By Paul Nyathi | Schools in Binga Matabeleland North have revealed that they have stopped teaching Heritage Studies, a subject introduced by former Education Minister Lazarus Dokora, because the prescribed textbooks contain gross falsehoods.
Speaking in a new curriculum consultative meeting held by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Education at Chinotimba Primary School in Victoria Falls last week teachers from the province condemned the lack of commitment in providing correct information fir learners by the Ministry.
Lulu Secondary School founder, John Sianaga, said they have since suspended Heritage Studies classes for Form 1 and 3.
“We bought these books for $24 each and we required close to 200, but the content was wrong and malicious to one’s culture. The curriculum was rushed and, as a school, with parents’ consent, we have suspended Heritage Studies. None of our learners are using the book. Everything there, for instance, about Tonga people, is not correct. They say the Tonga traditional courtship process is called fakaiva, yet it is kutumina. I wrote to the ministry in July, but they just apologised and said it was going to be costly to change the book, but that does not suffice the profession because children are taught wrong things,” Sianaga said.
Lawyer, Thulani Nkala said: “How can our children be taught about our Zimbabwean heritage, yet there is no mention of people like Joshua Nkomo. The book talks about Muammar Gaddafi, Ian Smith, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and those people were not part of our struggle. Let’s value our own people before crossing to the other side. If you look at family and religious studies at primary level, the story is the same.”
The book said commonly practiced Ndebele dances were muchongoyo and amabhiza, adding that ingquzu was a Shona dance.
“There was no research done at all. We do not have such dances, amabhiza is a Kalanga dance, while muchongoyo is for Shangani people. It’s disheartening to us, as parents, to see our cultures being distorted like that. We need to value and sensitise what people consider as what gives them identity. The Constitution in section 7 speaks of preaching human rights from childhood but how do we then say we are sovereign if we kill other people’s cultures like this.”
The new curriculum has been a contentious issue since its launch by former Primary and Secondary Education minister Lazarus Dokora last year, with parents and teachers seeking its suspension.
I can see, i really struck a cord – it hurts neeeh? So much from a Burundi Central African immigrant in Southern Africa – Shame!!
Your hatred for us the majority is understable since Ndebeles are foreigners in Zimbabwe.You can hate us or say the most vulgar words about Shona people but there is nothing you can do about it since you are a useless barking dog from Kwazulu where you were banished for theft by uShaka.
Zimbabwe’s history has always been distorted for political expediency. Our grandchildren will never know the truth about us having fought against the Rhodesian Front detente system. That it is I.D. Smith who declared independence from the British and that Britain was always on our side as we waged the war. They imposed sanctions on the regime as they declared it illegal. A lot of zimbabweans went to UK as refugees, including Mugabe’s wife and they also helped during the Geneva and Lancanster House conferences. These truths are, unfortunately, not politically convenient, so our children will never know.
I don’t think you even realise how much truth you are saying. ZANU PF has been a total and absolute disaster for this nation. A nine year old child would have ruled the country better than Mugabe and now Mnangagwa have done. Its a big shame.
ZANU PF books in our schools. Like most moslem leaders, who send other people’s children to become suicide bombers while their own children are studying at western universities, Dokora and his former deputy (now current Moslem education minister) tried to mess up the education of other people’s children while their own children study abroad. education should be relevant to the modern world and should help society move forward. Dokora and his brand of education was for the 1400s
Everything driven by Shonas is a disaster. They like imposing themselves on other cultures. How many times have we had Ndebele words, or names mispelt? Yet not even one Shona word has ever been mispelt in the last 37 years – they are worse than white colonialists. The problem is that, they like to be exclusionary in everything they do. Shonas are never bothered and never feel guilty at all, if in a gathering of a national nature or any national programme is 100% made up of only Shona people. It simply doesnt bother them – they just dont care.
Whether its a sports team, a scholarship programme, a Commmission, a work environment, a meeting or Conference delegates etc etc – you name it, they are not bothered. They have this false sense of entitlement to anything Zimbabwean – they were brought up with this mistaken and false ZANU PF belief that Zimbabwe is a Shona country, hence its Shona name Zimbabwe; never mind Mnangagwa’s claim that he is a President of every one. Look at the ZANU PF manufactured history of the country – it is all false and full of exaggerations. That country will never go anywhere. Period!!
shame