Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-24T01:58:56.829Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

A West African Folktale in the Classroom

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2008

Extract

The author describes an investigation into the use of West African folklore in the school curriculum by means of an African folktale which became the basis for a project in the class music lessons. Starting with research into West African folklore, particularly children's stories and songs, in Ghana and Nigeria between 1979 and 1983, music was composed in a basically African style to go with an adaptation of one of the stories.

The practical work in a London primary school investigated ways of minimising the apparent dichotomy between African and Western musics in the curriculum.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1986

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Amoaku, W. K. (1982) ‘Parallelisms in a traditional African system of education and Orff Schulwerk’, African Music 6 (2), 116–19.Google Scholar
Bebey, F. (1975) African Music: A People's Art, trans. Bennet, Josephine. New York: Lawrence Hill.Google Scholar
Euba, A. (1975) ‘The dichotomy of African music’, Music Educators Journal 61 (5), 54–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gibby, B. (1978) Curriculum evaluation: with reference to some projects. In Lawton, D., Theory and Practice of Curriculum Studies. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.Google Scholar
Kwami, R. M. (1984) West African folklore and the school curriculum: an investigation. Unpublished MA dissertation, University of London Institute of Education.Google Scholar
Lawton, D. (1978) Curriculum Evaluation: New Approaches. In Lawton, D., Theory and Practice of Curriculum Studies. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.Google Scholar
Merriam, A. P. (1965) The Anthropology of Music. Illinois: Northwest ern University Press.Google Scholar
Nketia, J. H. K. (1970) ‘Music Education in Africa and the West: we can learn from each other’, Music Educators Journal 57 (3), 4854.Google Scholar
Pring, R. (1978) Teacher as Researcher. In Lawton, .D., Theory and Practice of Curriculum Studies. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.Google Scholar
Small, C. (1983) ‘The vernacular in music education’, Educational Analysis 5 (2), 6575.Google Scholar
Stenhouse, L. (1975) An Introduction to Curriculum Research and Development. London: Heinemann.Google Scholar
Ward, W. E. (1934) ‘Gold Coast music in education’, Oversea Education 5, 6471.Google Scholar