INTRODUCTION
The importance of indigenous
curriculum tot eh user
“indigenous curriculum could be seen
as all that is available to an individuals in nay social setting which others
such individuals an opportunity to know more about himself.
According to Akuma (2011) It is very
important to know that curriculum of any indigenous society comprises all the
activities, experiences, conditions and situations which the society selects
and organizes consciously to bring positive changes in the learner and the
society at large.
This indigenous curriculum comprises
of both the programme of activities of the society and programme of social
mental activities. The activities of being morally, strong, physically fit,
emotionally stable mentally sound socially amiable.
The indigenous curriculum anned
consciously or unconsciously toward the development of an individual to be
socially fit. For us to better
understand the usefulness of this indigenous curriculum to the user we
are going to consider, we need to understand the factors that properly defines
the usefulness of indigenous curriculum to the user.
These factors includes the culture, the
curriculum user, the elders, the learning process and the disciplines.
Factors are certain conditions that
are necessary for something to happen or to be considered before something
(Akuma 2011:31).
Culture
The culture of the people defines
how usefulness their curriculum could be to the user since in a traditional
setting, you cannot is said to be social heritage. The distinctive way of life
of a people. It is the totality of group experience, thought patterns, beliefs,
actions, skills and behaviour learned and shared by virtue of belonging to a
social unit.
The elders are the cultural
Specialties, who transmit this cultural heritage to the young ones.
Within the society some elders and
adult members have specialized functions as hunters, fishermen, carpenters
(wood carvers) midwives blacksmiths, goldsmiths, herbalists and bonesetters.
Other vocations like wearing, pottery, weaving and dying etc.
These and much more are cultural
disciplines
The learning process is through
imitation, initiation and apprenticeship to prepare the young into the society
and prepare them into adulthood.
The importance to the user
The indigenous curriculum is very
important to the user in so many areas and it is defined on the context of the
type of education available to the people at any particular time.
Fafunwa (1991) aptly defined
indigenous education as the aggregate all the process e.g by which a child
develops his abilities attitudes and other forms of behaviour which are of
positive value to the society in which he lives.
The indigenous curriculum helps the
user in so many areas like
i. To
develop physical skills
ii. Develop
intellectual skills
iii. Have
respect to elders
iv. To value
and promote his cultural heritage
v. To
acquire specific vocational training
v. know the
dignity of honest labour
vi. To have
sense of belonging
i. Inculcate
physical skills
The indigenous curriculum is designed in a traditional
setting to develop the physical and emotional stability of the child. He is
being unconsciously trained on how to jump, climb a tree, swings throw
intertwines, dances or performs a balancing act on logs or on top of fenced
walls with both hands stretched as balancing exercises. This serves as a
natural way or process of growth in the physical environment, no matter how
limiting, challenges the child to try out new ideas.
The indigenous curriculum helps the
child to understand about cultural roots and cultural celebration. How support
and advance the traditional culture that are supportive.
The lack of indigenous education is
lack of indigenous curriculum. The indigenous education is the key to self
determination and it takes place in indigenous languages.
At present, many Nigerians are
deprived of the opportunity to take pride in their indigenous background, which
hindered their identification with their culture and history.
The indigenous curriculum helps the
child to understand the culture and the language of the people.
In medicine, some companies are
using indigenous curriculum (knowledge) to identify medicinal plants with little
or no modification.
2. Intellectual
skills
The curriculum in an indigenous context is not divided
up into subjects as in the western curriculum system.
i. It encourages intellectual growth and
development of the user. At night the adults or elders tell stories about he
historical background of the community the intertribal wars and heroic exploits
of their community with the neighbouring villages.
ii. It also help the user to learn personal
hygiene and environmental sanitation. They swept cpds, villages squares, kept
clean the villages springs and public toilets through the knowledge of
indigenous health education.
3. Helps
the user to have respect to elders
Through the indigenous curriculum, the user is taught
the way of greeting of his people. Verbal greeting are after accompanied by
physical gestures in the form of kneeling down, crouching and shaking hands.
The user by this get conversant with various greeting styles of his ethnic
group.
4. In vocational training
The knowledge acquired from indigenous educational
curriculum in tradition vocation, the user can competently fit into the society
as a herbalists or native medicine, bonesetters, traditional birth attendants.
Vocational training is largely run
on the apprenticeship system. Some of these vocations may be hereditary, only
members of such families can be taught the particular trade.
In Nigeria zone groups or families
specialized in such trades or vocations as mat, blacksmith, bonesetting,
weaving etc. The user gains vast knowledge from this vocational tradition
curriculum.
Knowledge to the user
Increased health
The indigenous curriculum include
the an aspect of traditional health education. Here the people develop a sound
knowledge on preventive medicine. The various herbal drugs in the forest are
made known to the user.
Treebarks, leaves, seeds, roots that
useful for preventive and permanent cures of various disease are taught and
practiced.
It exposes the users to various
physical exercises like wrestling, shooting fishing and hunting expedition
which may latter become ones profession.
In more precise the user is made to
know quite in time, the behaviour which attract moral lapses and deviations
from the norm. beahviours like insubordination, fornication, adultery, theft,
poisoning, attract special punishments.
Also socially the user understand
information about his community, the village goods, marriage customs,
coronation ceremonies, initiation sacrifices of all kinds. In the same way
source of these cultures are strictly gender stero-typed but some may require
the females whether young or old.
Why is it that indigenous curriculum
are important to the user.
Conclusion
Indigenous curriculum consists of
the culture and traditional of the people. By this the user acquires better
social and health habits which demands close familiarity with the total ways of
the life of the people. How they live, do things, values and beliefs.
The user of curriculum is not only
expected to know the cultural heritage of ones people but also to live and
conform to the norms of his culture within his society (use) so as to become
effective citizen Michael michie (1999).
Internet, indigenous people and
their knowledge www.members.ozemail.com
Paper
presented at the fifth UNESCO ACEID international conference “learning
curriculum”.