EDF 111 : HISTORY OF

EDUCATION, SOCIOLOGY AND

COMPERATIVE EDUCATION

DR. Onyango, Nichanor Agonda

1st and 4th Years, Semester II, 2025

Topic 1:
1.0. EDUCATION THROUGH HISTORY: IMPORTANCE
OF STUDYING HISTORY OF EDUCATION
Definition of History. Education and History of Education.
Historians as have defined history: The record of all past human experience,
showing how groups of people are and how they came to be. It is concerned with
political, social, economic, scientific and technological factors and events, which
have shaped the growth and development of mankind.

Education has been defined by some educationists as: The total process by
which human abilities and behavior is developed; or the organized and continuous
instruction aimed at imparting knowledge, skills, attitudes and understanding
necessary for full participation in life. Education is also seen as a social process
through which a member of a society achieves individual growth and development
and social competence, carried out in selected and well-defined institutional
settings.

History of Education could be defined as: The study of the past development of
educational systems, theories, practices and institutions within the general
historical framework of political, social, economic, scientific, technological and
cultural changes that different societies have gone through over time.

Note: There are many definitions of the above terms. There is no single
definition of any one of them that is universally accepted by all. You can also
come up with definitions in your own words!!

Question: What do you understand by the term history of education?

Activity: Having read how others have defined history, education and history of
education, try to come up with a definition of each using your own words.

Importance of studying History of Education

1. Improving the quality of education. The study of the past educational
experience has many lessons that can be used to improve present educational
theory and practice. The problems and challenges we face in our education
today are not unique; others have faced the same problems and attempted
solutions with varying degrees of success or failure. We can adopt their
successes and avoid their mistakes in attempting to improve our education.
History of education is rich in both failures and breakthroughs for us to run
away from or copy, respectively.
2. Strengthening the professional competence of the teacher. A proper
study of the history of education affects the way in which teachers or student
teachers conduct their personal and professional activities. The subject
contributes to strengthening both by encouraging the teacher to examine,
evaluate, accept or modify the cultural heritage; and to become an
educational critic and agent for intelligent cultural transmission and change,
rather than blindly accept the educational status quo, ideas, practices and
unchallenged claims. In other words, an examination of educational theories
and practices in their historical context encourages teachers to adopt a
critical attitude towards present theories and practices.
3. Understanding our own educational systems. The past illuminates the
present. History not only teaches what education is, but also where it came
from, why it came to be, and what it is bound to become in the future.
History of education is a narrative of the origins, growth and development of
educational institutions, methods, concepts, aims, curricular, theory and
practice without which they would appear new, unexplored, and untried to
us in the present world. History of education thus helps us to appreciate
the road travelled by education to reach where it is today.
4. Making comparisons within a historical perspective. History of education
helps one to draw comparisons of the origins and development of several
different ideas, practices and theories of education in different societies. In
that way it can help one to formulate better ideas, patterns and principles and
provide a larger perspective. It may also enable one to draw from and act
imaginatively using a broader range of humanity than that represented by a
single cultural experience. Apart from drawing a comparison in the
evolution of educational ideas, one is also able to show the development of a
particular theory and practice in historical context, and demonstrate the
particular conditions out of which such a theory or practice arose and the
specific purpose it was intended to serve. Making comparisons within a
historical perspective enables one to use the power of contextual study to
introduce innovation by formulating new and better questions, generating
fruitful hypotheses and initiating unexplored lines of inquiry.
5. Satisfying intellectual curiosity. History of education is like other areas of
knowledge, with its own body of knowledge and conventional methods of
acquiring this knowledge. Human beings, and no less teachers and teachers-
 to-be are possessed with the inherent desire or curiosity to explore and know
what education is, where it came from, and where it is going. Studying
history of education satisfies this inmate desire. One need not go beyond this
reason to justify the study of history of education.
6. Developing powers of thinking. The fruitful study of history of education
compels us to train and exercise all our aspects of intellectual activity,
excites curiosity and the spirit of inquiry, disciplines the faculty of reason,
and cultivates the arts of self-expression and communication. Historical
study is also basic to cultivating the attitudes of the mind that characterize
the educated person, the habits of skepticism and criticism; of thinking with
broad perspective and objectivity; of distinguishing between the good and
the bad in human experience. The historical study of education gives one the
discerning eye to give shape, form, organization, sequence and
interrelationship and relative importance of ideas.
7. Exposing one to knowledge in other disciplines. Historians of education
must always go beyond the confines of their discipline to fully understand
the nature of the phenomena they study. They particularly need to be
acquainted with the social sciences such as sociology, psychology,
philosophy and comparative education, which can be used in a mutually
enriching way to analyze important educational ideas. Though scholars in
each discipline may operate from their own particular perspective, they must
of necessity all draw from the well of history, which contains the raw record
of human experience, and sets the context of events in a time continuum
within which other disciplines must operate. The study of history of
education thus exposes one to knowledge in other social sciences and
humanities, which are engaged in the study of human affairs.

Note: The importance or non-importance of history of education to teacher

training is debatable depending on one’s experience and viewpoint. Here we
take the broad view of the subject, which has definite and important role to
play in teacher education. Sometimes people with a narrow view of history
have seen the subject as irrelevant to teacher preparation.

Question: Why should a teacher or teacher-to-be study the history of education?

Activity: Using your own words, name at least five reasons for the teacher to
study history of education.

The Scope of History of Education

The scope of the History of Education embraces the description, elaboration, and
analysis of the formal, informal and non-formal aspects of education.

The formal aspect of education refers to the institutionalized form of learning

found in educational institutions or schools of varying levels and organization
which societies establish to be agents for the specific purposes of transmitting
skills, knowledge, and values.

The informal aspect refers to the total cultural and educative context into which
individuals are born, grow up in, and reach maturity. Through the process of
enculturation, individuals acquire the cultural tools they need to be useful and
acceptable members of their society such as language, artistic skills, attitudes,
values, morals, and so on. Informal education agencies include the family, the
church, the mosque, the shrine, both mass and electronic media, the state, and peer
groups. All these socialize individuals and sustain them in the roles that are
accepted in society.

Learning within the informal sector may occur spontaneously or in a planned

manner. Included in the informal sector are the philosophical, intellectual,
theological, political, aesthetic, economic, technological and artistic patterns that
make up the entire cultural experience of a group of people.

The group defines the levels of competence to be acquired for effective

participation by the individuals.

The non-formal aspect or third channel of education refers to planned educational

activities and programs that exist outside the highly formalized institutional school
structure. This sector is usually needs oriented, targets a particular out-of-school
group of people, is flexible in terms of time-tabling, age and is, not competitive. It
is of essence highly utilitarian and diversified to meet the needs of the
beneficiaries. It is not structured in levels.
Examples of the formal, informal and non-formal education would be the 8-4-4,
African Indigenous Education, and Adult Literacy Education, respectively.

In the context of both formal, informal and non-formal education processes, history
of education in this unit will deal with the foundations of modern education since
the ancient times in selected regions in the World, Hebraic-Christian Education,
Islamic Education, the Renaissance, Reformation and Counter-Reformation,
Modern Movements in Education from the 17th Century to the Present, African
Indigenous Education, and the development of Western Education in Africa with
special reference to Kenya, from the colonial to the post-colonial periods.

Note: The scope of History of Education is very wide. The topics included for
study in this unit are carefully selected to represent the collective human
educational experience from the earliest times to the present. They are by no
means exhaustive. You, the reader, can gain much more knowledge on this
subject by reading on your own or, just as a beginning, looking at the
materials for further reading given at the end of each lesson.

Question: What is the scope of History Education?

Activity: By looking at the main topics in this unit, identify the main stages in the
development of both Western and African education.
Lecture 2
EDUCATION IN ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS.
Explain the role of education in Ancient Societies and Civilizations

INTRODUCTION
In our second lesson, we had overview of the development of education through
phases in history from the pre-historic period to the present time. We went further
to show how education in every period of history has tended to respond to the
needs of its society. In this lecture, we are going to look at the education during
ancient civilization.

Early societies and Education

The way in which early societies educated their young and thus how future
generations were educated is a milestone in cultural history. Thus, the education
and cultural antecedents are significant, for present values are rooted in those of
the past. Inevitably, there is all the reason for being made aware of the main
avenues of action in ancient times. This demands knowing and to understand the
ideals that shaped ancient education, together with the men that laid them down,
including the policies and practices that were set to realize them.

Our emphasis on the study of education in ancient times lies in those societies
whose influence has become more or less a permanent feature of their approach to
education. This is because the present Kenyan education system emerged out of
these formal systems of education. Indeed our education has since independence
largely developed along western lines. The Egyptian education of about 4,000 BC
aimed to foster a proper understanding of religion and vocational skills that were
needed for trade and agriculture, and mathematical and geometrical for surveying
and measuring out plots which were flooded annually by the Nile.

The Chinese education of 2,000 years ago sought to preserve the past, their
education concerning itself with human relationships, order, duty and morality.
The greatest Chinese philosopher was Confucius (557 BC-479 BC). The Hindus,
on their part, endeavoured through their education to prepare themselves for the
life to come and maintain the caste system. The Jewish education was immensely
colored by religious faith, an attitude towards their national history, a sense of
godly appointed mission.

The Greeks were the first to realize that society can be best enriched by
development of the talents and personalities of the individuals which make up the
society. They were also the first to recognize that the preservation of the status quo
alone was inadequate, but rather that education of the individual society was to
progress and grow. Socrates (469-399 BC), Plato (428-348 BC) and Aristotle
(386-322 BC) tried to find the solution to the problem of developing a stable
society which also fostered the creative talents and freedom of the individual
within it. Consequently, from Greece the model for the educated citizen was
transplanted throughout the Hellenist World.

The Roman’s part was to absorb the spread of Hellenistic culture rather than to
remodel it entirely into some higher cultural synthesis. Their acquisition of Greek
learning was to be highly selective; they left out many structural elements and
modified others. Thus while sharing Hellenistic attitudes, they still honoured their
tested traditions and tried to build a formal educational system that sought to
achieve two objectives; culture and utility. The Romans were determined to
produce decently educated men, both cultured and practical. Their most influential
educational thinker was Quintilian (AD 35-95). Quintilian took up questions of
educational methodology, discussing problems of techniques and their application.

Characteristic feature of Education during the Ancient

It is worth reminding us that the evolution of man’s culture in education extends in
time to obscure origins before the dawn of recorded history. This is so even of
western man, and in fact the religion, the economy, the values of society and the
lifestyles arising from near Eastern societies produce a succession of formal
education systems, while Western Europe was still a vast wilderness populated by
primitive savages dwelling in caves. An examination of educational phenomena of
early historic societies suggests certain general conclusions as to the nature of
education of these earliest civilizations.

Education seen as cultural transmission imparted informally, without schools,

dominated up to the time complex demands of society became too great for it.
Once the informal educational practices had been thus outstripped and found
wanting, there was no stopping the emergence of educational institutions to meet
the compelling needs of the man’s earliest civilizations: the principle of division of
labour apparent in the ancient civilizations soon led to similar specializations in
education.

The explosion of knowledge meant that the family and society were unable to cope
with the emergent specialisms, therefore paving the way for formal training in
reading, writing and arithmetic. Home and society needed something to
supplement them; what schools taught was supposed to be relevant to the needs of
home and society.

The supportive principle of division of labour that followed the agricultural,

technological and urban revolutions of historic societies saw a class of teachers
arising. Initially teachers imparted historical and religious knowledge to a selected
few. Teachers thus supplemented the family and society in teaching what was
considered relevant for the commercial, administrative and literary needs of the
evolving communities that became early historic societies.

The discovery of writing was an important stimulus towards the establishment of

schools. The skills of reading, writing and arithmetic were useful for commercial,
administrative and record-keeping purposes. Hence the limited oral tradition based
on memory was surely being phased out by the enduring authoritative recorded
tradition of the written word. Schools became a necessity, to teach people how to
read and write. Paradoxically, the authoritative recorded tradition produced a
conservative, status quo, orientation that was against change.

Except for the Jews, the art of reading and writing was limited to a very small
number of people in the early historic communities. Those in the higher sectors of
society, with a birthright, were at an advantage in receiving formal education.
Being literate resulted to a rise in an important position in society. An individual
who could read and write possessed a skill that was scarce and of great value to the
community. Indeed, the acquisition of the art of reading and writing was further
glorified by being accompanied by religious mysticism. Religious mysticism
replaced the informality of pre-literate education. However, the education of the
masses still took the form of apprenticeships and oral education. Again, except for
the Jews, girls and women were considered inferior to boys and men. The
education of women was therefore neglected.

The approach of teaching and learning was in its infancy. Memorization and
repeating word for word what the teacher had taught was rampant. There was no
encouragement for the learner to relate what had been taught to everyday life. No
allowance was made for the students to apply what was learnt to problem solving.
Teachers neither explained their lessons, nor saw lack of learning as the teachers’
fault. Lack of understanding was due to the laziness of the students. Severe school
and class discipline was the order of the day. Education was a means of producing
submissive, conforming and yet productive citizens of a cohesive society.

Summary

So far we have outlined how Egyptians, the Chinese, the Indians, the Jews, the
Greeks and the Roman have permanently influenced western educational practice.
Further, we have pointed to the main features of education in classical societies.
These characteristics included the fact that education was a means of cultural
transmission, among many others.

Activities.

 Discuss the evidence we have that Egyptian civilization existed and

influenced the course of human.
 Identify and discuss six ways in which education in ancient Egypt has
influenced modern.
EDUCATION IN ANCIENT EGYPT
Examine the education system of ancient Egyptians

Introduction.
In the last lesson, we defined history of education, discussed the rationale for
studying the subject and the scope of the unit from the ancient times to the present.
In this lesson we shall look at the foundations of modern education in ancient
Egypt.

Objectives:

By the end of this lessons, you should be able to:

 Identify the origins and development of ancient Egyptian

 Identify the aims and structure of ancient Egyptian
 Discuss the contribution of Egyptian education to modern

Ancient Egyptian Civilization

Egyptian civilization is the oldest in the long history of man. It pre- dates the
Chinese, Indian and Graeco-Roman civilizations. Egyptian civilization reached its
peak between 4,000 B.C. and 1,000 B.C. It is also the earliest civilization with a
recorded history. This civilization was a product of the agricultural activities
centered on the River Nile, political unity between the upper and lower Kingdoms
under Pharaoh Menes in 3100 B.C. and the resulting centralized autocratic
theocracy, which managed to maximize the existing agricultural economy.

Note: All civilization in the history of mankind revolved around a central

feature, economic activity at perceived challenge. This is true of societies even
in modern times.

Question: What was Egyptian civilization a product of?

Activity: Using your own knowledge of history or referring to this book,

identify the major factors behind the Chinese, Indian, and Greek and Roman
civilization.
Religion and Social Classes
In Ancient Egypt, all things were inseparable from religion. This made Herodotus
(484 B.C. – 425 B.C.), the Greek father of History, to describe the Egyptians as
extremely religious. The total number of deities was in excess of two thousand,
with the Pharaoh being considered and treated as a deity on earth, or the god king.
The Pharaoh ensured that the gods were worshiped and sacrifices made to them.
All land belonged to the Pharaoh and there was intimate link between the religious,
the economic, the social, the political, the artistic, the scientific and the
technological; practices.

The Egyptian believed in physical life after death, which was considered as a kind
of transient sleep. Because of this, the Egyptians developed mummification or
conservation in death into a highly sophisticated science.

Egyptian society was stratified into three classes. The upper class included the
royal family, the nobles and the priests. The middle classes were the professionals
and scribes. The lowest class included the fellahin or serfs and the slaves.
Egyptian priests had a very powerful position politically, socially, economically
and educationally. They both directly and indirectly controlled the entire
educational system.

