A ministerial task team established to investigate the possibility of introducing
history as a compulsory subject for grades 10 to 12 has recommended that it be phased in as a required subject.
The team was established in 2015 to advise Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga on the feasibility of making history compulsory, on where the subject should be located in the curriculum (and whether it be incorporated into life orientation or not), and investigating the implications on teaching and textbooks.
Led by Professor Sibusiso Ndlovu, the team found budgetary constraints would have serious implications on the roll-out.
It recommended the implementation be phased in from 2023. This would allow the Education Department to plan and for teachers to be trained.
“Prospective teachers should study history as one of their majors at undergraduate level. A strong recommendation is that this is seen as an opportunity to be creative about teacher development and retraining," read the team's recommendations.
"This used to be the case before the advent of democracy in South Africa, notwithstanding divisions between different schools of thought.
“History teaching in (grades 1 to 9) needs urgent attention and strengthening. The ministerial task team strongly recommends separating history from geography, revising content, including reintroducing archaeology."
It recommended that history not be merged with life orientation.
Motshekga said the team has conducted comparative studies by looking to other countries, including China, India, Russia, Brazil, Nigeria, Rwanda and Zimbabwe.
It has managed to identify areas of weakness and strengthened the curriculum content for grades 4 to 12, she added.
“Young Africans should be taught to develop a sense of pride in their heritage, which in turn will boost their self-esteem and confidence. Consequently, we would empower them to master their own destiny, while simultaneously encouraging them to engage in the arduous task of improving the lot of our continent.
"To this end, it is important to dispel the myth that has existed for decades - that of Africa as a 'troubled continent' renowned more for its wars and diseases than as a source of human progress.
"We need to emphasise that questions of heritage and identity are not as straightforward as they might first appear,” Motshekga said.
The report will be released for public comment and made available on the department’s website, she added.
Jessica Shelver, spokesperson for Education MEC Debbie Schäfer, said her department would comment once it had studied the report.