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Predominantly Muslim territory, the North received western education later than the South. The Wesleyan and Basel missionaries established schools in Cape Coast, Accra . These commercial activities, therefore, made an important contribution to the economic development of Ghana. Textbooks were heavily biased towards western ideas and values. A new attempt to spread Christianity was made when the Church Missionary Society (CMS) arrived from Britain in 1821. They also prescribed many taboos which, in the light of modern medical science, had no relation whatever with the illness being treated. The early success of the missionaries included areas like Freetown and surrounding villages. government questions The traditions and values of the community, as well as the meaning of life, were taught to the child. church were founded in south-eastern Nigeria, the chief centres being Bonny and Brass. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. There were no Bibles in local languages, likewise grammar books were scant, so the missionaries had to spend time learning local languages, and translated the Bible and wrote series of grammar books. Sign in to view the collection. The Basel Mission, as a result of this phenomenal expansion trained many local personnel to man the new stations. According to the Head of the Methodist Church in Ghana, Mmofraturo was established in Kumasi, 'when it dawned on the early Wesleyan Missionaries that when the girl child was educated, she could grow up to face the challenges of the fast-changing world. The Ghana Education Decentralization Project (GEDP), launched in 2010 and ended in 2012, has increased the influence of local authorities over management . History Missionary, educator contributed to building independent Ghana. The early European Christian missionaries in West Africa experienced a number of difficulties, some arising from factors outside their control and others of their own making. The History of Christianity in West Africa. The original letters from abroad cover West Africa from 1899 to 1933. Again, the missionaries persuaded Africans to abandon the practice of tribal marks. Within ten years the C.M.S had opened twelve more schools in what is today Cross Rivers State. CONTRIBUTION OF CHRISTIANITY TO WEST AFRICA. The Portuguese were the first to introduce the Christian faith into West Africa but following their departure from the West Coast in the mid-seventeenth century, the Christian religion survived only in Upper Guinea where a bishop was maintained in the Cape Verde Islands serving also a part of the mainland. The Christian Connector Scholarship. Despite the skills and opportunities mission schooling afforded, many Africans were not willing to pay the price. Meanwhile, the Scottish missionary, Mary Slessor, had established a reputation in the Cross River area as a nurse. Missionaries travelled through dense evergreen forests, crossed rivers and climbed mountains to bring the Gospel to as many Ghanaians as they could. In 1827 it grew into Fourah Bay College. The original Yaba College in Lagos has grown into a polytechnic. During the first half of the 19th century they targeted healthier places, with relatively lower malaria-risk, where European missionaries could survive and train local African missionaries and teachers (Jedwab et al. However, by the turn of the Nineteenth Century there was systematic efforts by churches of Christian Europe, namely: Anglicans, Methodists, and Baptists who were active in Sierra Leone and, with Presbyterians, in Nigeria, while Methodists also set up missions in Ghana, Gambia, and Dahomey. In addition, while missionaries did run many academic primary schools, they provided little secondary education, a practice which prevented natives from becoming too educated (Ayandele 1966:286) and potentially subversive. Prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 15th century, informal education existed in Ghana with the goal of introducing young people into the society. Hildebrandt, Jonathan. The early missionaries set up craft centres as part of their educational programmes. Email: henrydonsco@gmail.com As happened in other colonial territories, the government did not show great interest in the provision of education in Ghana until the missionaries had extended their services throughout the country and had set up primary schools and a few secondary schools and training colleges. EVANGELICAL MOVEMENTS AND MISSIONARY SOCIETIES IN THE ENGLISH COLONIES. Arnold, 1986. others adopted a system of education varied from one and the other hence, lacking consistency in the educational sector [3]. These missionary societies laid the foundations of the Roman Catholic Church in West Africa, which lasted through to the independence period when African clergy replaced the white pastors. The Essay Writing ExpertsUK Essay Experts. The Journal of Negro Education, 2019 And yet the Asafo provided most of the services which a community needed: protection against military attacks, communal services, etc. In fact, Jacobus Capitein, a former Ghanaian slave who became a priest in the Dutch Reformed Church in the 18th century was on record to have defended the practice of slavery. The late Eighteenth Century witnessed the rise of Christian groups in Europe that resorted to the evangelization of Africa. The resulting atmosphere of disunity enabled the European colonialists to easily achieve their goal of economic exploitation. Renewed evangelism started when the Basel (later known as Presbyterian) missionaries started work at Osu (Accra). The problems created by the white missionaries themselves arose largely from a misconception of what Africa represented. One reason why the Christian missionaries came to Ghana and the rest of Africa was to convert the people to the Christian faith. Missionaries continued to be the main providers of education even after colonial powers established control during the so-called Scramble for Africa which occurred between 1884-1914. All rights reserved. The consequences of norm conflicts are likely to manifest beyond educational pursuit. In the Gambia, the Methodist missionary and first principal of what later became known as the Gambia High School, the Rev. However the superficial motivations and ideologies have changed, at the most basic level both contemporary Northern charities and nineteenth century missionaries share the belief that the North must come and save the suffering natives, which in the case of the missionaries, has been proven to have inflicted more harm than provided relief. Upon completing his degree, Father Burke received his first assignment abroad: Ghana, the first Black sub-Saharan country in Africa to gain independence from a colonial power. English comprehension The mission schools trained Africans to be able to work as translators, messengers and office clerks for the colonial government. Ghana Education Service seeks to create an enabling environment in all educational institutions and management positions that will facilitate effective teaching and learning and efficiency in the management for the attainment of the goals of the Service. These pioneer mission schools met with a discouraging response. In this chapter, we shall examine how Christianity and Western-style education influenced West Africans values, attitudes and life-styles. For the next decade, the Church grew in Ghana at an accelerated pace. hbbd```b``vd d"e ] DrI`5 d"(/ 3 (2002): 555-584. A large percentage of Ghanas 30 million people are nominally Christian (more than 70% as of the last census), and 28% consider themselves evangelical believers. This Western education imparted to the Ameru by the Church of Scotland Missionaries, Consolata . In my study, I explored how colonial era conflicts and disagreements over marriage norms lastingly affected educational development. The high temperatures coupled with high rainfall patterns in some parts of the country experienced during the daytime, made the missionaries stay indoors, which slowed down their activities. It offered the most direct path towards prestigious jobs in colonial administrations and European enterprises. Andreas Riis, assisted by a team of West Indian evangelists, laid the foundations of the Basel Missionary Church in the country. Within ten years of Father Bergheros visit, the Roman Catholic Church in Nigeria had become so well established that it ceased to be under administration from Dahomey. By 1914 there were barely thirty schools in that vast area. While living at the Divine Word Residence in Bordentown, N.J., he often visited parishes and schools to talk about missionary work. Waterville Pub. The constant tensions between traditionalists and Christian converts often erupted into all-out conflicts. In 1859, the first newspaper in Yoruba, called the Iwe-Irohim, was published by the missionaries. Johannes Zimmermann wrote a grammar of the Ga language, and in 1874 the Rev. Another important German missionary was Wilhelm Johannson, better known by the English version of his name, William Johnson, who is revered in the history of the CMS in West Africa. The country has diverse geography, people groups, and languageswith English as the common language, and more than 11 others with state recognition. It included the opening up of Africa to forces of change namely commerce (legitimate commerce, i.e. Teacher training colleges in Ghana did not expand as fast as the secondary schools. The Journal of Negro Education (JNE), a scholarly refereed journal, was founded at Howard University in 1932. Thomas Thompson, arrived in Cape Coast in 1752. John G. Christaller (described as the Father of Twi Literature) produced a Twi grammar and dictionary, a collection of Twi proverbs, a Twi translation of the Bible as well as prayers and hymns. The contents of this tutorial will