Note: Herodotus description of Egyptians as extremely religious echoes

Mbithi’s view that Africans are notoriously religious. Both views underline
the importance of religion in African society.

Question: What are the three classes into which Egyptian society was divided?

Activity: Using the example of ancient Egypt, discuss the role played by religion
in your own community.

Explain the aims and structure of Ancient Egyptian Education

The Aims and Structure of Ancient Egyptian Education.

AIMS
Egyptian education aimed at perpetuating social stability and the status quo.
Education perpetuated a socially stratified society by slotting the various classes
into their social, political and economic riches in society.

The education aimed at producing professionals and labour oriented personnel to

support the social structures. For this reason, Egyptian education was practical,
technical, professional, and utilitarian.

The River Nile being at the heart of Egyptian civilization, education was designed
to foster the development of a complex agricultural science, creating irrigation and
flood control networks, which made Egypt the granary of the ancient world.

Egyptian education also preferred a religious view of the world by seeking to

enhance the people’s religious and moral development and piety to the gods.
Education was considered both a preparation for life and a vehicle for life after
death. Education thus contained religious and philosophical studies to achieve the
society’s polytheist ideals.

STRUCTURE

 Elementary Education.

Elementary schools were first established between 3,000 B.C. and 2,000 B.C: in
response to the basic needs of Egyptian society. They were established to offer
training in various vocations rather than literacy. The latter was initially restricted
to the clergy, with only their sons being exposed to reading and writing under
priests in temple schools.

Schooling for the few lucky boys began at four years of age and lasted up to the
time they were 14 yeas, when they were considered ready for the world of work.

The curriculum included mastering the symbols and signs of writing unique to the
respective social classes, professions or vocations; elementary science, arithmetic,
geometry, astronomy, music and dancing. The last two were taught for
recreational, moral and religious training.
The dominant methods of teaching were dictation, memorization, copying of texts,
imitation, repetition, participation and observation, the last particularly in physical
education. These methods did not encourage higher-level thinking, problem-
solving, or the spirit of inquiry, with teachers hardly explaining their lessons.
School discipline was severe and ruthless. Laziness was highly discouraged and
severely punishable. Good manners, physical fitness through swimming and
archery, cleanliness and moral uprightness were highly valued. To Egyptians
bodily hygiene was of religious significance, and may well have originated the
adage that cleanliness is next to godliness.

Those boys who did not go to elementary school were trained informally by their
fathers in skills other than the 3Rs – reading, writing and arithmetic. Through
apprenticeships and oral traditions the masses were taught to fit into their
prescribed positions in society. Girls only received training in domestic roles under
their mothers at home. Slaves were not offered any formal education.

 Secondary Education

Secondary education was conducted in the same premises as elementary education.

It was mainly a continuation of improvement and consolidation of the elementary
school learning, with particular attention being given to refining the style and
composition of the art of writing and craftsmanship. Boys of the upper class
informally participated in learning activities that enhanced their etiquette and code
of behaviour.

 Higher and Professional Education

This education took place in temples, colleges or universities. On the East bank of
the Nile, at Tell-el–Armana, there was a kind of university, the House of Life.
Higher education was mainly for the instruction of priests and professionals.

This education was guardedly, secretly and informally passed on to immediate

relatives, colleagues and social equals. It was thus restricted to those recognized as
heirs by virtue of birth. This was particularly in regard to priesthood and medicine.
Other professionals included teachers and scribes who used their homes, offices,
business premises and temples to impart the relevant knowledge and skills to
selected boys.
Note: It is important to note that education in ancient Egypt was closely
modelled on the stratification of the society into classes, and that there was
rampant gender inequity in addition to the class inequality.

Question: What were the aims of ancient Egyptian education?

Activity: Discuss how the aims of ancient Egyptian education were achieved
through the established structure and content of education.

Explain the contribution of Egyptian Education to Human Civilization

Contribution of Egyptian Education to Human Civilization

The Egyptian educational achievements and contributions to human civilization are
many. In art, modern painting and sculpture borrowed much from Egyptian
models. In architecture, Egyptians were the first to successfully use mass with
stone in copying the massive desert cliffs and mountains to build the pyramids, are
of the enduring wonders of the world. In literature, the Egyptians used proverbs,
similes, aphorisms, etc, to teach moral conduct, methods that are in extensive use
in today’s teaching. In mathematics, the Egyptian method of multiplication was
until recently used in Eastern Europe and Asia. In medicine, the Egyptians had
knowledge of physiology, surgery and blood circulation, and are the originators of
the Hippocratic oath.

In writing, the Egyptians developed hieroglyphics and invented the earliest known
writing materials. “Paper: is an abbreviation of “papyrus”, which was a plant
cultivated in Egypt and used for writing.

However, there are critics of Egyptian citizens who argue that these achievements
were not built upon due to the stagnation and decline that followed the end of the
old Kingdom. That as it may be, but the foundations of modern western world
developments in science and technology in ancient Egypt civilization are not in
dispute.

Summary
In this lesson, we have learned that the ancient Egyptian educational system sprang
out of the agricultural activities around the River Nile; that Egyptian education was
highly religious; utilitarian, class and gender-based; and has had a rich legacy for
modern education.

Note: The contributions of Egyptian education to modern education are

relatively easy to identify because of their civilization was recorded in written
or graphic form. This was not always the case with other civilizations with no
records.

Question: What evidence do we have that Egyptian civilization existed and

influenced the course of human civilization?

Activity: Identify six ways in which Egyptian education has influenced modern
education.
Lecture 3
EDUCATION IN ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME.
Give an explanation of ancient Greeco-Roman Education

Introduction

In our last chapter, we looked at the contribution of three major religions

(Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism) to education in ancient India. In this lecture,
we shall discuss education in ancient Greece and how Greek educational thought
affected that of the rest of Western Europe and consequently shaped educational
systems in Africa after being fused with Roman civilization after the Roman
conquest.

Greek Civilization, The Old and New Education

The Greeks or Hellenes settled in the Greek Peninsula sometimes after 2,000 B.C.
They formed themselves into twenty city-states or polis. Though there was no
unified government, the Greeks were united by language, religion, and a common
civilization.

Greek society was regimented into three classes: the citizens, the non-citizens, and
state-owned slaves. Provision or non-provision of education was determined by
one’s social class. In terms of education, the city-states of Sparta and Athens were
the most important. However, their education was not as religious as that of the
other ancient civilizations.

Greek education can be divided into two methods, the old and the new. The first is
referred to as the Age of Homer, which began about 900 B.C. and ended about 776
B.C., the date of the first Olympiad. This education was dominated by the Homeric
epics, was theologically and discipline-based, and was represented by Spartan
education.

The new education lasted from about 431 B.C and extended to the point Greek
civilization was fully integrated into Roman life after the 4th century B.C. This
education marked the peak of Greek civilization characterized by a cultural
revolution in which old traditions in education, religion and morality were
discarded. By the close of this period philosophical schools had been established,
being later organized into the University of Athens. The new education was
philosophically oriented towards peace and war and is represented by Athenian
education.

Note: The new and old education periods were punctuated by the age of
Pericles (459 – 431 B.C.), which was a transitional era that was not significant
in terms of educational development.

Question: What were the main characteristics of the new and old Greek
education?

Activity: Name the three classes into which Greek society was stratified.

Analyze the educational system in ancient Sparta

Education in Sparta
Spartan education represented the old Greek education and was regulated by the
Constitution of Lycurgus (850-800 B.C). The constitution established a military
socialist state with state-controlled education to serve the needs of the various
social military institutions in Sparta.

The city-state of Sparta was situated in the middle of a hostile conquered people
who greatly outnumbered the Spartans, both in and outside the polis. As an
indication of this disproportion, by about ninth century B.C. there were about nine
thousand Spartan citizens against two hundred and fifty thousand non-citizens (a
ratio of 1:28). Due to this, the main objective of Spartan education was to produce
warriors for the survival of society. It was designed to instill and develop
obedience and loyalty in Spartan youth and was highly paternalistic.

The paedonomus or superintendent was charged with the duty of educating Spartan
youth. At birth, infants were exposed to ice and snow in the mountains to weed
out the weaklings. At the age of seven years, boys began to live in barracks where
they were given small ratios, bathed in cold water and received beatings from
elders.
Life in the barracks emphasized harsh existence. Educational activities included
drills and gymnastics with a little informal training in intellectual education in the
form of basic language. Discipline was harsh.

Between the age of 18 and 20, the boys became ephebi or cadet- citizens and
underwent vigorous military training. From age twenty to thirty, they were posted
to serve at border points. At age thirty they became warriors, full citizens and
could marry but continue to lead a communal life in the barracks. Women received
gymnastic training at home aimed at producing mothers of strong and brave
warriors.

Spartan education developed no art, literature, philosophy or science. They

developed an education that produced physical strength, endurance, stamina, and
strength of character, loyalty and patriotism.

Today, the word “Spartan” makes an image of discipline, obedience, loyalty and
hand-to-mouth existence. In politics, it is derogatory to refer to a regime
“Spartan”.

Note: The importance of the environment – geographical, social, political in

influencing the kind of an education any particular society adopts to fulfil its
needs.

Question: What were the main stages in the education of Spartan youth?

Activity: Look up the word Sparta in the dictionary and draw parallels between a
modern and an ancient Spartan.

Breakdown the education system practiced in Ancient Athens

Education in Athens
Athenian education is symbolic of the New Greek education. As in the case of
Sparta, Athenians believed in the supremacy of the state, although theirs was
tempered by an emerging belief that individual self- actualization was just as good
for the welfare of the state. Athenian education was liberal and emphasized
science, humanities and physical fitness.
The Athenian state only provided education between the ages of sixteen and
twenty which was an advanced course in physical training in preparation for
military service. Before this, and starting at seven years of age, Athenian boys
received two types of education in private schools: physical exercises and music,
singing and playing musical instruments.

State education also included instruction in reading, writing, and literature and was
wholly under state-officials. The boys became cadet- citizens at 16 years,
graduating to full citizens after two years, after which education and training
continued since the whole environment was educative. Girls received domestic
education in the seclusion of their homes.

During the transitional Age of Pericles that was marked with extreme
individualism, political and economic exchanges with various kinds of peoples, a
cultural revolution occurred, and with it the need to change the curriculum. The
emergent curriculum was cantered towards the individual land was literary and
theoretical. It included geometry, drawing, grammar, and rhetoric. The education
of citizen-cadets now emphasized intellectual development rather than physical
fitness. This produced freelance teachers known as sophists who faced the
challenge of training young men for a political career. They were trainers in
practical wisdom and claimed they could teach any subject. Their influence on
Athenian youths was profound, to the point that they accepted no universal criteria
for truth, knowledge and morals. This was negative, for no satisfactory
interpretation of life could be made: every situation would be subject to individual
judgement. This was seen as destructive by the older generation who disapproved
of the Sophists’ tendency to be biased towards a laissez-faire (leaving things
alone) approach in teaching. As a result, there arose a conflict between the new and
old Greek education.

Realizing that a return to the old moral system would not be possible, there arose
educational theorists who were known as the “Great Mediators”. They tried to
construct a middle ground in the conflict based on a new understanding of work or
virtue revolving around the individual, rather than Athenian citizenship. Among
the most unknown educational theorists were Socrates (469 B.C – 399 B.C), Plato
(427 B.C. – 347 B.C) and Aristotle (384 B.C. – 328 B.C.).
As a result of their efforts, two classes of higher education developed; the
rhetorical schools, preparing pupils for public life through training in oratory, and
the dialectic philosophical schools whose primary objective was speculative
metaphysical and ethical questions. The University of Athens grew out of a
synthesis of the two types of schools. The University had the elaborate structure of
a modern University and continued to function as the hub of learning within the
Roman Empire until emperor Justinian suppressed it in A.D. 529. The Athenian
Senate elected its head.

After the Roman conquest of 146 B.C., Greek civilization fused with Roman
education and spread over the east, extending beyond its boundaries without
changing its character. The Greek legacy for the history of education and the
course of human civilization was thus spread around the world by the Roman
Empire.

Summary

In this lesson, we have discussed Sparta and Athenian education in ancient Greece
and how it later fused with Roman civilization and how it spread around the world
to influence education and the course of human civilization.

Note: That Hellenistic (Greek) thought in education was later to be an

important catalyst in the rise of medieval European universities after it was
rediscovered and availed to medieval Europe through Spain by early Islamic
scholars.

Question: What was the contribution of “The Great Mediators” to the development
of ancient Greek education?

Activities.

 Discuss the aims, content, and methods of education in ancient Greece and
Rome (b) show how aspects of these aims, content and methods are relevant
to school education in your country.
 ‘The study of education in ancient Greece and Rome can be used to improve
the theory and practice of education in the school where I work’ Discuss.
 Discuss the influence of education in ancient Greece and Rome on modern
education.
LECTURE 4
EDUCATION DURING THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD.
Provide a description of Education during the medieval period

Introduction

In the last chapter, we explained how indebted the human civilization is to the
Hebrews in terms of monotheism, the Ten Commandments and the Bible. We also
described how, through fusion with Christian education, Hebraic educational
theory and practice spread and affected western education.

Objectives

By the end of this lecture we should be able to:

 explain the forces that contributed to the rise universities in Europe;

 describe the structure, organization, methods of teaching and types of
universities;
 discuss university degrees during the medieval times and point to the
influence of medieval

Medieval Education
The ancient world may fairly be said to have had their universities, institutions in
which all the learning of the time was imparted. Such institutions existed in
Alexandria, Athens, Constantinople and later Beirut, Bordeaux, Lyons, and
Odessa. But the growth of Christian supernaturalism and mysticism, as well as
barbarian inroads from the north and south had put an end to most of these by A.D.
800. After A.D. 800 eastern Moslems founded universities in Baghdad, Cairo and
Basra, bit these came to an end early in the 12th century. Then there arose in Spain
at Cordova, Toledo and Seville, the universities of western Moslem, lasting to the
end of the thirteenth century, when they were suppressed by orthodox fanatism.
The Moslem universities may, therefore, be said to be parents of the Christian
universities.
Medieval education and the Rise of Universities
The Middle Ages are also referred to as the ‘Dark ages’. The early Middle Ages
lasted from the sixth to the eleventh centuries. European universities can be said to
have come into existence in the late Middle Ages: from the eleventh to the
thirteenth centuries. They are therefore a feature of the comparative peace that
ensued when the northern men, the last migratory Teutons, accepted a settled life
in the tenth and eleventh centuries. In the resulting quest for universal knowledge,
the need arose for higher education, for dialectic discussions, and for intellectual
interests. Therefore a number of upper cathedral and monastic schools came into
prominence. The most important of these was at Paris under William of Chapeaux
and Abelard. These schools were later to be known as universities. The essential
elements of early universities were students and teachers. They found their models
in the universities of Spain.

The Forces Behind the Rise of Universities

Many influences combined to produce the universities. Universities did not
originate under exactly similar conditions. Among the forces or influences that
produced universities were the following.

1. The Moslem Influence

The Moslem religious conquests, ‘jihads’ or ‘holy wars’ had reached Spain by
A.D. 900, giving Spain a civilization and intellectual life. The Moslem had come
into contact with Greek civilization and learning in Syria, clothing their faith in
Greek forms. The Nestorian Christians had collaborated with them. They had also
mathematical and astronomical knowledge from Hindu sources and brought them
to Spain. By A.D. 1000, European monks were attracted to this training because of
its superiority to the western equivalent, though like the clerics they regarded
Moslem learning as being dangerous. Spain thus reflected ancient Rome at this
time. In the Moslem – established universities of Cordoba, Toledo and Seville,
physics, chemistry, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, physiology and Greek
philosophy were taught. The Moslem translated Greek classics into Arabic,
cultivated high standards of learning and were tolerant when it came to new ideas.
The outstanding scientific work of the time Avicenna’a (980 1037) Canon of
Medicine. Roger Bacon (1214 – 1294) owed a major debt to Moslem
mathematicians, physicists, and chemists.

