An Oyewumi Reading of Education in South Africa

Within the history of activism around the development of education in South Africa, there is a
normalization of male dominance in efforts to solve societal issues and the transformation of societies.
This has resulted in the misrepresentation of women in the development of education. It is in this way
that the efforts of African women become disregarded. This takes away from the fact that African
women have historically been natural teachers and knowledge creators for the safeguarding of their
communities despite not having rights and privileges during apartheid. It is in this regard that
Oyewumi’s scholarly work is significant to this research paper due to her recognition of the
reproduction of the internalised colonial legacy in South Africa, historically and contemporarily.
Although Oyewumi’s work focuses mainly on the Yoruba land in Nigeria, it remains relevant to the
overall experiences of women in Africa and their journey to being heard and seen in a society where
historical debates and discourses on the socio-political development of public education is
gendaralised. The aim of this paper is not to disregard/discredit the contributions of men, but to bring
to the forefront the African women’s contributions to the development and transformation of their
societies. Therefore, an approach such as this is an effort to decolonise education research by shifting
away from a racialised and male dominated façade in the development and socio-political building of
education in South Africa.
Keywords: African women, apartheid, male dominance, education, Oyewumi