Using Documented Kenyan Indigenous Scientific Knowledge to Inform Science Education

• In Event: Roundtable Session 30
  In Roundtable Session: Old-School “Texting”: Returning to Questions of Formal Curriculum

Abstract

Scholars present several arguments for the inclusion of indigenous scientific knowledge in science education. One commonly discussed is its potential contribution to Western science and solving world problems related to science. The scientific studies in this paper have been reviewed and analyzed to understand scientists’ characterizations of Kenyan indigenous scientific knowledge. Examining these studies can help identify “what” indigenous scientific knowledge could be included in science education and “how” to include it. These studies may be characterized by: 1) geographic distribution, 2) methods employed to document the knowledge, 3) content of the knowledge documented, and 4) the modes indigenous communities use to transmit knowledge. More studies are needed to reveal the traditional pedagogies utilized to transmit knowledge within indigenous communities.

Author

• Nicole Beeman-Cadwallader, Indiana University