History of West Africa part II

Pre-Colonial west African states

• According to great scholars like Plato: A state is an ethical religious institution which care for material needs.
• Aristotle pointed out that; man is apolitical animal (Homo political). A society / state is built gradually i.e it starts from the family up to the national level.
• The Medieval conception of a state was influenced by Aristotelian ideology. Many scholars concurred with the idea that a state is an ethical religious institution because it takes care of spiritual people.
• Modern scholars pointed out that a state is a contract between the rulers and the ruled which means is a product of socialization.
• Benedict Spinoza, states that a state arose from the contract entered to by people who lived in irrational nature (perpetual wars)
• Thomas Hobbes asserts that man lived in natural egoism with a drive to procure maximum leisure because man by nature has the right to every thing. But in the society there is no security for everyone hence they had to form a state.

Marxist State Formation

• According to Marxist conception, a state emerges where there is economic classes, and where there is economic exploitation. The function of the state is to regulate struggles between conflicting classes.

Origin of a State

• The state arises because of the needs of the people. Man by nature is not satisfied by the simple division of labour. As soon as man acquires basic needs he needs other luxurious.
• Plato pointed out that rich people are not supposed to rule. To him those knowledgeable should rule the society. He also poses an argument that a ruler should not get married (to devote time to think, plan, and implement the society’s needs)
• Every political system must have material base i.e economic base and production. Production according to Karl Marx is divided into material production and reproduction.

Theories of State Formation

• Voluntaristic – Spontaneous, Hydraulic, Automatic (Jean Jacques Rousseau’s social contrast)
• Coercive theory – Wars and conquest theories
• Circumscription theory – Harsh circumstance or environment force people into favourable geographical conditions/ state formation. (E.g the Mfecane wars compelled Moshesh to form the Basuto kingdom at Thaba Bonsiu mountain)

Eurocentric scholars have kept on arguing that state craft was brought from outside Africa.

Some of states formed in west africa

Development of Ghana empire.

Ghana Empire developed in the areas of Western Sudan. This region is where empires such as Mali and Songhai were located. It was also known as the “land of gold”.

Factors for the Development of Ghana Empire

• Geographical location, the kingdom of Ghana was located in place which received enough rain fall which supported agricultural activities.
• Specialization in economic activities such as agriculture, trade and mining.
• Availability of minerals such gold, salt and copper. Gold was very important for trade. The kingdom of Ghana controlled Gold deposits.
• Development of iron technology and productive forces. Iron improved agriculture and weapon making.
• The rise of Trans Sahara Trade. Through Trans Sahara Trade, Kings were able to get guns for expansion.
• Tributes and taxes were used to pay officials and soldiers.
• Good administration, it is said that the king possessed divine power and the kingdom was divided into provinces like central government and provinces. The king was at the top and was assisted by the ministers.

The Decline of Ghana Empire

• Internal contradictions within the empire. Ghana was heterogeneous state as opposed to homogeneous.
• The introduction of Islam which divided Ghana Empire into Muslim and non-mulim.
• The conquest of Ghana Empire by Almoravids. The Almoravid were led by Abdallah Ibn Yasin.
• Ghana also was attacked by the Susu leader and defeated.

The Asante Empire

Asante Empire was one among the forest states of West Africa. The founders of Asante Empire were part of the Akan people of modern Ghana. It consisted of many petty states and kingdoms around Kumasi.

• Obiri Yeboa formed the state around 1670 as a chief of the Oyoko clan. He became chief of the small state of KWAAMAN.

• Through conquest and diplomacy he persuaded the chiefs of the small states to accept him as a king. However, Yeboa was soon killed at a war with a small state of Roma.

Factors for the rise

(i) The rise and existence of many small states in the area around modern Kumasi.

e.g Mampon, Afigyaase, and Seniagya. Others included Abooso, Baman Malcom and Agona. The last group of states to emerge in the area were Dwaben, Kokofu,Nsuta,Bekwai, and Kumasi. These states were brought under a strong leader and formed the Asante Empire.

(ii) Oppressive rule by Denkyira. Pre-Asante states were subjected to tyrannical rule of Denkyira. Denkyira enslaved the people of these states and stopped them to engage into trade with European merchants at the coast. Many of these states were prepared for revolts against Denkyira.