2. The Development of Scholasticism

Scholasticism was a feature of educational developments in Europe from the

eleventh to the fifteenth centuries. The scholastic method consisted in citing all
known authorities on both sides of a given question, drawing an orthodox
conclusion and then by a variety of distinctions and devices showing how each
authority may be reconciled. It was the explication of what was implicit in
mysticism: a reaction from the ‘otherworldliness’ which had led the Church to
withdraw from the ways of the world, becoming pre-occupied instead with the
world to come. Bernard (d1153) was the prince of mystics. Scholasticism was a
systemization of speculation and faith by the rigid application of Aristotelian logic
to philosophical and theological questions of the middle ages. Aristotle was
rediscovered and his teachings were strong mean to the scholars of the Middle
Ages and had to be broken down into its essentials to be assimilable. For Aristotle
ideas were only names, reality consisting only of concrete individual objects.

Scholasticism was, therefore, necessary in order, first, to correct the mystical

tendencies of the orient, the mere contemplation which had been introduced in
Europe and was sapping the energies of the Europeans, withdrawing the best brains
from the life of the whorl; secondly, to put Europe in possession of rational thought
of the ancient world; thirdly, to save Europe from moral suicide and ignorance,
paving the way through the logical method for modern research and science; and
finally, to compel Christendom to rouse itself and state its position as definitely
opposed to Islam, with systematic body of doctrine distinctive from Islam. Thomas
Aquinas (1225 – 1274) was the most important of the Scholastics. He tried to
combine Aristotelian thought with Christian tradition.

3.The Growth of Cities and Wealth

The development of commercial enterprises and municipal government stimulated

secular interests and learning more than ever before, and the new intellectual
interests hasten the development of universities. The growth of secular interests
prompted educational specialization and in time European universities began to
offer studies in four faculties, arts, consisting of seven liberal arts-grammar,
rhetoric, dialectic, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music, law, medicine and
theology. Not all medieval universities offered studies in all four faculties. Some
instead specialized in one area: Salerno founded in 1224 in the study of medicine,
Bologna (1158) in the study of law, Paris (1180) in the study of theology. By 1500
there were seventy-nine universities in Europe.

4. Kings and Universities

The founding of universities was encouraged by definite privileges in the form of

charters; these were written documents from the Pope or Emperor giving the
university full recognition as a distinct body. The first charter was given by
Emperor Fredrick I to Bologna in 1158. University privileges and exemptions
included: the right of internal jurisdiction, based on their inbuilt sense of maturity;
the right to confer a degree or licence to teach; exemption from taxation and
contribution; exemption, partly or wholly from military service; clerical status for
their scholars, who wore clerical dress, as in orders, though they might not be
ordained; and the right to strike, or move the university, consisting as it did of
students and teachers only, if its privileges were infringed. The scholars of Oxford,
therefore, migrated from Paris and those who founded Cambridge moved there
from Oxford.

5. Types of Universities in Europe

These forces thus combined in various proportions. Each university had its own
characteristics. In France and England universities were outgrowths of the Church.
Thus, the University of Paris came to be known for its dialectic and scholastic
pursuits. In southern Italy, universities came into being or were influenced by
contacts with the Saracens, Normans, and Greeks, leading to the study and practice
of medicine by the University of Salerno. In northern Italy, a struggle with the
German Emperor for its right led to great interest in Roman and Canon Law at
Bologna, the first organized university.

Medieval universities were organized around teachings faculties and student

population. They were organized like guilds, for no individual then was sure of his
rights, even of life and property, unless these were protected by specific guarantees
secured from some organization. The same therefore applied to groups of students,
or teachers, which recognized as distinct bodies. Thus the term university meant a
corporate body of persons.

Being heterogeneous masses of students, drawn from all over Europe, language
and kinship constituted the most natural division in the universities. Students and
masters were therefore organized in groups according to their national affiliations.
It was to these nations that charters containing privileges were granted.

The masters were organized into faculties, (faculty means a kind of ‘knowledge’).
These were to regulate studies and methods. In time the name ‘faculty’ applied to a
department of study, like the faculty of law, theology or arts. Later, ‘faculty’ came
to refer to a body of men in control of a Department of Study. This body of men
later gained control of granting degrees.

Medieval universities used methods of teaching based on the formal lecture, which
would be memorized by the students. Lectures involved reading and explaining the
required texts. Students then debated the relevant points with each other, and
sometimes the students and masters held public disputations. Latin was the
language used for lectures.

The examination for the award of degree was strict. After three to seven years at
university, the student had to defend a thesis before the members of the faculty.
For the doctor’s degree, the examination frequently lasted a week or more. The
examinations were oral and tested the ability to defend and dispute. If the
candidates passed, they would become masters, doctors or professors, since these
were synonymous in the early university period. All these signified that a student
was able to defend, dispute and determine a case, and so was authorized to teach
publicly; all such students were admitted to a guild of masters or teachers, or
faculty, a level of parity with its other members.

The preliminary degree, the baccalaureate, or bachelors was a term signifying a

beginner in any field or organization and was formal admission as s candidate for
the license. Initially, it was not a degree by itself, but in the fifteenth century, it
became a distinct stage in the educational process, defined as a minor degree. The
masters of doctorate merely indicated two aspects of the final conferment of the
privilege: the master was a more private and professional test and the doctorate
was public and ceremonial. In due course ‘master’ was preferred in England and
‘doctorate’ on the continent. The development of three successive degrees was,
therefore, a result of slow historical growth and not a feature of the medieval
university.

6. Influence of University Training

Universities like Paris, Bologna, Salerno and Salamanca (1230) provided more
advanced instructions than ever previously offered in Europe. Culturally and
socially their effects were considerable, helping to accelerate the pace of social
progress and hastening the end of the medieval epoch. Before the universities
arose, educational ideals were the function of exhaustively constructed worldview
that was dominated by religious interests, and schools existed largely to train the
clergy.

7. Political Influence

Unlike the monastic, conventual’s and cathedral schools, the universities were
usually located in centers of population rather than in remote spots. Also, unlike
the religious institutions, they were democratic in nature, so that politically,
ecclesiastically and theologically they were a bulwark of freedom, given their legal
privileges. They preserved freedom of opinion and expression, the monarchs
respected the scholars’ opposing views and there were rare instances of violation
of student privileges. Even monarchs like Henry VIII and Philip of France
appealed to universities for arbitration in their divorce cases, which raised critical
doctrinal matters of the time.

8. Intellectual Influence

Although medieval times were static educationally, because of barbaric conquests,

and although universities were restricted, formalized and meager, their greatest
influence was in crystallizing intellectual interests and making libraries and
teachers more accessible than the religious institutions did. They provided a retreat
for the rare geniuses such as Bacon (1214 – 1294), Dante (1265 – 1321), Petrarch
(1304 – 1374), Wycliffe (1324 – 1384), Huss (burned 1415) and Copericus (1473 –
1543)

Summary
In this lecture, we have explored the various reasons that contributed to the rise of
universities in Europe during medieval times, mentioned the type of Europeans
universities, and seen their structure and organization. We pointed to their methods
of teaching and degrees and discussed the value and influence of universities
training in the middle ages.

Activities.

 write notes on the main factors that contributed to the development of

universities during the medieval
 ‘The university is one of the most important contributions of medieval
period to modern education’.
 discuss this statement with special reference to the factors that led to the rise
of medieval universities and their impact on modern.
LESSON 5
INDIGENOUS EDUCATION IN AFRICA.
Introduction
In our first lecture, we attempted to define what we understand by
education. Do you recall what we said? If you do not please refer to that
lecture to refresh your memory. In this lecture, we move on to discuss
indigenous education in Africa.

Objectives
By the end of this lecture, you should be able to:
- Discuss the view that before the coming of Europeans to Africa,
Africans had their own systems of education.
- Describe the goals, content and methods of indigenous education in Africa.
- Show how aspects of indigenous education in Africa are relevant to
the theory and practice of primary school education in the
community where you work.

Content.

Africans and their systems of education.

Long before the Arabs and Europeans came to Africa, the African
peoples had no literacy and formal schooling. However African peoples
had developed their own coherent systems of education. We noted in our
first lecture that education in the whole process by which one generation
transmits its culture to the succeeding generation or still better as a process by
which people are prepared to live effectively in their environment. One of the basis
of this definition then, it is easy to see that before the coming of the Arabs and
Europeans there was an effective systems of education in each African clan,
chiefdom or kingdom. Thus this kind of traditional education in Africa was
effective ever since the elevation of the African race; it was tangible, definite and
intelligible.

Aspects of Comparative Indigenous Education in Africa.

There was, and still is, no single indigenous form of education in
Africa. Societies differing from each other (as they do) developed different
systems of education to transmit their own particular knowledge and
skills. The differences were not necessarily great. But it was clear that for
example, the indigenous system of education among the Yoruba of South-
West Nigeria and the Akan of Ghana differed in method and content. On
the other hand indigenous forms education were sometimes remarkably
similar. One form could be seen to have influenced another. This is
because the cultural and economic interactions between societies were at
times very fluid and intense.
Thus Africans had systems of education that bore basic similarities.
But each of many ethnic groups led its own distinctive feature reflecting its
particular life and culture. The basic similarities in indigenous education
are that it was strongly adapted to the environment. Its aims were to
conserve the cultural heritage of the family, clan and ethnic group; to
adapt children to their physical environment and teach them how to use
it; and to explain to them that their own future and that of their
community depended on the continuation and understanding of their
ethnic institutions of laws, language and values they inherited from the
past.
Systems of Indigenous Education in Africa.

1.Childhood Education
In most communities, the general attitude people had towards the
newborn was one of interest, encouragement and well wishing. The
parents and close relatives, in particular, usually took keen interest in the
welfare of a newborn child and its development. The arrival of a new baby
always brightened the family atmosphere and tended to strengthen the
marriage and insure family continuity. Immediately of a few days after birth,
the child was given a name in accordance with his or her lineage or occasion of
birth. During the first years, the mother was responsible for the child’s education.
She was close to the child and satisfied every need especially by suckling
the baby until weaning. After weaning, the child started to interact with more
members of the family.
A child was given a lot of encouragement in physical development.
It was assisted to sit, crawl, stand and walk. This too applied to language
development. Morally the child was made to conform to the modes,
customs and standards of behaviour inherent in the clan into which it was
born or in which it is living. Bad habits and undesirable or disruptive
behaviour was not tolerated in any child. Children were protected against
dangers and all sorts of harm. There were precautionary measures against
fire, suffocation, accidents and malignant glances. In childhood education,
games occupied an important place in conformity with the awakening of
intense mental and physical activities.
As children grew they were engaged in productive education. A boy
could be informally introduced to a trade such as metal work or hide
tanning, if it was an occupation in his clan, or start taking part in
agriculture, herding, hunting and collecting. Through play, he could make
miniature tools such as bows and arrows. In the fields, under the
supervision of older members, he handled such tools as hoes and pangas adapted
to his size and strength. He trapped creatures or protected harvests from
grain-eating birds. In the herding of cattle he came to learn to distinguish
between medicinal and poisonous plants. Girls learnt feminine
responsibilities. They helped out in the kitchen, fetched water and firewood,
and took care of their younger brothers and sisters. In some clans they were
introduced to such trades as basket weaving and pottery.
Through these apprenticeships and participation in the world of
work, children developed physical endurance, skills, a sense of
observation and a good memory. The progressive acquisition of a trade
provided the child with a social and economic function. Because of this,
the child came to be integrated deeply in the family and in the clan. It
acquired the feelings that it played an indispensable role in the family as
well as in the community. Care was taken so that the child’s participation
in common work did not become burdensome. The child however knew
that through work he or she was making a meaningful contribution to the
common production of the family or clan.
Vocational training advanced with age. A young girl, for instance,
played an increasingly important role in the company of women and
shared their domestic as well as agricultural responsibilities. The boy too
assumed more responsibilities with his peers and adults. Through these
contacts children came to learn collective and self-discipline and
undertook duties adapted to their age.
Children also interacted with other members of the community, thus
broadening their spheres of learning. They learnt good manners, respect
for elders, and the various beliefs that formed and shaped their everyday
behaviour. They learnt through such channels as folk songs, tales, riddles,
proverbs, dances, ceremonies and festivals, prohibition and many others
which contributed to their intellectual, spiritual and moral formation.
In late childhood, generally between the ages of ten and fifteen, with
the development of ability to abstract thought and reasoning, and the
development of personality, children became more and more closely
associated with. At the same time, they were given a certain amount of
independence in the family, along with increased responsibilities. It was
during such periods that they improved on their apprentiship in some
occupations.

2. Adolescence and Adulthood Education.

In many communities at the age of fifteen, adolescent boys and girls
underwent some kind of initiation rites. Educational activities centred on
physical exercises, sex education and awareness of responsibility. The
harmonious acceptance of the child into the community was stressed with
special force. During an intensive period of training, the male initiates
submitted to physical and moral tests that helped to mould his character,
develop his spirit of companionship and render him capable of facing the
hard struggle of existence. Initiation in the form of circumcision was in many
communities deliberately made an emotional and painful
experience, and sometimes covered a period of several months. This
would be engraved forever on the personality of the initiates. Without
circumcision a man could not be regarded as a full member of his ethnic
group or have property rights.
Education was therefore more intense during initiation. In some
communities, a good deal of time was devoted to the acquisition of both
theoretical and practical knowledge, which was imparted by elders. The
theoretical knowledge involved recital of certain general rules of
behaviour and etiquette which an adult was expected to comply. The
initiates were warned against such things as incest, adultery, assault and
theft. They were also taught rules and ways of behaviour in the presence
of senior people. These were taught both formally and informally. The
rituals of initiation were generally hard, but they helped the young men
and women to become fully themselves, in a way they graduated into new
life as adults.

Goals of Indigenous Education in Africa.

Indigenous systems of education in Africa varied from one society to
another. However, the goals of these systems were often similar.
Indigenous education was essentially an education for living. Its main
purpose was to train the youth for adulthood within the society. Emphasis
was placed on normative and expressive goals. Normative goals were
concerned with instilling the accepted standards and beliefs governing the
correct behaviour. Expressive goals were concerned with creating unity
and consensus.
Indigenous education was intertwined with social life. What was
taught was related to the social content in which people were called to live.
It was concerned with the systematic socialisation of the younger
generation into norms, religious and moral beliefs and collective opinions
of the wider society. It placed emphasis on learning practical skills and
acquisition of knowledge which was useful to the individual and the society
as a whole.

Content and Methods of Instruction

One important question we need to ask ourselves is: Did indigenous
education in Africa have a curriculum and methods of instruction? And if
so, what determined its contents and methods?

Content of Indigenous Education in Africa.

Content of indigenous education in Africa grew out of the
immediate environment, real or imagined. From the physical environment
children had to learn about the weather, the types of landscapes as well as
their associated numerous and insect life. Children had to learn to cope
with the environment. Certain emotional attitudes and sentiments were
developed around aspects of their environment. Children had to have
knowledge of the important aspects of the environment as well as the
attitudes the people had towards them.

