Historical significance and the challenges of African historiography: analysis of teacher perspectives

Abstract

ABSTRACT The history, people, and culture of many African nations have been written, projected, and interpreted in different ways. The contents and variability in the early accounts about African nations, which were based largely on external viewpoints and interests which barely represented the realities in Africa, created confusions about African historiography and affected how Africans, their cultures, and histories were perceived in Western cultures. Drawing on the literature on African historiography, this paper examines Ghanaian History teachers’ perspectives of historically significant events in Ghana’s past, and how these perspectives translate into classroom practice. Findings demonstrate teachers’ consciousness and belief in traditional African cultural practices and the unique modes of preserving and doing African history. The paper makes a case for how African historiography and History education should look different to those conducted in Western contexts.