HED4805
ASSIGNMENT 2 2025
UNIQUE NO:
DUE DATE: 20 JUNE 2025
, HED4805
Assignment 2 2025
Unique Number:
Due Date: 20 June 2025
South African History of Education
Question 1 (25 marks)
1.1 Explain how global schools spread in the Global South and Global North. (10)
The spread of global schools in both the Global South and Global North is rooted in
historical, economic, and political developments. In the Global North, the establishment
and spread of global schools were largely tied to internal developments such as
industrialization, the Enlightenment, and the growth of the nation-state. Education
systems were created to meet the needs of an industrializing society, emphasizing
literacy, numeracy, and citizenship education to support economic growth and social
cohesion. Schools became vehicles for promoting national identity and preparing
citizens for participation in economic and political life.
In contrast, the spread of global schools in the Global South was heavily influenced by
colonialism. During the colonial era, European imperial powers established schools in
their colonies primarily to serve colonial interests. These schools often promoted
Eurocentric curricula that marginalized or entirely ignored indigenous knowledge
systems, histories, and cultures. Education in the Global South was used as a tool of
domination, focusing on producing a small elite class to assist in colonial administration
rather than promoting broad-based education for the colonized populations.
After decolonization, many countries in the Global South inherited these education
systems, which continued to reflect Eurocentric models and values rather than
indigenous realities. Efforts to reform and decolonize education have been ongoing but
, have often been challenged by continued reliance on models and epistemologies
developed in the Global North.
Thus, while the spread of global schools in the North was internally motivated and
linked to development needs, in the South it was externally imposed through
colonialism, with lingering effects that still require intentional decolonization efforts
today.
1.2 Outline the state of research in the Global South, and suggest what can be
done to improve or encourage research in the field of the History of Education.
(15)
The state of research in the Global South remains underdeveloped and marginalized
when compared to that of the Global North. Studies show that scholarly publications are
still dominated by researchers from the Global North, who also disproportionately set
research agendas and focus areas. Even when the Global South is the subject of
research, the studies are often conducted by Northern scholars. For example, only
2.13% of articles published in Thomson-Reuters indexed education journals in 2012
were authored by African scholars. Similarly, in journals like Paedagogica Historica, the
representation of authors from the Global South remains alarmingly low, with only 1.6%
of authors coming from the Global South between 1990 and 1995.
Research topics have often been skewed toward issues relevant to the Global North,
influenced by movements like the Civil Rights Movement and #BlackLivesMatter, rather
than issues specific to the South. Indigenous perspectives and historical truths have
been historically ignored or assessed through a Eurocentric lens, perpetuating the
marginalization of Global South epistemologies.
To improve or encourage research in the History of Education in the Global
South, several measures can be taken:
ASSIGNMENT 2 2025
UNIQUE NO:
DUE DATE: 20 JUNE 2025
, HED4805
Assignment 2 2025
Unique Number:
Due Date: 20 June 2025
South African History of Education
Question 1 (25 marks)
1.1 Explain how global schools spread in the Global South and Global North. (10)
The spread of global schools in both the Global South and Global North is rooted in
historical, economic, and political developments. In the Global North, the establishment
and spread of global schools were largely tied to internal developments such as
industrialization, the Enlightenment, and the growth of the nation-state. Education
systems were created to meet the needs of an industrializing society, emphasizing
literacy, numeracy, and citizenship education to support economic growth and social
cohesion. Schools became vehicles for promoting national identity and preparing
citizens for participation in economic and political life.
In contrast, the spread of global schools in the Global South was heavily influenced by
colonialism. During the colonial era, European imperial powers established schools in
their colonies primarily to serve colonial interests. These schools often promoted
Eurocentric curricula that marginalized or entirely ignored indigenous knowledge
systems, histories, and cultures. Education in the Global South was used as a tool of
domination, focusing on producing a small elite class to assist in colonial administration
rather than promoting broad-based education for the colonized populations.
After decolonization, many countries in the Global South inherited these education
systems, which continued to reflect Eurocentric models and values rather than
indigenous realities. Efforts to reform and decolonize education have been ongoing but
, have often been challenged by continued reliance on models and epistemologies
developed in the Global North.
Thus, while the spread of global schools in the North was internally motivated and
linked to development needs, in the South it was externally imposed through
colonialism, with lingering effects that still require intentional decolonization efforts
today.
1.2 Outline the state of research in the Global South, and suggest what can be
done to improve or encourage research in the field of the History of Education.
(15)
The state of research in the Global South remains underdeveloped and marginalized
when compared to that of the Global North. Studies show that scholarly publications are
still dominated by researchers from the Global North, who also disproportionately set
research agendas and focus areas. Even when the Global South is the subject of
research, the studies are often conducted by Northern scholars. For example, only
2.13% of articles published in Thomson-Reuters indexed education journals in 2012
were authored by African scholars. Similarly, in journals like Paedagogica Historica, the
representation of authors from the Global South remains alarmingly low, with only 1.6%
of authors coming from the Global South between 1990 and 1995.
Research topics have often been skewed toward issues relevant to the Global North,
influenced by movements like the Civil Rights Movement and #BlackLivesMatter, rather
than issues specific to the South. Indigenous perspectives and historical truths have
been historically ignored or assessed through a Eurocentric lens, perpetuating the
marginalization of Global South epistemologies.
To improve or encourage research in the History of Education in the Global
South, several measures can be taken:
