Guiding African Communities to Empower Themselves and their Families
William Jackson, M.Ed.
The growth of technology is empowering African people and
African communities. African are growing into agents of change,
changing their local communities, changing being made in their
nations and changes being made on the continent.
The educational systems of Africa will be key to local, community,
national and continental influences. Sharing strategies for African
educational institutions to align their curriculum’s so administrators,
teachers and support staff are the mentors and influencers their
students need.
The first teachers are parents, but parenting only goes so far,
the next piece to this puzzle are educators of all levels. The value of
mentoring, building mentors and developing a mind-set that learning
is valuable. Empowerment is important and vital to effect change.
Here are suggestions that can potentially change lives.
1. African youth, teens and young adults need to remember
themselves and where they have come from. The value and
empowerment of being a life-long learners.
2. African youth, teens and young adults need to remember their
cultural greatness and cultural successes. If African students fail
to remember their past greatness they will not have a vision for
their futures.
3. African youth, teens and young adults need to understand the
value of the women of Africa. The mothers, grandmothers, aunts
and other mothers that have sacrificed for their children to
grow beyond their families to live better lives.
4. African youth, teens and young adults need to be careful of
those still caught in a colonial frame of mind and refuse to have
a vision for the future. Lack of vision creates a lack of growth.
5. African youth, teens and young adults need education, to see
the value of a struggle and overcome that struggle.
6. African youth, teens and young adults need families to be
willing to learn together and grow together.
7. African youth, teens and young adults need African writers
and intellectuals to use their skills to the villages to teach the
villages around them. Never forget, nor give up on those
still struggling to grow.
8. African youth, teens and young adults need to remember
the writers and intellectuals that created pathways for
learning. Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soleyenka,
Chimamunda Adiche and those of the past.
9. African youth, teens and young adults need to remember
that in order to connect with the community you must learn
the language of the community and understand the history
of the community.
10. African youth, teens and young adults need to use their
influence to provide a voice to the voice-less. Creating
change in the community on a positive level.
11. African youth, teens and young adults need to remember
that colonization enforces a language of domination. This
must be overcome in order to move on and grow
independently.
12. African youth, teens and young adults need to use past,
present and potentially future knowledge to help break
the mental slavery that may still be present.
13. African youth, teens and young adults need to
understand the psychological processes of communication
and how to apply media to vocalize the needs of the people.
14. African youth, teens and young adults need to understand
that language is the way to memory. If people forget to use
language to share their history, they will lose their history.
15. African youth, teens and young adults need to understand
Social Media allows those who manage technology to control
the language. Once you control the language of a people you
also control the memory of a people.
16. African youth, teens and young adults need perceptions
that are very important and can guide thinking, speakers.
Like Panache Chigumadzi have a voice to help Africans to grow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hemD116ipcg
17. African youth, teens and young adults need to work to
unleash African youth potential for positive and transformative
change. Speakers like Taleni Shimhopileni have a voice to
share with her generation and others.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sBp0gXN7490
