Reliving South African Apartheid History in a Classroom: Using Vuyisile Mini’s Protest Songs

Abstract

Many history pupils in South African classrooms study history in second or third language. This creates a number of problems for pupils who have to struggle with the language of learning and teaching as they grapple with historical events. This study sought to examine the impact of the protest song in the teaching of South African (struggle) history. The researcher employed qualitative research methods to investigate one teacher’s practice in her two history classes. She used struggle stalwart and composer, Vuyisile Mini’s compositions in facilitating teaching. The songs were either played from an audiotape or the teacher taught the class lyrics of some songs for the pupils to sing. Both the pupils and their teacher concurred that music played a crucial role in the classroom. The pupils also pointed out that music made them to remember historical events. The teacher stated that she wanted the pupils to be able to think critically as they constructed knowledge during the lessons. Moreover, in line with literature, the history classes were able to use cultural memory for critical learning. The methods used in the class were also able to make the pupils transfer learning to other situations. Conclusions illustrate that effective teachers will always seek creative ways to engage pupils in classrooms and music is one of these. Utilizing creative ways continuously is the crux of effective teaching and learning.

Share and Cite:

Msila, V. (2013) Reliving South African Apartheid History in a Classroom: Using Vuyisile Mini’s Protest Songs. Creative Education, 4, 51-57. doi: 10.4236/ce.2013.412A2008.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1] Benson, M. (1985). South Africa, the struggle for a birthright. London: IDAF.
[2] Brewer, C. B. (1995). Music and learning: Integrating music in the classroom. New Horizons for Learning.
[3] Carlson, J. R. (2010). Songs that teach: Using song-poems to teach critically. English Journal, 99, 65-71.
[4] Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2009). Research methods in education. London: Routledge.
[5] Coombes, A. E. (2003). History after apartheid. Johannesburg: Wits University Press.
[6] Deegan, H. (2001). The politics of the new South Africa: Apartheid and after. London: Pearson.
[7] Dominy, G. (2004). The politics of museum collecting in the “old” and the “new” South Africa. In S. J. Knell (Ed.), Museums and the future of collecting (pp. 135-135). Aldershot: Ashgate.
[8] Engh, D. (2013). Why use music in English language learning? A survey of the literature. English language Teaching, 6, 113-127.
[9] Facione, P. A. (2013). Critical thinking: What it is and why it counts. Insight Assessment, 1-28.
[10] Goering, C. Z., & Burenheide, B. J. (2010). Exploring the role of music in secondary English and history classrooms through Personal Practical Theory. SRATE Journal, 19, 44.
[11] Heyning, L. (2011). “I can’t sing!” The concept of teacher confidence in singing and the use within their classroom. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 12, 1-28.
[12] Kramer, D. J. (2001). A blueprint for teaching foreign languages and cultures through music in the classroom and on the web. ADFL Bulletin, 3, 29-35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1632/adfl.33.1.29
[13] Levey, D. L., & Byrd, D. C. (2011). Why can’t we be friends? Using music to teach social justice. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 11, 64-75.
[14] Luckhardt, K., & Wall, B. (1980). Organize…or starve! London: Lawrence and Wishart.
[15] Lujan, H. L., & DiCarlo, S. E. (2006). Too much teaching, not enough learning: What is the solution? Advances in Physiology Education, 30, 17-22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/advan.00061.2005
[16] Mohammadi, R., Naderi, E., Shariyatmadari, A., & Naraghi, M. S. (2013). The study of the effect of centralised planning system on the development of critical thinking in elementary school students. European Journal of Experimental Biology, 3, 654-660.
[17] Paras, E., Piche, B., & Nillas, L. (2010). Teaching and learning with primary sources: Research and practice. Teaching with Primary Sources, 2.
[18] Roux, E. (1964). Time longer than rope: A history of the black man’s struggle for freedom in South Africa. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
[19] Shelley, A. E. (2009). Beyond buzz words and skill sets: The role of critical thinking in information literacy. Library Student Journal, 4, 1.
[20] Van der Merwe, L. (2007). The “How To” of history teaching with and through music in the GET phase. Yesterday & Today, 1 May 2007, 172-192.
[21] Vos, J. (1999). An introduction to music revolution. Auckland: The Learning Web Limited.
[22] Whitmer, M. (2005). Using music to teach American history. OAH Magazine of History, 4-6 July 2005.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/maghis/19.4.4

Copyright © 2024 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc.

Creative Commons License

This work and the related PDF file are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.