Erasure of Post-Colonial Political Activism in Malawi’s History Education

Bridget Galafa, Thokozani Galafa

Abstract


The History curriculum in Malawi has experienced reforms due to the various political periods that have dictated its direction. The agency for a revised curriculum first appeared upon independence when the country adopted a colonial education system. The paper argues that such a process was hijacked by the then liberation movement that had emerged victorious against white colonial rule – the Malawi Congress Party. This meant erasing narratives that would otherwise challenge the government’s legitimacy and incumbency. Through a review of the current History syllabi which evolved from a 2013 curriculum review and a close reading of the recommended history textbooks, the paper argues that the erasure of such counter-narratives remains intact to this day, basically for the same reasons they were excluded from the initial post-independence curriculum opposition to political hegemony. It, therefore, argues for the re-inclusion of these multiple histories to create complete narratives that have otherwise been fragmented by revisionism.


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.15548/thje.v6i1.9707

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