serve as a guide for a suitable essay on the below WAEC/WASSCE History past question. As a member of the Church of England, it interests me to see echoes of Christian educational efforts by organizations such as Compassion Canada in the educational efforts of the missionary branch of the Anglican Church, the Church Missionary Society, or CMS. The most momentous discovery in western Africa came in 1471, when Portuguese captains first reached the coast of modern Ghana between the mouths of the Ankobra and Volta rivers. Indeed, most of our early nationalists were all products of mission schools. At the time of its inception, however, there was no publication that systematically or comprehensively addressed the enormous problems that characterized the education of Blacks in the United States and elsewhere. A short history of education in British West Africa. History of the church in Africa: a survey. Within a short time the missionaries spread their activities inland. The early Christian missions concentrated their activities not only on religious matters. Another difficulty that the early missionaries faced in the spread of Christianity was insufficient Christian literature at that time. For instance the scholar E.A. personal development Barely ten years later, after the first missionaries arrived, the Methodists, for example, had started a station as far inland as MacCarthy Island. They also introduced vocational education in the country. Some of the positive development outcomes of former British colonies are arguably the result of a permissive attitude towards mission schools. I will earn a commission if you follow a link to purchase a product. Four volumes of incoming correspondence marked "West Africa" on the spine. Isichei, Elizabeth. In Ghana the Presbyterians were pioneers in reducing Ga and Twi into writing. The copies of letters received, 1890-1927, mention the plan from 1914 to gain control of future Ashanti Chiefs using education. The first school in Nigeria was started by the Methodist missionaries at Badagry in 1842. Among several others, the native Bishop Ajayi Crowther produced the first translation of the Bible in Yoruba. Babalola, E. O. Christianity in West Africa. For several years they paid attention to slave trade rather than evangelization and Christianization of the people of West-Africa. To their minds, Africans were too backward and needed help to become more civilized. In Sierra Leone, the Church Missionary Society (CMS), offshoot of the Anglican Church, was the first to become firmly established chiefly among the freed captive and freed slave settlers from Britain, Nova Scotia and other parts of the New World. However, as Jonathan Miran (2002) argues in his work on the roles of missionaries and the Italian state in Eritrean education, missionaries should not be held solely accountable for the poor standards of education. The first batch, who came out between 1804 and 1806, included pioneer missionaries like Renner and Nylander. Notable among these were cocoa and coffee. While the Evangelical Presbyterian missionaries were the First to develop literature in Ewe, the Roman Catholics were responsible for Nzima literature. There were related organizations that sprang up in Scandinavia, Holland and the USA. Purchase a license below to view the full collection. Evans Brothers, Ltd. London. The role of the Christian missionaries in Ghana and West Africa was not limited to the education and agricultural sectors alone. 4; img 109. Hundreds of believers were baptized, branches organized, and a mission established. Seeing as missions in the British and Italian colonies had monopolies on education for the nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries, this reluctance meant that there were few secondary schools at all (Ayandele 1966:287; Beck 1966: 120). Also the missionaries set up model farms where scientific agriculture was taught and new crops were introduced for the people, to go alongside longstanding indigenous production. And traditionally polygamous societies would have higher educational outcomes today. The city of Akuropong capital of the Akan state of Akuapem in Ghana, has known the Christian presence during the last 186 years, initially centered on the Basel Mission, then on the Free Church of Scotland, and now on the Presbyterian Church of Ghana. Grammar School for Boys in 1859, St Gregorys College opened by the Catholics in 1876, Methodist Boys High School 1878 and Methodist Girls High School 1879. I wanted to buy a smartphone for him, but when he got to know the price of the cell phone, he humbly declined. In 1880, two Roman Catholic priests of the Society of African Missions (S.M.A. Not only did mission education strengthen colonial rule, but it also weakened traditional societies and implemented poor standards of Western education. Copyright 2003 - 2023 - UKEssays is a trading name of Business Bliss Consultants FZE, a company registered in United Arab Emirates. primarily purposed to outline the contributions of religion and education to national development in Ghana. better grades Instruction in the Colonial School and the Wesleyan Mission schools at Cape Coast Castle was in English despite the fact that Fanti was the language of the native people. Also, Christian missionaries in Ghana were as zealous as their counterparts in Nigeria in pioneering medical services. Human Zoos: Untold History of Suppression, The Legend of King Ulu (Ancient Thai Folklore), The Kingdom of Saud of The Arabs (Saudi Arabia), The Wesley Brothers of Oxford University (1700s), Razia Sultan of Medieval India (786 Years Ago), The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade (The Revelation), Education in Africa: The Impact of Colonialism, Why The Legendary Geneva Bible was Banned. It is possible to hear the tune of this missionary hymn. Two other training colleges opened by the missionaries, in the early days, were the Wesley College in Kumasi (1922) and the Roman Catholic Training College at Amisano, near Elmina (1931) which in 1936 moved to the campus of the newly founded secondary school, St Augustines College at Cape Coast. Kalu, Ogbu. The home page of Compassion Canada is that of a stereotypical Northern charity: showing pictures of suffering children alternating with those of post-intervention, happy children. Nevertheless, the first higher institution in Ghana, now the Presbyterian Training College at Akuapem Akropon, was established in 1848, first as a centre for training catechists, and later to train teachers as well as ministers of the Presbyterian Church. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Founded in 1875 by St. Arnold Janssen, we number more than 6,000 missionaries. 'In view of this idea, Mmofraturo, the first girls boarding school in Ashanti was officially . As one Eritrean student remarks, Our sisters [the Italian Sisters] would have undoubtedly taught better and more, but the Italian government in the colony did not permit Eritreans to get good instruction (T.T. Who is Mrs. Konrad in Second Class Citizen? In 1880, two Roman Catholic priests of the Society of African Missions (S.M.A. The Basel missionaries arrived on the shores of the Gold Coast in 1828 and They therefore set about to achieve this through introduction of formal education among the Batswana people. After six years at St. Peters, Father Burke was named chaplain and professor of English literature at St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School in Osu, Ghana. It also talks about all the mission societies from all denominations engaged in educational works. A history of Christianity in Ghana. life skills In addition to teaching, he served as national spiritual director of the Ghana Sacred Heart Enthronement Centre and spiritual director of the Accra Diocesan Sacred Heart Centre. The common response among traditionally polygamous people is well illustrated by a passage in Jomo Kenyattas famous book on the Gikuyu in colonial Kenya: This [the insistence on monogamy] caused a great confusion, for the African could not understand how he could drive away his wives and children, especially in a community where motherhood is looked upon as a religious duty; the children are regarded as part and parcel, not only of the father, but of the whole clan (mbari), and without them the mbari is lost. They worked to write the bible, dictionaries and textbooks in such Ghanaian Languages as Ewe, Fanti, Ga and Twi. In 1989-90, the government banned the activities of several religious organizations, including the Church. Over time and with the dedication of teachers like Father Burke, the school rose to prominence. Thus missionaries, by imparting education that promoted dependence on colonial rule, arguably contributed to the political instability that continues in the present day in many former African colonies, such as Kenya and Eritrea. We shall now turn our attention to the activities of the Christian missionaries in Ghana. Johannes Zimmermann, for example, produced a Ga dictionary, Ga bible and grammar book. For example, the missionaries preached against certain aspects of African culture they considered barbaric or satanic or both. The restrictions intensified until in the second week of 1917, when all German missionaries were rounded up, brought to Accra and deportations began on December 16. In regions where a denomination felt threatened by another denomination, the denominations were more likely to establish more schools in an attempt to gain more converts than their rival, while in regions such as northern Nigeria, where colonial policy prevented too much rivalry, schools were scarce (Bassey 1991:45). Besides being an online tutor, Ralph is an author and expert digital marketer with proven skills in SEO content writing. Early missions conducted by Roman Catholics were short-lived. The latter, non-academic form of education provided by the missions has stimulated much interest among scholars, who are particularly interested in the failure of many of these schools and the hypocritical government support for the schools, seeing as the import of cheap goods from the mother countries caused many vocational school graduates, such as seamstresses, to be unemployed (Ayandele 1966:296; Foster 1965:134). Prominent among the early Christian missionaries to come to the Gold Coast (Ghana) were the Roman Catholic, Methodist, Basel, Bremen and Anglican missions. The kingdom of God in Africa: A short history of African Christianity. Europe in those days looked upon Africa as the Dark Continent with very primitive civilizations, and most Europeans refused to adapt their religion to suit the local situation. It was only after the Second World War that the colonial governments started to show a real interest in the promotion of formal education in West Africa. Samuel Adu-Gyamfi And Benjamin Kye Ampadu, Ajayi, J..F.A and Michael Crowder History of West Africa. All the three secondary schools in Cape Coast were mission institutions. Christian missionaries were the first to introduce European-style education in sub-Saharan Africa. The practice of inflicting multiple wounds on the bodies of so-called spirit babies now belongs to history. In 1892, the Church Missionary Society opened the Iyi Enu Hospital in Onitsha which is today a leading hospital in Anambra state. One of their scholarships is a drawing for $2,500. In fact, most of the norms opposed by missionaries concerned gender relationships. Finally, education affects many other aspects of peoples lives, including economic opportunities and political attitudes. Required fields are marked *. They often attributed natural ailments to supernatural causes and resorted to mystic cults to appease the unknown spirit, before applying medicine to the sick person. Missionaries and the intellectual history of Africa: a historical survey. Itinerario 7, no. A notable example, in Ghana, was the Methodist experimental farm near Cape Coast whose crops included cotton, coffee, black pepper, mango, ginger, cinnamon and olive trees. Economics Following agitation by the people in 1934, the government opened the old Yaba Higher College and Medical School, which awarded diplomas acceptable only locally. He was followed, three years afterwards, by the Rev. History books tended to exaggerate in achievements of Europeans, making no reference to Africans own great past. independent learning For instance, on 2nd October 1792, the Baptist Missionary Society was formed followed by the interdenominational London Missionary Society which was established in 1795. But that increase was greater in monogamous societies. They even considered traditional drumming and African clothing as practices that were not worthy in the sight of the Lord. Success followed the efforts of the pioneer missionaries. Senior High School Literature Above, we have described the role that trading companies, missionaries, and the government played for the spread of Western education in the coastal areas from the late sixteenth century onwards. Development of Education in Sierra Leone. It is important to emphasize that the modern history of the Christian Mission in Africa started from the late Eighteenth Century, the Catholics had been there earlier in the first centuries of the Christian era especially during the first Portuguese adventures. S.J. Literature Mobility depended on the . Theres still so much to be learned from the history of education in Africa and its long-term consequences. Edward Berman notes that contemporary critics of the missionaries felt that missionaries were more interested in increasing enrolments in their respective churches than in pooling their resources for the benefit of African education (Berman 1974:533). 517 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<2E41B338ACB2B2110A00B08D5A5CFE7F>]/Index[503 20]/Info 502 0 R/Length 86/Prev 357984/Root 504 0 R/Size 523/Type/XRef/W[1 3 1]>>stream Again, in West-Africa, the efforts to go beyond the coast to reach those inland with the gospel coincided with the southwards expansion of Islam which posed some threat to the expansion of the work of Christian evangelizing missions. The effects of work done by Bishop Ajayi Crowther, assisted by the Igbo recaptive the Rev. which were for females (Graham, 1971). The coming of the Christian missionaries to Ghana had a positive impact on agriculture. Rather, it denationalized and facilitated the indignity and loss of cultural identity of the Ghanaian. Soon after the start of elementary schools, the missionaries started opening higher institutions also. By using postcolonial theory as a framework for analysis, it is evident that the Western formal education introduced to the people of the Gold Coast by the Christian missionaries and the British Colonial government did not serve the indigenous population well.