Physical environment- Children had to make proper adjustments to

the physical environment by means of using equipment such as axe, the
hoe, the spear and other tools. They were taught how to cope with the
environment: how to farm, how to hunt, how to fish or prepare food or
build a house. The physical environment also demanded close-knit
societies under a strong form government, to foster a strong communal sense.
Individualistic tendencies were allowed only to grow within the umbrella of
the society. Through his relations with other members of the society the child was
made to imitate the actions of others and to assimilate the moods, feelings and
ideas of those around him and thus acquire the community identity.

Economic environment – Among economic activities dictated by the

physical environments were agriculture, pastrolism, fishing, hunting and
collecting. Within the homestead and its environs, parents and older
relatives were responsible for the training in economic responsibilities.
Learning by imitation played a big part as smaller children followed the
example of the older members in building, herding and hunting in case of
boys or sweeping, carrying wood and water and cooking in case of girls.

Religion – Indigenous education included religious attitude of life.

Religion was concerned with morality. It gave support to the laws and
customs of the community. It had much to do with moral principles such
as conduct of one individual towards another.

Social environment – This also shaped the content of indigenous

education in Africa. The child learnt manners, laws, history of the clan or
ethnic group, especially of its heroes, songs, and stories, oral traditions,
customs and beliefs. The child also learnt many things through ceremonies such as
initiation, birth, death, war, harvest, religion and magic. Another important area of
knowledge was through riddles, proverbs, poems and lullabies.

Methods of Instruction in Indigenous Education.

In most African societies, parents played an important role in the
education of their children. There was often a marked division of labour.
The mother educated all the children in the early years. Later the father
took over the education of male children while the mother remained in
control of the females.
Traditional educators applied various methods of instruction to
attain the educational or learning purpose that was desired. methods
could be broadly divided into informal and formal. Among
informal methods of instruction included learning through play, imitating
activities of adults, learning through myths, legends, folk-tales and
proverbs. Teaching could be by way of deterrence or inculcating fear in the
children. Right from early childhood, children were made to conform to
the morals, customs and standards of behaviour inherent in the clan into
which they were born or living. Bad habits and undesirerable behaviour,
such as disobedience, cruelty, selfishness, bullying, temper, thefts and
telling lies were not tolerated. Learning could be through the medium of
productive work to acquire the right type of masculine or feminine roles.
Children learnt by being useful; by doing and working hand in hand with
adults. A child was expected to learn largely by seeing (observation) and
imitating.
Formal methods of instruction involved theoretical and practical
inculcation of skills. Learning through apprenticeship, for example, was
formal and direct. Parents who wanted their children to acquire some
occupational training, normally sent their children to work with craftsmen
such as potters, blacksmiths and basket makers who could then teach them
formally. The same was true with the acquisition of hereditary occupation; for
example, herbalist, in handing over his trade secrets (about medicine to use for
which disease and how.)
Formal instructions were also given in the constant corrections and
warning to children; in some aspects of domestic work, in herding, in
cultivating and tending to certain crops, in fishing and manners which
children were expected to follow. An important aspect of formal
instructions in some of the communities took the form of succeeding stages of
initiation from status to status culminating in the puberty ceremonies, such as
piercing of a child’s ears and circumcision.

Summary.
From what has been outlined in the foregoing sections, there are a
number of important features that characterised the indigenous system of
education in Africa. It served, first and foremost, a preparatory purpose.
Children were brought up to become useful members of the household,
village and community and hence the ethnic group. The girls, for example,
were brought up as future housewives and mothers. The boys too, were
brought up as future fathers.
In this respect, the education provided was strictly functional.
Education was generally for the immediate induction into society as
opposed to a theoretical approach to preparing children for adulthood. For
a greater part of their lives, children were engaged in participatory
education through play, work, ceremonies, rituals and initiation. The
children learnt by helping adults, engaging in productive wok and
generally being useful.
Indigenous education therefore emphasised economic participation
through job orientation and the application of what was learnt to the needs
of the community. What they learnt was not only functional to the
community but also valuable to the individual. For this purpose, unlike
western education, the learner did not require much motivation in order to
learn, since he knew what he learnt was a preparation for him to play his
rightful role in the society. Motivation was also unnecessary, since learning
was largely practical and enabled the learner to live productively.
Indigenous education enabled its learners to be adaptable. While
some clans specialised in specific trades such as manufacture of tools,
generally speaking learners were encouraged to acquire a variety of skills.
Children learnt the skills of farming, hunting, house building and cookery
and the principles required for the well being of the home, clan and ethnic
group. They learnt about trees, shrubs, birds, animals, the heavens and their
role in the community.
To fulfil this function, therefore, the curriculum of indigenous
education had to grow out of the immediate environment. The children
had to be knowledgeable in important aspects and problems of the
environment, so as to equip themselves with appropriate skills for
exploiting resources. In this way they were taught to cope with the
environment. Since this environment was often hash, the children were taught
to live and work with other members of the family. There was strong
communal cohesion and individualistic tendencies were allowed to grow only
within the ambit of society. An individual was to live and serve other people in
accordance with the accepted norms and customs and a vigorous code of morality.
Decency of speech and behaviour, respect for elders and superiors, obedience to
authority and co-operation with other members of the community were inculcated
for the survival of society.

Activities.
 Discuss the view that before the coming of Europeans to Africa,
Africans had their own systems of education.
 Discuss aspects in systems of indigenous education in Africa you
think would be relevant to primary school education in your
community.
 With specific reference to indigenous education in your own
community explain;
The goals of African education.
The content and methods of instruction.

Further Reading.
Castle, E.B Growing Up in East Africa; London: Oxford University Press,
1966.
Sifuna, D.N & J.E Otiende An Introductory History of Education, Nairobi, Nairobi
University Press 1994(Revised Edn)
Ocitti, P.J African Indigenous Education, As Practiced by the Acholi of Uganda:
Nairobi: East Africa Literature
Bureau, 1973.
Kenyatta, J. Facing Mount Kenya, London: Seckar and Warburg, 1938.
LECTURE 6

SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
2.1. Introduction
This lecture will focus on the following key areas. Meaning of sociology of
education the origins and contributions of the key proponents of the subject. The
purpose of sociology of education to the teacher.

2.2. Learning Objectives

1. To define sociology of education

2. Trace the development of sociology of education

3. Discuss the contributions of the key proponents of the

discipline

4. Discuss the purposes of sociology of education to the

teacher

2.3. Origin and development of sociology of education

The origin and development of sociology of education is associated with a number
of scholars such as Emile Durkheim, Karl Mannheim and John Dewey.

2.3.1. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

Emile Durkheim was a distinguished French scholar. He attended the prestigious
Ecole normale superiure institution in Paris. On completion he taught in several
schools. From 1885-1886, he took study leave and went to study in Germany. On
his return home he was awarded a professorship in sociology and education in
1887 at Bordeaux where he remained until 1902. In 1902 he was awarded a
professorship in sociology and education at Sorbonne University in Paris. Emile
Durkheim was a French man taught in the Department of Science and Education at
the Sorbone University in Paris and in the same year he became chairman of the
Department of education. Durkheim was among the first scholars to introduce
sociology of education into the training of teachers. He defined education as an
influence exercised by adult generations by adult generations on those not ready
for social life. Education therefore is expected to arouse and develop in children
certain number of physical, intellectual and moral states which are demanded by
both the political society as a whole and the special milieu for which they are
specially destined. Durkheim further argued that education was specific to a
particular society and its major purpose was to create homogeneity and therefore
cooperation among its members. Durkheim expected education: To transform the
individual from the state of being asocial into a social being. A asocial person is
one who has not yet been socialized or does not yet know or internalized their
society’s ways of life ,while a social being has been initiated into the society’s
culture .He believed that “man “is “Man” ,(meaning that a person acquires human
qualities because he or she lives in a society). He maintained that society is larger
than the individual, that society is the totality of then individuals and it manifests
itself through such things as beliefs, norms, values systems knowledge skills and
traditions of people of a given society ,to provide norms and values a child needs
in order to fit in the society. For Durkheim education was a means of organizing
the individual self or me and us(representing other people)into a stable and
meaningful unity, to equip the child with knowledge and skills needed for earning
a living and to create order and stability in society for it is through education that
proper conduct of behavoiur is developed in the society
Durkheim looked at education from a theoretical perspective stating that:
Education is social in origin – meaning it comes from society, Social in character –
that reflects the behaviour of society, a social fact and activity – exhibits facts and
actions found in society, aS social in function – that is it serves the needs of society
and a socializing activity – plays a role in the socialism process in society.

Durkheim’s contribution to education is immense. He was among the first scholars

to analyse education from a sociological perspective .His major works in the field
of sociology of education were published in collections titled Moral Education:
Evolution of Educational thought and Education and Sociology. In these works he
provided a definition of education and also outlined concerns of sociology. In the
evolution of educational thought he described the history of education in France,
combining ideas from some of his other works in a historical analysis of the
institution of education. He emphasized that in every time and place education is
closely related to other institutions and current beliefs and values.

In his work on moral education, Durkheim outlined his beliefs about the function
of schools and their relationship to society .to him moral values were the
foundations of the social order and therefore society had to by all means perpetuate
them through its educational institutions. He viewed schools as “small societies
“and agents of socialization. He contended that education and discipline were
necessary if the society was to remain orderly .individuals lacking in self discipline
he asserted were incapable of respecting the rights of others and were likely to
harm themselves. Durkheim strongly believed that lack of proper standards of
behavoiur would lead to “anomie in society. He is regarded as the founder of
sociology of education
2.3.2. John Dewey (1859-1952)
He was an American educator who made enormous contributions for development
of sociology and education. He was concerned about the relationship between
society and schooling. The Simple community life structures in his society were
rapidly becoming complex as people migrated from rural to urban areas.

The school and the church which were tasked with the education of the children
could hardly cope with the rapid changes.

The children were not adequately prepared to fit into the social ways adopted by
the changing society. The child was facing confusion as he walked into adulthood
in the society.

There was little that he could judge as preparing the child to effectively live in a
new society.Dewey therefore saw a problem assessed it and arrived at a
conclusion.

Dewey was therefore proposing a practical solution by suggesting the beginning of

a new concept he called ‘the ideal school which would prepare the children tolive
in the rapidly changing American society by:a)Teaching them to develop a social
spirit of cooperation in society.b)Teaching them ways of getting this cooperative in
the classroom; showing them the means of bringing the school into a relationship
with a child’s home and the general life in the neighbourhood.

He saw the school as a child’s second home, a miniature society in which the
needs, hopes and interests of children and the expectations of the larger society
would be addressed.

In this type of school which offered social education the child’s social life would
be prosper as she grew and eventually the society would be improved, child would
be able to stand on his or her own. It is the social activity that really educates
children

2.3.3. Karl Mannheim (1893-1947)

A German sociologist also advocated for a sociological approach to education. He
saw education as a means of social control in his book Man and Society he argued
that sociologists do not regard education solely as a means of realizing abstract
ideals of culture, such as humanism or technical specialization but as part of the
process of influencing men and women. He further observed that education can
only be understood if we know what society and for what social positions the
pupils are being educated

2.4. The concerns and issues in sociology of education:

2.4.1. Relationship between a society and its education system:
In this issue we try to know or discover how and to what extent other social
institutions like the family, economy, politics, and religion are involved in the
growth ,maintenance ,provisions ,control and the general support of the education
activity and schools in particular . When these institutions become weak lax and
unstable the institution of education can and does suffer greatly.

a) Functions or contributions of education:

In this issue the question sociology of education would examine has to do with the
functions, contributions, purposes and aims of an education system in a society. In
other words what is education for or aimed at fulfilling in a society? In answer to
this question, education is generally considered to have important functions such
as:

 socializes those being educated,

 transmits culture
  develops employable skills among those being educated,
 brings about personality and behaviour changes
 promotes the physical ,mental and moral growths,
 brings about desirable changes in the economic, social and
technological areas
 enhances social integration and national unity,
 prepares and facilitates an individual to obey authority and laws in
society and
 empowers individuals to develop own ideas, opinions, responsibility
decision making abilities and independent thinking.
2.4.2. School as a formal social organization:
An organisation is often defined as a social unit that is structured and intended to
carry out or pursue specific tasks(s). Therefore, because all organisations are not
structured to fulfill similar tasks, they are not comprised of the same elements.
Nevertheless, there are some elements which would be considered as the basic
components in all organisations that can be characterized as formal organisatiosn.

Basically, a social formal organizations is characterized by the following

components: A group of people who are charged with fulfilling the task(s) of the
organisation;A hierarchical arrangements of the positions in which the individuals
are placed to fulfill the organizational task; the authority structure is vested in the
positions;Assignments of the activities, expectations and the behaviour to
accompany the positions within which the activities are done;A set of rules and
regulations to govern how the individuals will fulfill the organizational activities,
tasks, work responsibilities or the duties; Ways of guiding the decision-making and
the formal communications systems;The informal relationships between those in
the organizations and the main goal of the organisation to attain
The question that Sociology of Education tries to answer is whether the school,
based on these characteristics is a formal social organisation and how it fulfils its
tasks. Answers to such questions are important for Sociology of Education because
they help to inform about the value of an education activity in society.

2.4.3. The teacher and the teaching activity:

In the school organisation or community, the teacher is described as the ‘adult
representative of the society’. This in itself is a great honor. However even when a
teacher is honoured, and the goal(s) of the organisation well known, if the
appropriate means and resources to carry out the organizational activities are
lacking, the goals may not be realized. The teaching activity that the teacher carries
out in school distinguishes the school as a unique factor in the society. The
teaching that the teacher does in the school organisations and the ensuing
interactions with the pupils, forms a spearhead towards the attainment of the goals
of the school. The interaction requires that the teacher should play a number of
roles such as being an instructor, guide and counselor, evaluator, judge, decision
maker, leader, surrogate parent and disciplinarian.

Since the roles are critical in the teacher’s socialization efforts, there is need to
adequately educate, train and prepare the teacher professionally so as to enable him
or her carry out the teaching activities satisfactorily. The teacher’s socialisatuion
skills have a purpose in the society. Therefore, the teacher and the teaching
activities in the school are important and require the proper kind of facilitatory
support, will and power, and protection by the society. If these are faulty or poorly
provided, the society begins to blame the school organisation and its components.
It is in this sense that the issue of teachers and the teaching activity is a vital one
for sociology of education.
2.4.4. The learner’s learning environments:
A growing child inevitably, is taught by and learns from various situations such as
other children, parents, sibling, family, community members, the school teachers
and by observations. All these situations form learners learning environments.
These learning environments have the capacity to influence and determine a
learner’s acquisition of mental, physical and social knowledge; their present and
future abilities; attitudes for the interaction, intergration and cooperation;
behaviour changes and personality growth; individuals experiences and
competences as well as discriminations. If the nature of the social environments is
such that there is indifference, ignorance social discord, improper family care,
condoning of permissive and deviant behaviour, lack of control and guidance, a
growing child is bound to grow as an ill-trained, ill behaved person, socially il
adjusted, feeble minded, uncaring individual, indifferent and irresponsible member
of the society. The abilty and opportunity of such a child to lead a full-life in a
society would be greatly impaired.

Because of how important these learning environments may affect a learners well
being, it is necessary for the teacher or any educator to understand and be aware of
how and why the environments affect the learner. It is in this sense that the issue of
a learners learning environments have become a great concern for sociology of
education.

