim some of the controversial disadvantages mentioned in their prescribed textbook without critically analysing them. For instance, this is what the authors of the prescribed book suggest about African philosophy:
It does not challenge power structures. It is unable to accept women as men‟s equals. It does not encourage critical thinking. It tends to ignore the needs of the individual person. It tolerates cruel superstitious practices (e.g. burning of witches) (Higgs & Smith, 2006b:49).
These claims are controversial and misleading to students. One of the four trends, philosophic sagacity, reveals that African societies have wise people or sages, who are capable of thinking critically and challenging authority. These individuals are also known to be wise and visionary and can think critically. To later suggest that African philosophy does not encourage critical thinking or challenge power structures is a contradiction. It is also important that students read these claims with critical minds. They should not merely accept them because they are in their prescribed textbook. Some students did not even make an effort to answer the questions on their own; instead they copied the sample answer provided by the lecturer verbatim and submitted it as their own. It is important to note that not all students exhibited the above difficulties when answering the assignment questions. There were some who answered the questions according to the guidelines provided and critically analysed some of the issues in the prescribed textbook.

Conflation of African philosophy with African traditions and culture

Oruka‟s (2002:120-124) four trends of African philosophy clearly indicate that there is more to African philosophy than just traditions and culture, which would be represented by ethno-philosophy. Yet most students fail to acknowledge the other three trends:
sagephilosophy, political philosophy and pure philosophy (see Section 2.3 of Chapter 2). Most students, relying on this misconception, conclude that African philosophy relies on culture and traditions. Below are some examples of students‟ responses in relation to the disadvantages of using African philosophy: African philosophy tolerates cruel superstitious practices. African philosophy can only guide and remind Africans of the roots and culture.
The fact that African philosophy relies on traditions should not be viewed as a disadvantage because as Bodunrin (1981:171) argues “there is no a priori reason why proverbs, myths of gods and angels, social practices etc., could not be proper subjects for philosophical enquiry”. This is because philosophy can deal with various things and subjects. However, as Oruka‟s works have already illustrated, it would be wrong to confine African philosophy to only traditions and culture or ethno-philosophy. The prescribed textbook also mentions the four methods of inquiry, which are actually the four trends of African philosophy distinguished by Oruka. So, the student who believes that the purpose of African philosophy is “only” to remind Africans of their roots and culture is misrepresenting African philosophy.
Some student teachers believe that some of their learners in their classrooms would not adopt African philosophical principles because these do not stem from their culture, while others think that African philosophy would work better for their learners because it is their culture. This is what one student saw as a disadvantage of using African philosophy to solve a problem in her class.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Problem statement and motivation for the research
1.3 Research questions
1.4 Aims of the study
1.5 A brief literature review
1.6 Research design
1.6.1 Qualitative research
1.7 Research methods
1.7.1 Philosophical inquiry
1.7.2 Extended literature review
1.8 Analysis and presentation of findings
1.8.1 Document/content analysis
1.8.2 Analysis of documents
1.8.3 Presentation of findings
1.9 Sampling
1.9.1 Defining the population
1.9.2 Selecting a sample
1.9.3 Purposeful sampling
1.10 Credibility and trustworthiness
1.11 Statement on research ethics
1.12 Chapter outline
1.13 Conclusion
CHAPTER 2 AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY IN TEACHING AND LEARNING
2.1 Introduction
2.2 What is philosophy
2.3 African philosophy
2.3.1 Oruka‟s four trends in African philosophy
2.3.2 Other views about African philosophy
2.3.3 Ubuntu
2.3.4 Communalism
2.3.5 Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS)
2.4 African philosophy and the educational discourse
2.4.1 Ubuntu, communalism and IKS in schooling
and higher education
2.5 Conclusion
CHAPTER 3 CRITICAL THINKING IN TEACHING AND LEARNING
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Conceptions of critical thinking
3.3 Relationship between critical thinking and philosophy
3.4 Teaching critical thinking in school
3.5 Teaching critical thinking in higher education
3.6 South African education and critical thinking
3.7 Conclusion
CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Research design
4.2.1 Qualitative research
4.3 Research methods
4.3.1 Philosophical inquiry
4.3.2 Extended literature review
4.4 Analysis and presentation of finding
4.4.1 Document/content analysis
4.4.2 Analysis of documents
4.4.3 Presentation of findings
4.5 Sampling
4.5.1 Defining the population
4.5.2 Selecting a sample
4.5.3 Purposeful sampling
4.6 Credibility and trustworthiness
4.7 Ethical considerations
4.8 Conclusion
CHAPTER 5 RESEARCH FINDINGS
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Description of the documents analysed
5.3 Findings
5.4 Discussion of the findings
5.5 Conclusion
CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATIONS, CONTRIBUTION AND LIMITATIONS
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Recommendations
6.2.1. Teaching of philosophy for children (P4C) in schools
6.2.2 Introduction of African philosophy and its principles
of ubuntu, communalism and IKS in schools
6.2.3 Teaching of philosophy, philosophy of education,
African philosophy and its principles of ubuntu,
communalism and IKS in higher education
6.2.4 Teaching critical thinking in higher education
6.2.5 Introduction of in-service training in African
philosophy and critical thinking
6.3 The study‟s contributions
6.4 The study‟s limitations
6.5 Areas for future research
6.6 Conclusion

GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT
AN ANALYSIS OF UNDERGRADUATE PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY