An African contribution to the constitutional right to modern schooling 150 years ago
- PDF / 647,540 Bytes
- 18 Pages / 439.37 x 666.142 pts Page_size
- 92 Downloads / 174 Views
An African contribution to the constitutional right to modern schooling 150 years ago Christel Adick1
© The Author(s) 2020
Abstract This article highlights the stipulation of the provision of formal schooling in a regional constitution drafted in West Africa in 1871, almost 150 years ago. The constitution under discussion originated in Fanteland, a coastal region of the Gold Coast (modern-day southern Ghana), and was the main achievement of a historical movement which sought to unite several smaller kingdoms and communities into a Fante Confederation (1868–1873). While the whole idea of a written constitution which includes the aspect of formal schooling may seem rather “European” or “Western” at a first glance, it is remarkable in that one would not expect it to have occurred in West Africa at that time. The author of this article argues that the Fante Constitution in fact represents a unique early African attempt to construct a modern nation-state based on a written constitution, and that the sections which stipulate and regulate formal schooling are central to its vision. The author embeds the sections concerning education in an analysis of the specific historical situation of the Fante people in West Africa before the establishment of formal British colonial rule on the Gold Coast. She develops two main theses: the constitution (a) is an “African” contribution to educational policymaking, which (b) accords “modern” schooling a crucial role in state-building. She presents these theses in the light of the historical record and competing interpretations in historical discourse. Keywords West Africa · Fanteland · 19th century · African agency · modern education · constitutional rights · compulsory education Résumé Une contribution de l’Afrique vieille de 150 ans au droit constitutionnel à une scolarité moderne – Cet article met en relief la disposition concernant l’offre de scolarité formelle prévue par une constitution régionale ébauchée en 1871, voici près d’un siècle et demi, en Afrique de l’Ouest. Cette constitution, née au Pays fanti, région * Christel Adick [email protected]; [email protected] 1
Faculty of Philosophy and Educational Research, Institute of Educational Research, Ruhr University of Bochum, Bochum, Germany
13
Vol.:(0123456789)
C. Adick
côtière de la Côte-de-l’Or (l’actuel Ghana méridional), fut le principal accomplissement d’un mouvement historique qui cherchait à unir plusieurs petits royaumes et communautés en une Confédération fanti (1868–1873). Bien que de prime abord la notion de constitution écrite englobant la scolarité formelle puisse paraître « européenne » ou « occidentale », elle est remarquable du fait que l’on ne s’attendrait pas à ce qu’elle soit apparue à cette époque en Afrique de l’Ouest. L’auteure de cet article affirme que la Constitution fanti représente en fait une première et unique tentative africaine de construire une nation moderne sur la base d’une constitution écrite et que les paragraphes stipulant et régissant la scolarité formelle sont des élémen
Data Loading...