Importance of sociology of education to a school teacher

Why should a school teacher know more about sociology of education? Should
sociology or sociology of education be made part of the teacher training? These are
the critical questions for a number of reasons. Sociology and particularly sociology
of education;
 Introduces the school teacher to a new view – the sociological perspective of
understanding the total realm of education; that is the schools, teaching
activities, teachers, pupils and the many other components
 Acquaints the teacher with the nature of the existing and upcoming socio-
educational problems that may come into the running of the school and the
classroom
 Enhances the teacher’s roles in terms of knowing and being aware of how he
or she is doing especially in the classroom when interacting with the learners
more closely since this is an opportunity for the socialization to take place
and not simply an exercise in passing on the information
 Enables the teacher to conceptualize the school community in its entirety as
an outgrowth of the larger society, in which there will be conflicts, stresses,
competition, agreements and disagreements; the moments of joy and
sadness, expectations, attitudes, behaviors problems, norms, likes and
dislikes, successes and failures, disappointments, stars and isolates;
problems of cooperation’s, motivations, peer identity, morality and many
others. All these require that the teacher should expect and know how to deal
with them in ways that would contribute positively to the teaching- learning
activities and the smooth running of the school organization.
 Helps the teacher to acknowledge the social purpose of education from a
wider societal perspective and not from a narrow personalized self- interest
approach.
 Helps the teacher to view him or herself as a change agent using democratic
resolutions instead of applying authoritarian and high handed commands and
directives
  Enables the teacher to learn more about and hopefully apply the research
procedures the sociology of education uses to obtain and accumulate the
dependable knowledge about education

2.5. Learning Activities

Activity 1 - meaning of sociology of education

Read on the meaning of sociology of education

Activity 2 -Role of the key proponents of the subject

Read on the works of Emile Durkheim, Herbert spencer, John Dewey,

Reflect

Activity 3. What did Emile Durkheim, Herbert Spencer and John Dewey
contribute to the subject discipline?

Activity 4. How are the contributions of these proponents relevant to the sociology
of education today?

Activity 5. Purposes of sociology of education to the teachers.

Note down 5 key relevance of sociology of education to the teacher.

2.6. References
Burges, Robert. (1986). Sociology of Education: an introduction to the Sociology
of Education. London: B. T. Batsford

Data, Ansu, (1984). Education and Society. A Sociology of African Education.

Macmillan Press.

Godia, G.I. and Waiyaki, E.M(1988). Sociology of Education. Nairobi: University

of Nairobi.
LECTURE 7

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF EDUCATION.

3.1. Introduction
The lecture will focus on the meaning of term sociological theory; it will identify
three main sociological theories of education; further it will discuss the three
tenants of each of the theories and finally interpret these educational issues using
each of the theories.

3.2. Learning Objectives

After completing the lecture you should be able to:-

1. Define the term sociology theory

2. Identify the three main sociological theories of
education.
3. Explain the key tenants of each of the theories of
education
4. Use each of the theories to interpret educational
events, issues or problems

3.3. Sociological Theories and Education

This sub topic will deal with the sociological theories and their application to
education. From the onset we can look at what a theory refers to.
3.3.1. Definition of a Theory:
Generally a theory is a reasoned statement or a group of statements which is/are
supported by evidence, comprised of interrelated and interconnected concepts,
and are meant to explain a phenomenon or phenomena. In sociology ,the words
phenomenon(singular) and phenomena (plural) mean factors like event(s) or
happening(s),behavoiur(s) etc. the function of a theory is to account for or provide
a generalized explanation to an event, occurrence or happening

3.3.2. Sociological theory

A sociological theory is defined as a reasoned set of propositions, which are
derived from and supported by sociological data or evidence and contains
interrelated and interconnected concepts which are meant to explain the social
phenomenon or phenomena .

3.4. The Structural Functionalism Theory

This theory can be defined as a theoretical orientation which proposes that a human
society is like an organism in that it is made up of organs or structures called the
social institutions. These social institutions are specially structured such that they
carry out or perform different functions on behalf of the society. In its role, the
structural functionalism theory attempt to provide an explanation regarding how a
human society is organized and mainly what each of the social; institutions does as
its work in order for the society to continue existing.

3.4.1. Origins of Structural Functionalism

The sociological theory started to take roots and gain popularity in the 19 th
century . it was developed and shaped by the thoughts and the literary work of a
number of individuals called organicists,or the organismic view theorists who in
order to understand the human societies began to compare a society to an organism
such as a cow, dog or even a human being . in these organisms are structures
known as organs. These organs for example the heart, liver eye skin and others are
the ones which carry on the functions of the whole organism. this thinking,
therefore seemed to form a good model that could assist in understanding how the
human society is structured, maintained and sustained by organs known as the
social institutions. The most notable proponents of this theory include Robert
Merton, Talcott parsons , Emile Durkheim, peter Blau and others.

3.4.2.The Tenets of The Structural Functionalism Theory

 The human society is like an organism and is organized into organs
known as social institutions which include Education, Religion, Family,
politics, Economy.
 Each social Institution is structured differently from others
 Each social institution is supposed to carry out a specialized and different
function in society
 All the social institutions are interrelated, interconnected and
interdependent and function to maintain the whole
 Because of being interrelated, interconnected and interdependent one
institution can affect the others and hence the whole. Similarly the whole
can affect one or all the social institutions
 Societies maintain order by recognizing and obeying a legitimate
authority
3.4.3. Relevance /implications for education
In any human society education is an integral and a recognized institution which is
structured especially to carry out a specialized function; that is the education of the
members of the society

The role contributions and use of education towards the maintenance and
development of society can be understood and explained through this theory.
therefore the theory provides a suitable way of finding out whether certain
structures such as the school organization, teaching –learning facilities are
fulfilling their work satisfactorily and enabling the education institution to do its
work adequately
Using this theory it is possible to explain and understand why an education process
is valued in society in terms of producing and providing highly skilled manpower.
The theory provides an understanding regarding why society selects and trains high
performers as experts who would be able to serve it adequately and thus help
maintain the whole-society

The theory implies how society is akin to giving out rewards like jobs and higher
social status using academic qualifications only. Other important qualifications
such as personal and social attributes are not so much considered

Since the theory is a conservative strategy, if it is used by itse4lf to explain

education it is liable to make education be accused of being similarly a
conservative social institution

3.5. Symbolic Interactionism Theory

Symbolic interactionism can be defined as a theoretical orientation which contains
assumptions proposing that the social world is made up of symbols which human
beings use as means of interaction.

It helps one to understand how people relate with other human beings and what is
used in facilitating relationships between individuals and groups of people in
society.

Some of its key proponents include Max Weber (1864 – 1920), George Herbert
Mead (1863 – 1931), Charles Horton Cooley (1984 – 1924) and Herbert Blumer.

3.5.1. The key tenets of symbolic interactionism are:

Social life thrives on individuals acting/reacting towards each other and then
connecting their acts responses behaviours and activities/emphasizes social
interaction.
Social reality/systems. Phenomena is not fixed and people need others to help
interpret, understand and even perceive this reality.

For individuals to engage in joint actions or interactions individuals need to

communicate through the use of symbols including language, gestures, art, signs,
music and drama.

Human interaction and communication requires ability to recognize, know and

interpret a symbol(s) and ability to place the right meaning on a symbol(s).

Every society must have and maintain a learning process that will enable its
members to acquire and recognize the popular symbols of interaction in it.
Members must be enabled to learn, internalize, interpret and place the right
meanings on the symbols.

Social events and activities acquire their desired characteristics and value in
society because of the types of symbols and interactions they are given.

Theory emphasizes on social interaction through use of symbols – Teachers use

gestures, signs, tools, language rules and regulations.

Teachers should use properly thought out symbols in order to convey the correct
meanings e.g. use a familiar language, appropriate language for learners level.

By being conversant, using, interpreting symbols and that correct meanings, using
mutually recognized symbols e.g. words, tools, using relevant teaching aids and
examples.

Using constant evaluation in class to know how well the learners have internalized,
interpreted and applied the symbols, reviewing methods of instruction and
teaching. Avoiding negative symbolic meanings, using positive symbols rewards.
Emphasizing on value of education. Being observant, understanding the learner’s
behaviour.

3.1. Conflict Theory

The conflict originated from and was inspired by the writings of a number of
writers starting with Karl Marx (1818-1883). Marx began by showing or
explaining why or how there would emerge disagreement, disorder, and
disharmonyand so on in society if there occurred a state of un equalized economic
resources. There would be conflict in society arising from struggles to attain
whatever the individuals in society-the social actors –may consider as desirable for
their wellbeing for example wealth, power, prestige, higher social class and other
opportunities in society, yet they feel denied

3.7.1. The Tenets of the conflict theory

Values and norms are not the same for all members of the society but vary
according to position and self interest. Interests are never identical and the
division of society into different classes with different access to a variety of
privileges, itself generates a conflict of interest. Consensus is only for those who
share certain privileges.

Social life involves inducement and coercion. Social control is not an expression
of group consensus but oppression of the powerful. Leaders seek status-quo in
order to serve their own self interests.

Because the structural and organizational set-ups in society tend to divide the
members, they are also likely to encourage unequal distribution of the scarce but
valuable resources, desirable opportunities ,social positions, responsibilities and so
on. Inevitably, divisions will emerge in society which can bring about feelings of
denial, exclusion and jealousy. The outcome of denial, exclusion and jealousy is
division is the social system. once these have crept into a society or the social
system, disagreements, hostility and opposition will be borne among different
social groups in society. such a scenario will therefore enhance chances of conflict

Social life generates oppression, exclusion and hostility.

Social differentiation involves power. Political leadership is maintained through

power. There is no freedom of press because the powerful elite control the press.

Radical leaders who are popular are co-opted or eliminated by rulers so that they
don’t create trouble for them.

Social systems are characterized at best by contradictions i.e. there are a lot of
disagreements in social systems.

Social systems tend to change. Social institutions such as bureaucratic, social or

political are sometimes maintained through force, coercion and inducements. The
top hierarchy will try to demand conformity to its value, ideas and expectations
from those lower in the hierarchy by using force coercion and inducements.
Meanwhile cooperation and consensus are not part of the leadership’s makings
when social order is maintained thus, there is a great possibility for conflict to
emerge in the system

3.7.2. Implications for education

Education is a major/important social institution in society. As a result, education
is subjected to and made victim of various social forces in society. The forces can
inspire conflict in education such as economic as well as the political forces. There
is often a spill- over effect from such social institutions and their forces into
education especially when changes occur in them. Thus conflict in other social
institutions does enter into education. E.g. economic remunerations of teachers can
cause strikes.
Education is a delicate institution especially because children are the learners in
schools their well -being upkeep performance achievement and change are mostly
and strongly dependent on other social institutions like family economy religion
and politics for its survival. These institutions have developed stronger and firm
foundations for cushioning change and conflict if and when they occur. Ideally
therefore reforms in education should follow or come after changes in other
institutions like economy and politics

Education should be assessed/reviewed often so as to take into consideration and

accommodate the views of other interested/affected parties or groups of people.
This exercise can assist in minimizing instances of disagreements and hence
conflict among all the stakeholders especially in schools whenever hot issues and
questions do arise for instance teaching as sex or family education, HIV/Aids
awareness policies to guide re-admitting girls to class after giving birth and many
other issues

Dependence on academic examinations, end of term tests and even regional and
national examinations as the only recognized and accepted forms of assessing a
whole person .such a practice mainly encourages and trains the pupils to compete.
It prepares individuals for competition and not cooperation in society. Competition
is a form of conflict. Therefore, by assisting pupils to learn through examinations
only helps to entrench conflict tendencies in individuals .in order to minimize the
risk of engendering competitive attitudes in learners and the accompanying conflict
tendencies, other forms of assessing the learners should be installed in schools,
such as the social and personality assessments. This approach will facilitate more
cooperation/consensus among learners when they leave school and take up their
responsibilities in society.
Performance and achievement of learners in school differ mainly because of
unequal allocation of resources. The idea here that when schools are provided with
equalized resources and facilities such as teaching equipment ,funds, books and
even teachers learners will achieve reasonably well without great differences being
observed. Therefore, differentiated academic provisions appear to bring about poor
performance, among learners in different schools. It is not because they lack
intellectual abilities or ignore working hard. By allocating equalized learning
resources among schools and learners, their achievement will be harmonized. In
turn, this will reduce conflict among schools and learners.

3.2. Learning Activities

Activities 1: Meaning of the term sociological theory.

Read further for meaning of sociological theory

Write down four key points that makes a theory sociological

Activity 2: Main sociological theories of education.

Read on the origins and development of structural functionalism theory, consensus

theory and symbolic interactionism theory and upload notes.

Write down key components of each of the theories and their contributions to the
developments of the theories.

Activity 3: Key Tenants of each Sociological Theory

Read on the key tenants of structural functionalism, consensus theory and symbolic
interactivities’ theories.

Activity 4: Use the theories to interpret educational issues, events, etc.

Interpret the following educational events:-

 Burning of boarding school dormitories by students.

  The beating of education officer by the students in a school
 The mismanagement and fraud in free primary public funds by senior
education officers in the Kenya government.
Reflect and answer the following questions:-

 How would structural factionist explain the issue (a) above?

 How would consensus theories explain the issue (b) above?
 How would the symbolic interactions explain issue (c) above?
3.3. References:
Coiser, L.A., Burford, R., Patricia, A.S. and Steven, L.N. (1983). Introduction to
Sociology. London and Sydney: Harcourt Brace Yovanovich Inc.

Gelles, R. and Levine Ann. (1995). Sociology: An introduction (5th Ed). New York:
MacGraw Hill. Inc.
LECTURE 8

EDUCATION AND SOCIOLIZATION PROCESS

a. Introduction
This lecture will focus on the following key area: The difference between the term
education and socialization Process. It will also analyze the role of socialization in
the society and discuss the role of agents of socialization like, the family, the
reform institutions, the schools, the peer group and the mass media in the
socialization process.

b. Learning Objectives
After completing this topic, you should be able to:-

1. Differentiate education and socialization process

2. Explain the process of socialization in society
3. Explain the roles of each agents of socialization like
family, religious institutions, schools, peer groups and
mass media to the socialization process.

c. The process of sociolization.

Socialisation is defined as a process through which individuals learn the culture of
their society. Another name for socialisation is therefore enculturation. Culture
means the behaviour patterns necessary for one to live in a human society. This
includes a wide range of skills, knowledge and accepted ways of behaving of the
society into which one is born.

In every culture, there are specific guidelines that determine the behaviour and
conduct of members. These guidelines are referred to as norms. Precisely, culture
can be seen as the configuration of learned behaviour, and the results of the
behaviour, whose elements are shared and transmitted by the members, in a
continuous process of imitation and intended transmission of knowledge, about
their environment, as well as through adaptations and alterations as a result of
society’s changing environment and members’ innovation. This view of culture
emphasises certain key points, thus;

 The fact that elements of culture are shared by members, which

determines their identity.
 The elements are transmitted from generation to generation.
 Young ones have to learn in order to be incorporated as adult
human beings of that society.
 The elements are closely related; hence changes in one element
usually imply changes in other elements of the cultural network.
Norms differ from one society to the other and from one context to another. The
dressing norms of a school are, for example, different from that of a church.
Cultural norms are derived from more general social principles called values.
Values are beliefs that something is worthwhile and desirable. Achievement is one
value that is emphasised in educational institutions. This value is manifested
through such norms as good discipline in classroom work, and other school ethos
that motivate individuals to perform well academically.

Sociologists argue that shared norms and values are crucial for the survival of
human societies. The process of socialisation therefore ensures that such norms
and values are learned and accepted by all society members. Some key elements
therefore define the process of socialisation, thus;
 i. Key elements that define the process of socialization.
Socialization is a process of learning and accepting one’s culture, which includes
norms and values.

This learning process starts at infancy, when one is born at the family level,

It is a life-long process. Besides learning that takes place at the family level,
individuals continue learning various norms and values associated with the statuses
and roles in society.

A status is a social position occupied by a member of society, such as a teacher, a

driver doctor. Society expects certain behaviours from those who occupy those
positions and these expectations have to be learned through socialization. The
expectations have to be learned through socialisation. The expectation and norms
governing a given status is referred to as a role and

Socialisation is not just a conservative process, where the same knowledge is

transmitted from one generation to another. It is also a dynamic one where
individuals acquire new skills necessary for social change.

4.3.2. Aims of socialisation

The aims of the process of socialisation are varied. Such aims differ from one
society to another. However, principally, the process aims to achieve the following,
for individuals and the society:

 It enforces basic discipline in the society members.

 Individuals are trained on appropriate social conduct in the various
contexts they operate,
 The process instils aspirations in members, thereby influencing the
rate of social and cultural in society,
  It is a process through which social roles are learned and it teaches
individuals, appropriate understanding of the natural and supernatural
phenomena, laws and powers basics to existence
d. Theories of socialisation
The nature of the socialisation can be explained in two ways. Each of the ways
looks at the part played by the socialize (I the individual being socialised) and the
socialiser (the one who is in charge of the processes.) these ways explaining the
process can be looked at the theories, and can be divided into passive and active
theories of socialisation.

a) Passive theories of socialisation

The passive theories of socialisation view the socializee as a conservative recipient
of the society’s accumulated knowledge. The process of socialisation is seen as one
through which the society realises and creates itself in the individual. These
theories create the impression of the socialisation process being conservative, with
the same body of knowledge being transmitted from generation to generation. The
structural functionalist perspectives discussed in chapter twenty-four of this
category, with their emphasis in maintenance of social harmony, and individual
subordination of the social structure.

An American sociologist, Talcott Parsons, argued that through the process of

socialisation, individuals come to internalise social objects. Besides, he asserts
individuals learn to perform predetermined social roles in order to preserve
society’s common culture.

The passive theories portray society as an all entity with a different existence form
those of its members. By some mechanism, society controls and moulds human
beings as if they don’t have a conscious to react to what is presented to them.
People are always over-socialised by the society that is entirely influenced by the
forces beyond their control

b) Active theories of socialisation

Active theories of socialisation accord individuals a role in deciding what they
learn and how they come to accept it. Human beings, right from infancy do not just
respond to concern to social values. They participate in creating those values, it is
through the active interaction of the socialize and the socialiser that the social
change is possible that the culture changes also. Again the active theories are
routes in the conflict and interpretative (i.e. symbolic interaction) perspectives,
covered in chapter twenty-three

e. Agents of socialisation
The process of socialisation is made possible through the working of different
social institutions. Social institutions have been created by the society to perform
specific functions. These institutions are what are called agents of socialisation.
Another sociological terminology for the agents is the contexts of socialisations.
These contexts include; the family, religious institutions, the school, the peer group
and the mass media

The role that these different contexts play in the socialisation of an individual is
briefly outlined below:

4.5.1. The family

The family is the primary and most important agent that an individual is socialised
in. The kind of upbringing that a child is exposed to at this level prepares him or
her for the nature of interaction with other socialising agents in adult life. The
family also lays the foundation for the basic personality, attitudes, values and
moral orientations in one’s life. The main socialisers at this level are the parents
and older siblings. Within the traditional African set up where these relations are
strong, other members of the extended family provide an alternative socialisation
context.

The nature of the learning that takes place at the family level includes:
Development of social skills, basic psycho-motor skills such as walking ,value
orientations, such as respect of authority, weaning and toilet training practices and
performance of the domestic chores along the lines of gender

The family home environment has been correlated positively with one’s future
academics and professional achievements. Parent’s attitudes such as the aspirations
they have for their children are operational in this kind of socialisation that takes
place at home. Circumstances such as the physical environment also stimulate the
development of the child towards a preferred direction. Socialisations at a family
level, therefore lays the ground for the child’s future mental and moral
development.

Certain developments that have taken place are however, altering the role of the
family in socialisation. These developments include the increasing emergence of
the nuclear family, over the traditional extended family, single parenthood,
childless families, gay and child headed families. The diversity in the family
composition is often gaining constitutional backing. The implication of the
diversity is that social values transmitted by the families are becoming more and
more relative, diverse and individualised. The perception of the family unit
representing accepted social values and passing the same to the young generations
is being eroded. These developments at a family level affect the effectiveness of
other socialisation contexts to harmoniously execute their social functions.
 4.5.2. The peer-group
A peer group is an association of the individuals who fall within the same age
group. In the primary school, such individuals in most cases happen to belong to
the same class and share other extra -curricular interests. Individuals who share the
same professional inclinations can also form peer group. In this case, they form an
association of professional peers.

As a socialisation agent, a peer group is important in terms of approving or

disapproving and thereby building the personality and character of its members. A
peer group operates along certain guidelines that members have to conform to. The
guidelines are drawn from socially accepted values germane to that age group or
professional field.

Non-conformity to the guidelines may lead to expulsion from the membership. The
socialisation functions of peer group entails: Serving as information bureaus for
members. Information that one learns here range from lifestyles, educational
aspirants, sex education and sex roles in the society, providing a platform where
the young practice adult roles responsibility, respect and leadership, learning about
unity and collective behaviour, development of self-esteem and transmitting
acceptable social values or developing new ones for their members

Peer groups may however be a source of negative social influence. Peer pressure
may overwhelm an individual to engage in socially unacceptable behaviour such as
drugs abuse

4.5.3. The school

The school is the first institution for socialisation that an individual is exposed to.
It is at the school level that the child interacts with the peers, teachers who
represent social convention and the official school curriculum. It is also at the
school that the teachers formally take over the role of the Childs parents. Both
formal and informal forms of socialisation take place at school. As a symbol of
modernity some values that the child learns at school may conflict with the
knowledge acquired at the family level. The range of knowledge and ideas that a
child is socialised into at the school include: Formal knowledge related to the basic
intellectual skills like reading, writing and other cognitive skills, knowledge
pertaining to one’s culture and society, each subject of the curriculum tacitly has
the knowledge related to certain cultural values and social skills that will enable
children to function as adult members of society in later life. Socialisation at the
school level is made possible through three avenues these are: The content of the
formal school curriculum, the values and attitudes of the teacher and how they are
communicated to the child and the degree to which teachers act as a positive role
models for the children

4.5.4. The mass media

Mass media refers to the various networks of communication, which includes
newspapers, television, radio, cinema and the internet. Besides the overt services
and recreation function of the mass media, they covertly influence people’s
attitudes and experiences in the various ways.

More often, the mass media represents popular culture and is used to shape
opinions and transmit ideas of certain groups. It is on this basis that in Africa radio
and television have been used by governments for the political propaganda. In
more positive ways, socialisation about the youth sexuality, new ways of doing
economic activities such as farming and forms of moral socialisation are done in
Africa through the community radios, local newspapers in vernacular and to lesser
degree television.
The mass media can however have a negative influence especially on the youth.
This is in so far as some media carry hidden messages. Youth violence has for
example been a consequence of television programmes. Adverts that glorify
cigarette smoking and other drug related machismo have tended to influence the
youth to forms of drug abuse. The American gangster rap music, with its
associated forms of youths defiance has negatively socialised African youths in the
urban areas. Some media can be biased towards certain values and use language
and symbols that are openly exists. This contributes to gender inequalities and
stereotypes in the society. Media can also be a conveyor of cultural imperialism.
The American pop culture as presented on television and the internet has socialised
the youth in the developing societies to imitate the values that are divergent from
those of their societies

4.5.5. Religious Societies

The religious societies include the churches, mosques and other traditional
religious institutions. Religious societies have been used in all societies to socialise
the young and the adult members on the accepted moral values and moral
standards. Some of the religious sects today however indoctrinate members to
accept certain values which in the extreme lead to dangerous fanaticism. There
have been cases where religious cults have persuaded their members into suicide
with the hope of another pure life.

4.5.6. Education Culture and Socialisation

What is the relationship between the three concepts; education, culture and
socialisation? Broadly defined, education is a process through which a new born
individual becomes an integrated member of the society. One becomes an
integrated member of the society by accepting and confronting to the culture of
that society. Education is the main avenue through which a society’s culture is
transmitted from one generation at another. At the same time through the
development intellect and creativity, education lays the foundation for social and
cultural change. It is through the education process that the members of the society
acquire the knowledge a normative systems that require living in society. At this
level the process of education can be equated to that of socialisation. That is
education is a learning process, a socialisation process.

The relationship between education and culture is therefore in respect that

education is the main agent of cultural transmission. At the same time education
reflects culture. The corpus of knowledge in the school curriculum is in fact a
society’s culture. The physical, intellectual and ethical integration of the individual
into a complete man is a fundamental aim of education.

f. Learning activities:-
Activity 1:- Difference between education and socialization process.

On the difference between the two concepts.

Write down 4 key differences between the two concepts

Activity 2:- The process of socialization in the society.

Explain the socialization process in the society.

Reflect and answer the following questions:-

What are the major steps from birth to death that the socialization process follows?

Explain the major features at each step that an individual gains.

Activity 3:- The role of agents of socialization; the family, the religious
institutions, the school, the peer groups and the Mass Media.

Discuss the roles of each agent of socialization process.

Write down 5 key roles of each agent in the socialization.

4.7. References.
Morrison, A., & Mclntyre, D. (1973). Schools and Socialization. Penguin
Educational Books.

Odetola, T., & Ademola, A. (1985). Sociology. An introductory African Text.

Macmillan.

Pell. M. (1977). Consensus and conflict in African Societies. London. Longman

LECTURE 9

INTRODUCTION COMPARATIVE EDUCATION

7.1. Introduction
This lecture will focus on the definitions of comparative education as a concept. It
will further identifying the scope of the discipline. It will discuss the purposes of
studying comparative education. Some of the traditional and modern methods used
in comparative education will also be studied and the factors that influence systems
of education in Africa.

7.2. Learning Objectives

After completing this topic, you should be able to:

a) 1. Define comparative education as a concept.

2. Identify the 5 scopes of the discipline.
3. State at least 5 purposes of studying comparative education.
4. Demonstrate how to use some of the traditional and modern
methods used in comparative education.
5. Explain the factors that influence systems of education in Africa.

7.3. Meaning of Education

Education and comparative education as concepts can be given different
interpretations. The reason is that different people from different angles will see
them from different perspectives. In other words, there can be as many definitions
to the concepts of Education and Comparative Education.
7.3.1. Education
Education is very difficult to pin to a particular definition, because the concept
may be perceived from different angles. The concept has been traced to two Latin
words. The Latin words are (a) educere and (b) educare. While educere can be
interpreted as "to draw out" or "to lead out", Educare on the other hand means "to
nourish" "to bring up or "to raise". The interpretations of two Latin words no
doubt, are more than what can be offered by the school alone. Adesina (1985)
noted that education is always related to variables such as purpose of the learner,
the aim of the teacher as well as the technological problems of the society. He,
therefore, defines education as:

The tool for the integration of the individual effectively into a society so that the
individual can achieve self-realization, develop national consciousness, promote
unity and strive for social, economic, political, scientific, cultural and
technological process.

While relating education to culture, Nduka (1982) sees the concept as the process
of cultural transmission of the people at least part of such culture from one
generation to the next.

Education, according to Lester Smith cited by Osokoya (1987), is the culture

which each generation purposely gives to those who are to be its successors in
order to qualify them for at least keeping, and if possible for raising the level of
improvement which has been attained.

Horton, cited by Akinpelu (1984) sees education as an enabling agency by which

the Africans could restore their self- confidence, and make those who doubted the
humanity of Africans begin to revise their views and learn to respect Africans.
Education according to Nyerere (1982) is the transmission of accumulated wisdom
and knowledge of the society from one generation to the next and also to prepare
the young people for their future membership of the society in which they find
themselves.

At this juncture, we can define education as a process through which an individual

becomes integrated into his society, becomes a promoter of his societal culture,
contributor to the development of his society and becomes an adult who will be
able to stand on his own.

7.3.2. The Meaning of Comparative Education

Naturally, human beings are in the habit of making comparison of the things that
are around them particularly when such things exist in different places. This may
be done as a result of man's desire to know the relationship existing between, or
among the things being compared. Man may also involve himself in this kind of a
business when he wants to choose between two things before him. The idea of
comparison is not peculiar to the people in the business of education alone. The
children at home or anywhere do make comparison between their parents because
one of them may be more loving than the other. The school pupils also make a
comparison of their teachers particularly when the teachers are not with them. The
parents themselves can make a comparison of their children morally and
academically. Comparison can take place wherever we have two or more things at
the same time either for the purpose of having a better understanding of the
relationship existing between them or for the purpose of having a better choice.
Like other concepts, comparative education is a concept that attracts varied
interpretations or definitions. In other words, there are as many definitions as there
are many Educational Comparativists.

Adeyinka (1994) gives the following definitions for the concept.

  A study of two or more education systems.
 A study of how the philosophy, objectives and aims, policy and practice of
education in other countries influence the general development, policy and
practice of education in a particular country.
 A study of how the development of education in the past, across the ages and
continents, has influenced the development of education in particular
countries.
 A study of the school systems of two or more countries, and of the
administrative machineries set up to implement or to control the
implementation of government policies at various levels of education
systems.
Comparative Education according to Good (1962) is a field of study dealing with
the comparison of current educational theory and practice in different countries for
the purpose of broadening and deepening understanding of educational problems
beyond the boundaries of one's own country. From the above definitions, the study
of Comparative education allows the person involved to have a better
understanding of the system of education outside his own country. To Kandel
(1957), Comparative Education is the comparison of various philosophies of
education based not only on theories but the actual practices which prevail from
this above definition, Kandel is of the opinion that comparative education goes
beyond the comparison of education philosophies but also includes the comparison
of the real education practices. Perhaps, from the definition, comparative
Education can be regarded as being pragmatic.

In his own contribution to the concept of comparative Education, Mallinson (1975)

defines the subject as: a systematic examination of other cultures and other systems
of education deriving from those cultures in order to discover resemblances and
differences, and why variant solutions have been attempted (and with what result)
to problems that are often common to all.

In his own remark on the concept of Comparative education, Adejumobi (1994)

defines the concept as a critical study of educational similarities and differences
prevailing with a particular society or culture or among various societies and
cultures. From the definition given by Adejumobi, it is obvious that the idea of
comparing educational systems is not peculiar to countries or societies alone but it
can as well take place within a country or society.

In the same vein, Osokoya (1992) observed that: Comparative Education could be
the comparison of educational theory and practice within a society, state, region
and nations ... that scholars could engage in the comparison of educational
programmes, theories and practices even within one society. Therefore, there could
be a comparative study of educational programmes within the local governments of
a state, between states of a country and between countries of a continent.

Alabietal (1998) sees comparative education as; a way of comparing and

contrasting different educational systems at national, infra-national as well as
international levels.

The major implications of their definition is that comparison of educational

philosophies, systems and practices is not peculiar to two cultures or countries
alone but it can also be localized as it has been rightly pointed out by the other
scholars in the field.

In his own reaction to the concept of Comparative education, Awolola (1986)

defines the subject as the study of aims and objectives of education, the curriculum
methods of teaching, teacher – student relationships, school calendar, mode of
discipline, design of school buildings, school administration among others which
may be at the international or national levels.

7.4. The Scope of Comparative Education

The term "scope" according to Longman dictionary of contemporary English could
mean:

 The area within the limit of a question, subject, action etc.

 Space or chance for actions or thought.
From the above, scope of comparative education means the area or areas covered
by the discipline. The scope of the subject also connotes the various subjects or
disciplines from where Comparative education draws its information directly or
indirectly. A critical look at the various definitions of the discipline no doubt
reveals that Comparative Education is an interdisciplinary subject since it relies on
other subjects to be able to accomplish its objectives. As an interdisciplinary
subject, its scope covers the historical development of education right from the
Roman as well as the Greek civilization. It also includes the historical development
of non-formal education in any country of study. The discipline has its scope
extended to the purpose or purposes of education systems of the countries being
studied, an investigation into the similarities as well as differences existing in the
educational practices of the countries under investigation.

However, subjects from where Comparative Education draws its contents include
the following:

 History of Education
 Philosophy of Education
 Sociology of Education
  Anthropology
 Economics
 Geography
 Psychology
 Statistics
 Literature
 Political geography
 Political science and
 International relations.
The above explanation clearly shows that the subject is not independent of other
subjects; it is a discipline that relates to other subjects for the accomplishment of
its aims and objectives. It may be reasonably concluded that the interdisciplinary
nature of the subject has contributed to the wideness of the discipline.

7.5. The Purpose of Comparative Education

Comparative education like other disciplines being offered in the education
institutions is not a purposeless subject. In other words, the subject has some goals
which it aims at achieving.

While giving the purpose of comparative education, Hans (1992) concludes that:

The analytical study of these factors from historical perspective and the
comparison of attempted solution of resultant problems are the main purpose of
comparative education. It can be concluded from the above that comparative
education tries to compare educational problems as well as the solutions applied to
such problems with a view to helping one's educational practices.

The purpose of Comparative Education was given by Mallinson (1975) when he

noted that: To become familiar with what is being done in some countries ... and
why it is done, is a necessary part of the training of all students of educational
issues of the day. Only in that way will they be properly fitted to study and
understand their own systems and plan intelligently for the future which given the
basic cultural changes that have taken place with such astonishing throughout the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries, is going to be one where we are thrown into
ever closer contact with other peoples and other cultures.

From the above, it is evident that the study of Comparative Education assists the
learners to understand their educational systems better.

In his own contribution to the purpose of comparative education, Marc - Antoine

Jullien de Paris (1817) cited in Hans (1992) notes that:

The purpose of Comparative Education is to perfect national systems with

modifications and changes which the circumstances and local conditions would
demand.

Like other Education Comparativists, the purpose given above is a pointer to the
fact that the study of Comparative education assists in the flexibility of educational
systems of one's country.

In the same vein, Kandel cited by Hans (1992) was of the opinion that the primary
purpose of comparative education is to discover not only the differences existing in
the Education systems of two countries but also the factors that bring about such
differences in the educational system.

Also, to Hans (1992) the purpose of Comparative Education is to discover the

underlying principles which govern the development of all national education
systems.
7.6. Other reasons for Studying Comparative Education include
 To assist in the understanding of one's educational institutions as well as
educational practices.
 To assist in the understanding of the factors that are responsible for various
educational changes.
 To educate the students and teachers on the procedure through which
educational changes occur.
 To contribute not only to the educational development of the society but also
to the general development of the society.
 To serve as an academic discipline.
 To assist in solving one's educational problems
 To open one's eyes to the educational philosophies, theories and practices of
other countries.
 To assist both the students and teachers of the discipline in gathering reliable
information concerning educational system.
 To assist in the Promotion of International Relationship.
 To contribute to the formulation of a country's educational systems.
7.7. Learning Activities
Activity 1. Identify uses or aims of comparative education which may have
not been included in this lecture.

Activity 2. Identify the educational problem in your own country and show
how you would use any of the methods discussed here to carry out a comparative
study to solve.

Activity 3. Discuss the five scopes of comparative education

7.8. References
Hans C.N (1992) cited in Lawal B.O. (2004). Comparative

Education, Osogbo, Swift Publishers Nigeria Ltd.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.

Malison V. (1975). An Introduction to the Study of Comparative Education.

London, Heinemann Publishers.
LECTURE 10

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF COMPARATIVE EDUCATION AND

APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF COMPARATIVE EDUCATION
8.1. Introduction
The historical development of comparative education can be divided into three
stages. They are: descriptive stage, predictive stage and scientific stage.

8.2. Objective
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:

1. Explain the historical development of comparative education.

2. State and explain the phases

3. Explain the approaches used in the study of comparative

education

4. Mention of the approaches to the study of comparative

education.

5. Discuss some of the approaches to the study of comparative

education

8.3. Historical Background

In the beginning, Comparative Education was not really Comparative but
descriptive as the people were mostly concerned with the description of
educational systems of each country without necessarily comparing one
educational systems with another. However, the 19th Century witnessed an
increased interest in the study of Comparative Education as education started to be
studied in a Comparative form.
As a matter of fact, what can be regarded as serious studies in the field of
Comparative Education could be traced to the early 19th century after the
Napoleonic wars? Since there was no war among the Europeans, there was peace
among them and they needed something that could enhance their interaction with
one another. Therefore, a consideration was given to the study of comparative
education as a strong channel through which the youths of various European
countries could be more unified. To this end, John Griscom travelled to Europe and
on his return, he published his findings on educational institutions in the countries
visited such as Great Britain, France, Switzerland, Italy as well as Holland between
1818 and 1819.

In the same vein, Victor Cousin, a representative of the French Minister of

education visited Prussia in 1931 and also on return home, published his findings
on the Prussian educational institutions and practices, His findings were later
translated to English and enhanced the educational development in France,
England as well as in America.

Another pioneer in the field of Comparative Education was Horace Mann of

America who after a six-month visit to Europe also published his findings in 1843
on educational institutions and practices in England, Scotland, Ireland, France,
Germany as well as Holland. His report was purely on the comparison of the
school organization and methods of instruction.

Matthew Arnold of England visited both France and Germany in 1859 and 1865.
On his return home, he made some remarks particularly on the educational
institutions and practices in both France and Germany. Like others, he advised that
some useful aspects of the educational system of France and Germany should be
integrated into the systems of education in England.
What can be viewed as second generation in the study of Comparative Education
could be traced to Sir Michael Sadler who in one of his publications: how far can
we learn anything of practical value from the study of Foreign Systems of
Education which was published in 1900, went further than other pioneers before
him who were more utilitarian and straight forward in the description of the foreign
educational systems studied by them.

While contributing to the development of Comparative Education study, Kandel

cited by Hans (1958) observed that:

The chief value of a Comparative approach to educational problems lies in an

analysis of the causes which have produced them, in a comparison of the
differences between the various systems and the reasons underlying them and
finally, in a study of the solutions attempted. In other words, the comparative
approach demands first and appreciation of the intangible, impalpable spiritual and
cultural forces which underlie an educational system, the factors and forces outside
the school matter even more than what goes inside it.

In the same vein, Friedrich Schneider, a German speaking and Director of the
Institute of Comparative Education, Salzburg started the editing of the international
Review of Education in four languages in 1930.

In his 1947 publication, he gave the following as the factors that can influence the
educational theory and practice of any country:

 National character
 Geographical space
 Culture
 Sciences
 Philosophy
  Economic life and politics
 Religion
 History
 Foreign influences and
 The development of pedagogies
Like others, he applied historical approach to the problems of education of all the
countries visited by him.

In his own contribution to the development of Comparative Education, Sergius

Hessen, a Russian Philosopher looked at Comparative Education from a
Philosophical Education point of view. In his book published in 1928, he selected
four problems as an educational policy focus. The problems are

 Compulsory education
 The school and the State
 The school and the church and
 The school and economic life. Hessen was perhaps the first education
philosopher to apply philosophical approach.
Also, the Comparative Education Society, introduced by Brickman, came into
being at a conference in New York in 1956. This society assists in the publication
of journal called "The Comparative Education Review". In addition, it holds
national as well as regional conferences and seminars.

In 1961, a similar society was established in Europe after launching the new
society in London. The membership of the Society was extended to the experts in
the field of Comparative or International Education in the tertiary Institutions or
the International organizations. Like others, it holds its conferences every two
years and publishes the proceedings of its conferences. Meanwhile, similar
societies have been established in Canada, Korea as well as Japan. Perhaps World-
Wide today, the discipline is one of the subjects being offered in all the
Universities and Colleges of Education. The Society for Comparative Education
was founded in Nigeria in 1983 while the World congress on the discipline came
into being in the year 1982 for Cooperation among the people involved in the study
of the subject as well as the general development of Comparative Education.

8.4. Factors responsible for increased interest in the study of Comparative

Education
Osokoya, P G (1992) gives the following as the other factors responsible for
increased interest in the study of Comparative Education.

 The emergence of newly independent states and developing countries

who wanted a good educational system as soon as possible. For
instance, the newly introduced educational system in Nigeria 6-3-3-4
which was borrowed from America took the Nigerian delegation to
schools and companies manufacturing the educational equipment in
Sweden.
 The greater frequency of travel to attend conferences, seminars as
well as workshops abroad.
 The improvement in the modern means of transport as well as
communication.
 The awareness of scientific and technological achievements in the
advanced countries such as Russia and Sputnik.
 The socio-economic and political problems facing other countries.
8.5. Phases in the Development of Comparative Education
The phases in the historical development of Comparative Education can be divided
into three namely: (a) Descriptive and borrowing stage (b) Predictive stage (c)
Scientific stage.

First phase

During the first phase of the development of Comparative Education, the

educational comparativists involved in this stage include:

Marc-Anthony Jullien de Paris, 1817, Mathew Arnold of England, Victor cousin of

France, Leo Tolstoy and K.D. Aushinsky of Russia, Domingo Sermiento of
Argentina, Horace Mann and Henry Barbard of America. At the borrowing stage,
the education data collected would be compared so as to make use of it for the best
educational practice of the country studied for the purpose of transplanting it to
other countries.

Second Phase

The second phase in the study of comparative education took place in the first half
of the 20th century. The stage could be regarded as a stage of Prediction because at
this stage, the study of comparative education has gone beyond the borrowing
stage. At this stage, the educational comparativists studying the educational
institutions and practices of another country will be in the position to predict what
is likely to be the success or failure of adopting the educational practices of the
country studied by his own country. It should be remembered by both the students
and the teachers of comparative education that the students and the teachers of
comparative education that the basis on which a country's educational practice is
based may not necessary be the same thing with that of education comparatives
studying the education system of other countries. The educational comparativists
involved in this stage included: Friedrich Schneider and Franz Hilker of Germany,
Isaac Kandel as well as Robert Ulich of America., Nicholas Hans as well as Joseph
Lanwerys of England including Pedro Rosselo of Switzerland. They tried to find
out the reasons behind the educational practices of the country visited by them and
they became more careful in transplanting the educational practices of another
country to their own.

Third Phase

The third stage can be regarded as the scientific period or analytical period. This
stage took place in the second half of the 20 th century. The period witnessed
rigorous analysis as well as objectivity in the study of educational practices of
other countries. At this stage, before transplanting the educational practices of
another country to one's country, such educational practices have to be subjected to
a critical analysis unlike the first stage when the educational practices of the
country visited can be borrowed or the second stage when the implication of
transplanting the educational practices of another country can be easily predicted.
The comparativists involved in this stage included: Schneider, Kandel as well as
Uich.

8.6. Approaches to the Study of Comparative Education

Awolola (1986) identified eight approaches to the study of Comparative
Education. They are:

 Problem Approach or Thematic approach

 Case study approach
 Area study approach
 Historical approach
 Descriptive approach
  Philosophical approach
 International approach and
 Gastronomic approach
8.6.1. Thematic or Problem Approach
Here, the investigator will first of all identify a particular educational problem in
his own country. Then, he will begin to look for another country that has the same
problem. The researcher will also study the education problem of another country
in relation to their culture. The researcher will not only study the education
problem of another country but he will also examine the solution applied to such
problem by the affected country. From this, he will think of how he will be able to
solve their own educational problem as well. It should be noted that Culture,
economic, Socio Political factors vary from one country to another as a result of
which educational problems and solutions may not necessarily be the same.

8.6.2. Case Study Approach

In this approach, an education Comparativist from Nigeria can go to Iraq to study
the primary education Level of the country. His report (is believed) will be very
comprehensive for his readers to understand. If it is possible for the researcher, he
can take all the educational systems of the country and compare such educational
system with his own educational system. The problem with this approach is that as
a human being, the investigator may not be totally objective in his report.

8.6.3. Area Study Approach

The world area here could refer to a village, a town or country depending on the
educational comparativist who wants to carry out the study. Under this approach,
the educational comparativist will engage himself in the educational practices of
only one country, if it is a country that he has chosen. The investigator is going to
involve himself in several activities as a result of which he is going to arrive at a
body of generalizations on the educational system he is studying. The study under
this approach is always based on geographical, linguistic or racial boundaries.

However, Bereday (1958) is of the opinion that "one of the oldest and clearest
ways of introducing the subject (Comparative Education) is to study one
geographical area at a time" He therefore identified the following stages in the area
study approach:

 Descriptive Stage - At this stage, an Educational Comparativist can make a

description of his own educational system as well as practices. The
researcher has to start by reading extensively. He will start by reviewing the
available literature on the educational system of the country being studied.
To enable the investigator have on the spot assessment, he can personally
visit the country whose educational system is studying.
 Interpretation Stage - At this stage of the study, the investigator will now
collate and analyse the data gathered from various sources to enable him do
justice to the educational system of the area being studied.
 Juxtaposition Stage - At this stage of the study, the investigator will put side
by side the result obtained from the interpretation stage with the educational
system of his own country.
 Comparative Stage - At this stage of the investigation, the researcher will
objectively compare and contrast the educational practices of the country
being studied with that of his own. It is at this stage of the study that
whatever hypotheses that might have been formulated by the researcher that
will be rejected or accepted.
8.6.4. Historical Approach
Under this approach, an investigator will only take a village, town or country for
the examination of its educational historical development right from the first day
when education was introduced into the place and the time of study. This approach
will enable the researcher to identify the factors that are responsible for the current
educational system of the country being studied. However, the problem with this
approach is that greater emphasis is always placed on the past.

8.6.5. Descriptive Approach

Here, the investigator will have to describe everything he finds on ground. Such
things to be described could include: Number of schools, student enrolment,
number of teachers, number of the school buildings including classrooms as well
as the number of subjects being offered. However, the approach is not very popular
among the modern educational Comparativists.

International Approach

This is an approach whereby all the variations existing from one area to another
within the same country are taken into consideration while comparing the system
of education of a foreign country with one's educational system.

Gastronomic Approach

This is a method whereby both the diet as well as the eating habit of the people in a
particular country are related to the practices of their education, the approach is not
very popular among the modern educational comparativists.

The Field Study Approach

This approach is not new in the area of the subject. On this approach, Brickman
(1966) cited by Alabi and Oyelade (1998) observed that:

Visitation of foreign countries whether for the purpose of commerce, conversation

curiosity or conflict, goes back to ancient history, travelers in all historical periods
must have brought back facts and impression concerning the cultures of the other
countries they had visited, included in their reports must have been comments
relating to the young and their upbringing. They may also have made some
remarks regarding the similarities and differences in the ways of educating
children. Some, indeed, may have arrived at conclusions involving the expression
of value judgments.

In using this approach for studying comparative education Halls (1965) cited by
Alabi and Oyelade (1998) identifies three stages in the field study of approach.
They are:

 Preparatory stage
 Investigatory and analytical stage as well as
 Evaluatory and Comparative stage.
Preparatory Stage: This is the stage in which the investigator will have to prepare
himself very well before traveling to his country of interest. He has to be familiar
with the country he wants to visit by reading very extensively about the country.

Investigatory and Analytical Stage: At this stage, the researcher will have to
formulate some hypotheses on the educational practices of the country he wants to
study. The formulation of these hypotheses will give him a focus on what to look
for.

Evaluatory Comparative Stage: At this stage, the investigator after coming back
from his travel to the foreign country, will now examine the practices of education
of the country he has visited in relation to the educational practices of his own
country with a view to establishing the similarities as well as the differences
existing in the educational practices of the two countries it is also at this stage that
the hypotheses earlier on formulated will either be rejected or accepted. The field
study approach unlike area study approach, concerns itself with the study of the
educational systems of many countries at the same time. It also involves visiting
the foreign countries of interest to enable the investigator make an objective
comparison between the foreign educational practices and that of his country.

The Scientific Approach

This is an approach in which the study of comparative education is carried out

empirically by formulating hypotheses, defining the important concepts, setting out
the variables as well as the conditions for establishing the validity of the
hypotheses formulated. Since in any scientific research, data collection its
interpretation with the help of statistics of analysis are very important,. These must
not also be lacking in the study of Comparative Education to enhance the quality
and credibility of whatever may be the result of the investigation.

The Integrated Approach

This is an approach in which other disciplines such as history, philosophy,

geography; economics, anthropology and statistics are integrated in to the study of
Comparative Education because of their usefulness. As it has already been stated,
it is not possible for Comparative Education as a discipline to stand on its own as it
has to draw from other subjects which include the disciplines mentioned above.

The Philosophical Approach

A Russian Philosopher by name Serguis Hessen was the first man to apply
philosophical approach to the study of Comparative Education when he published
his book in 1928 which he tittled "Kritische Vergleichung des Schulwesens der
Anderen Kuturstaaten". In the book, he chose four main philosophical problems.
The problems chosen by him are:

 Compulsory education
  The School and the State
 The school and the Church and
 The School and Economic life.
He analysed the underlying principles and later followed it by giving a critical
account of modern legislation in many countries.

Kosemani (1995) believes that philosophical approach is a step forward to solve

the problems in the national character approach.

According to him, there are two major problems involved in the application of
philosophical approach to the study of comparative education. The problems are:

 Difference in emphasis as a result of which it may be difficult to use the

same criterion (national ideology) for the comparison.
 There are many countries without clear cut national ideologies.
 From the above, it could be deduced that with philosophical approach,
hypotheses could be formulated, be tested and could also be empirically
validated for better explanation of educational practices of various countries.
The Comparative Approach

In this approach, the reader must not be made to do the comparison of various
educational practices by himself, rather, the comparison and conclusion have to be
done by the investigator himself.

Data on the educational practices to be compared must have been gathered and
reviewed. In addition, hypotheses should have also been formulated to assist in the
gathering of data. Then, the educational practices of the country under study will
be put side by side with the educational practices of another country slated for
comparison.
The next stage after Juxtaposition is the comparison of the educational practices of
the countries that have been put side by side. It is at stage of comparison that the
hypotheses that had been formulated earlier on will be rejected or accepted.

8.7. Learning Activities

Activity1: Definition of Comparative Education as a Concept

Read on the definition of comparative education as a concept.

Write down two definitions which contain the elements of methodology, content
and purpose of study.

Activity 2: Identifying the scope of the discipline

Read on the scope of the discipline

Reflect by answering the following questions

 What are the subject/content matters in the discipline?

 What are the geographical units of study in the discipline?
 What are the ideological scopes in the discipline?
 What are the thematic scopes of the discipline?
 What are the historical / spatial scopes of the discipline?
Activity 3: Purposes of Studying Comparative Education

Read on the purposes of studying comparative education.

Using the information, identify at least three ways in which comparative education
can be;

Can or has been correctly studied and applied to reform the education system of a
country of your choice.
Can or has been wrongfully studied and applied to reform the education system of
a country of your choice.

Activity 4: Some of the Traditional and Modern Methods used In

Comparative Education

Read on some of the Traditional and Modern Methods used In Comparative

Education.

Reflect and undertake the following task

Using any one method of study, identify an educational problem in your country
and show how you would carry out a comparative study.

8.8. References
Awolola, A. (1986) Readings in Comparative Education, Ibadan, Stevelola,
Education Publishers.

Bereday, G.F. (1958). Some Methods of Teaching Comparative Education,

Comparative Education Review.
LECTURE 11

DETERMINANTS OF NATIONAL EDUCATION SYSTEMS

9.1. Introduction
Every system of education is determined by some factors. Such factors include; language,
geography, economy, history, religion, politics, social, racial and trade unions among others.

9.2. Objectives
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:

1. Identify the factors that determine the education system of any

country
2. Discuss the factors that determine the education system of any
country.

9.3. Factors that determine education system of a country

There are quite a number of factors that determine systems of education in the world in general.
Specifically we shall discuss the factors that determine the education system in a country. They
include the following.

9.3.1. Cultural Factor

Education is usually seen as a social factor in the sense that any system of education must reflect
the ethos it is called upon to serve. In this sense education ensures cultural continuity mainly
through fostering the growth and development of natural characteristics that will act as a
stabilizing force. If the prime aim of education is to ensure cultural continuity it is only through
individual persons that the value which cultures should perpetuate and which can be realized in a
culture of a society becomes the total way of life of that society. There can be no society of
human beings however primitive without some kind of educational system. Each education
system when closely studied and analyzed reveals the culture context and pattern or way of life.
Culture stamps its features on its system of education and makes it to be the way it is thus culture
concept and pattern old way of life has an impact on the society system of education. Language
is one of the things that can make man to be different from the lower animals. There is no tribe in
the world that does not have its own original language which may be different from other tribes.
Naturally, children learn better and faster when their local language is used to teach them. At the
national level, each country also has a national language or languages. By implication, citizens of
such a country will be expected to learn their national languages not only for official purpose but
also for effective communication.

9.3.2. The Geographical Factor

The geography of a region is in most cases natural hence undefined by man thus it becomes
inevitable for man to behave or act in accordance with the geography and nature in particular,
geography influences the nature of school systems, it dictates the nature of school buildings and
equipment’s, the means and methods of transporting school children, the age limit of compulsory
school attendance. One may begin to wonder as to how or why geography is relevant in the
development of a country's educational system. Apart from the fact that the climate of a country
affects the school buildings as well as the equipment, what can be easily done in one climatic
area may not be so in another place.

9.3.3 Climatic conditions

Climatic conditions have influenced systems of education in various countries of the world for
example the continental climate in the temperate zones has influenced the features in systems of
education, temperature extremes in continental Europe have affected accessibility to school by
young children, they have also affected the time at which schools can reasonably begin in the
morning and afternoon, young children may not be able to walk to school in the cold winter to
the age of entry to school may be seven years. The geographical conditions of a place influence
the distribution of population and functioning systems of education, for example Australia has
the second largest desert in the world the population there is either concentrated in the urban
center or country side, consequently Australia has two systems of education, 1. For the urban
areas, 2. For the rural areas

9.3.4 Configuration of the land

The configuration of the land may be such that it forces people to live in small isolated
communities, the soil itself may yield a small livelihood for the farmers with small holders, in
such geographical conditions especially in areas with cold winters not only is the architectural
structure of farmstead, house, school and village are affected but also the whole way of life and
thinking of people because of the rigouts of the climate, pre-school education in these places is
not possible and if it is the age at which they start schooling is delayed because of the closeness
of the family ties. It is not possible to have boarding schools for children except for the few who
come from the most in-accessible places

9.3.5. The Economic Factor

It determine the content and methods of an education system even in traditional, indigenous
education people were trained depending on the economic conditions and needs of the
community, in economic perspective this refer to the amount or percentage of natural revenue
spent on education, formal education is only possible where production exceeds consumption,
where there is enough grants in systems of education minimum requirement per students are met
and thus the quality of education is high, where there is subsistence economy that is one in which
people are just able to make ends meet education must be informal, occurring from the job, such
an economy is characteristic of primitive civilization. The state of country's economy determines
the national education system of that country. At the beginning of every year, a budget is always
prepared and presented by the government as it happens in other sectors. In the budget, certain
percentage of the total budget is always allocated to each of the social amenities to be provided
by the government. It should be noted that when the economy of a country is in a good shape, a
better percentage of the budget will go to education. But when the economy is poor, this may
affect the percentage of the budget that will go to education. Also, all formulated educational
policies need substantial amount of money for their implementation. This means that when the
country's economy is not good, the formulated educational policies may not be fully
implemented, if it is implemented at all. In addition if the economy of the country is heavily
concentrated in a particular location of such a country, there is possibility that people may begin
to migrate from their place where economy is not concentrated to an economically concentrated
area. This is one of the reasons responsible for the migration of Kenyans from rural areas to the
urban centers as a result of which schools in the urban areas are not only greater in number than
the rural areas, but such schools in the urban centers are always over populated and enjoy more
qualified teachers than the rural schools.

9.3.6. The Historical Factor

Different countries of the world have varied histories which have helped in shaping their system
of education to be the way they are, features in systems of education tend to have certain
similarities, in history there have been strangles for the creation of natural states, each state
wanting to have a natural identity, natural feature of this state show differences that are reflected
in the their systems of education, much of what we see in systems of education is as a result of
history, thus similarities and differences in systems of education the world over have a history
behind them. Colonization has been an important historical factor that has helped to shape
systems of education to be the way they are, at Berlin conference in 1815 was the scramble for
Africa, at the conference the European powers shared Africa like a cake, the colonies had to take
much of what was in their colonizers homeland and features in education in the metropolitan
countries are reflected in their former colonies, the missionary factor has being an important
determinant in the shaping of systems of education in Africa, Christian missionaries main from
Britain France Poland Swaziland have largely influenced the development of systems of
education in Africa, most of this missionaries brought with them some of the characteristic
features of their home countries and planted them in the system of education in Africa As a
matter of fact, history, which is the record of past events, has a lot to do with the educational
development of a country or nation. Apart from the traditional system of education which is as
old as its locality or society, Western formal education which is the focus of our study here is
always borrowed from one place or the other. Education in most if not all the African countries
can have its origin traced to the Colonial Master of each of these African countries. For instance,
it is often said that the southerners in Nigeria are much more advanced educationally than the
Northerners. The reason for this can be traced to the historical development of formal education
in the Northern Nigeria. By the time Western Education was brought to Nigeria, the Northerners
were already used to Islamic Education and they found it difficult to change. On the other hand,
the Southerners who were not seriously used to Islamic education easily embraced the Western
Education that was brought to Nigeria. Similarly in Kenya there is a high concentration of
National Schools in Central Counties.

9.3.7. The Religious Factor

Religion and beliefs have been known to help in shaping aspects of systems of education to be
the way they are. In Africa present systems of education have been influenced by the work which
was initiated by European Christian missionaries. Christianity has constituted a powerful
unifying force politically and culturally. Europe became Christian and its system of education
was influenced by Christian ethos. With the colonization of Africa and the spread of Christianity
many of their features are found in most systems of education. For instance school days are from
Monday-Friday and resting Saturday and Sunday. Religious organizations have been and still
involved in educational development, partly to advance their religion and spread ideas on
religion to other people. The importance of religion in the development of a country's
educational system or policies cannot be overemphasized. For instance, the earliest schools in
Kenya were founded, administered and financed by the Christian missions. Later, Moslems
established schools for their children and the children of the converts.

9.3.8. The Political Factor

Political system of a country influences the extent to which policies of reform in its system of
education are subjected to debate. Thus the political factor dictates the kind of administration the
system will have. Political philosophy adopted by countries partly help to determine the feature
in their system of education to be the way they are. Political philosophies underline the
functioning of most systems of education of countries. The type of leadership, his interest, his
agenda for the citizens of the country. The type of administration he wants to run. The programs
of his party through which he becomes the leader among other things to a great extent determine
the national system of a country's education. It is not an over - statement to say that the
educational system of any society is a reflection of its political ideology. For instance, the
socialism ideology in the U.S.S.R. contributed to the introduction of free and compulsory
education in the country. Tanzania which is an African country had its national education system
influenced by her political ideology socialism. It was this political ideology that gave way for
introduction of the new, education ideology popularly known as education for self-reliance.
Since a greater percentage of the Tanzanians are farmers and live in the rural areas and for every
Tanzanian to be self- reliant in line with the new educational policy, everybody is being exposed
not only to farming but also to the life in the rural areas. This makes the new educational system
in the country to truly represent the social, economic, cultural as the political reality of the
country.

Till 2006, Nigeria as a country has been able to produce only three civilian presidents since 1960
when it got her independence. They are Nnamdi Azikiwe (ceremonial) the first Civilian
President till 1966, Alhaji Sheu Shagari, 1979 - 1983 and Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who became
the third Civilian President on May 29, 1999 and May 2003. Scince 1960 Nigeria was most of
the years under the military rule. This means that the country has been under the military rule
with Decrees more than the constitution. The implication of this is that instability in the political
system is bound to bring about educational instability as well. For instance in Nigeria, there was
a time when the payment of Primary School Teachers' salaries was being done by the Federal
Government and later it was transferred to the local governments. As a result of delay in
payment, primary school teachers in some local government areas went on strike for several
months. There was a time in Nigeria again when all Private Secondary Schools were taken over
by the government. Later, another government gave approval for the establishment of private
secondary schools. Even some schools were also returned to their owners.

The school calendar is always changed from time to time in Nigeria. The new system of
education popularly known as 6-3-3-4 education system was initiated by the Gowon regime but
the launching of the new system of secondary education was done by Alhaji Sheu Shagari in
1982 in Lagos. Up till 2006 the system has not been fully implemented. All these educational
problems are the manifestation of political instability.

9.3.9. The Social Factor

In every society, there is social stratification. This means that naturally, people in any society do
not belong to only one group or class.

In most cases, grouping is always dependent on race, economy, and level of education, one's
profession or the profession of one's parents, the location of one's residence, one's family
background among others. It is not uncommon to see people of the same grouping or class or
their children moving together and doing things together. Such children are likely to enjoy better
and have rapid education than the children whose parents are not educated or whose parents are
farmers or traders who have little or no means for the education of their children. Because of the
inability of the children from a poor background to learn at the same rate with the children from
a better schools for the children who are better educationally to enable them to go at their own
pace while an opportunity will also be given to the slow learners.

In terms of employment, profession, education, the children of the rich and elite are better
placed. In most cases, because of the social stratification, the schools being attended by the
children of the rich, elites are far better than the schools being attended by the children of the
poor.
9.3.10. The Ethnic or Racial Factor
This simply means a group of people from the same geographical location see themselves as one
and begin to discriminate against others who are not from their geographical location. This is
very common in Nigeria. There are many schools in Nigeria where such schools are being
dominated by the people within the schools location. In order to overcome this problem of
ethnicity or racial, the federal government introduced National youth Service Corps Scheme,
Federal Government Colleges, Unity Schools, Quota System for anything Federal so that every
State of the Federation will be taken care of.

In the South Africa, the Africans who were the sons of the land were heavily discriminated
against by the whites. The schools being attended by the children of the whites were superior to
the schools being attended by the children of the blacks.

Also, the Negroes in the United States of America despite the fact that they are Americans
culturally, religiously, linguistically yet, the Americans discriminated against them because they
are regarded as people who are inferior in every respect. Because of this view about the Negroes,
separate schools were designed for the Americans as well as the Negroes and this was
constitutionally supported by the government. In everything, they are discriminated against and
they receive things that are inferior when compared with the Americans. In the same vein, the
French policy even in Africa was aimed at transforming the Africans into Black Frenchmen. The
reason behind this was that the African culture was seen as being inferior to that of the French
people.

9.4. Learning Activities

Activity 1. Discuss the factors that have determined and shaped systems of education to be what
they are.

Activity 2. Explain how any two of these factors have shaped systems of education in various
countries of the world.

9.5. References
Lawal B.O. (2004) Comparative Education, Osogbo, Swift Publishers Nig Ltd.