(iii) Trade

Asante Empire developed trade links with people in the interior and European traders at the Coast .They traded in gold, ivory, kola nuts, and slaves.

The rise of Atlantic trade contributed greatly to the emergence of Asante in particular

because it gained access to guns and ammunition which were essential for expansion.

(iv) Strong army

The Asante had a royal army for keeping peace and conquest.

- Obiri Yeboa organized military campaigns for the expansion of his kingdom.

- When Yeboa died (1670s) Osei Tutu continued conquering the Akan states placing his capital at Kumasi.

(v) Good leadership

The growth of Asante Empire was a result of the work of the first three rulers, Obiri Yeboa,

Osei Tutu and Opuku Ware.

- The Empire had a council headed by the Asantehene who evaluated the Empire’s activities.

(vi) Strong unity

The Asante unity was forged and represented by the “Golden Stool” which was introduced by the priest Okonfa Anokye. The Golden Stool was a symbol of unity in the kingdom.

- The Asantehene introduced the Odwira festival once a year on which chiefs of the conquered states (Amanhene) gathered at the capital to settle disputes.

The Decline

• From around 1820 to 1880’s the greater Asante started to decline. The reason for the decline was due to the succession of weak rulers and the threat of the British.
• The Asante empire had a weak system of central and provincial administration. It consisted of three clear divisions at the peak of its power. Kumasi was under Asantehene; Amantoo was under its own Amanhene, although united by the Golden Stool, it was independent. The provincial Asante it was made by the conquered territories. The conquered states were not properly incorporated in the Empire nor given a place in the Union Council.
• On a number of occasions earlier in the century the British had attacked Asante who wanted to prevent foreign control of the coastal trade. In order to assert their authority the British invaded Asante in 1874, Kumasi was captured by the British and the Empire came to an end.

The Hausa City- States

• The Hausa are believed to have migrated into what is now northern Nigeria and southwestern Nigeria during the first millennium of the Christian era. They accepted the customs and religious beliefs of the Sudanic farmers whom they found and conquered. Because of the continuous warfare, fortified villages and towns began to develop as early as the 11^th and 12^th centuries. It was around these fortified towns the Hausa feudal states emerged.
• As population increased, villages grouped together under the protection of the largest Hausa town. The Hausa states included Kano, Katsina, Gobir, Zamfara, Kebbi, and Zazzau.
  The economic base of the Hausa city states was agriculture, manufacturing and trade, though each had its own specialization.
  • Agriculture was conducted by the settled communities. The Niger valley provided good area for agricultural production for the Hausa people.
  • The Hausa city states had artisans who made articles which were exported across the Sudan and the Sahara. They weaved cloths from wool and cotton; there were leather workers who cut, tanned and fashioned animal skins into a variety of products such as shoes, bags belts etc. Some artisans worked on iron and turned copper and gold into ornaments and utensils. This form of industry is called “Cottage Industry” because it done by individual artisans in small houses e.g in Kano developed skills of cloth-dying and leather work.
  • From an early stage the strength of Gobir came from its Trans- Saharan trading contacts. Katsina also was an important trading centre. Zamfara and Kebbi were other important trading centres.
  Other states among the Hausa states became major suppliers of slaves e.g Zazzau raided slaves in the regions of Benue river.

The Influence of Islamic Religion

• From the 14^th century onwards, Islam began to take root and became the most favoured religion among the Hausa kings and nobles. Islam did not, however spread quickly to the rural areas. It remained an urban religion as the indigenous people in the countryside held their tradition religion and beliefs.
• Islam had a strong influence on the urban people; mosques were built in many of the Hausa towns. Each city developed a university along lines of the school in Timbuktu where scholars instructed young men of Hausa in writing, reading, ethics, philosophy, mathematics, government and religion.

Bureaucracy and Government Organization

• The Hausa city states were governed independently. Each city had its own government and governor. The governors were assisted by nobles whose ancestors had been royal to the dynasty.

The Hausa states’ sources of revenue

1. Taxes and duties

• land tax paid by farmers
• professional tax paid by craftsmen
• custom duties payable on certain products entering into the territory

2. Livestock tax

Large stock herders’ also nomadic people paid grazing duty.

3. Gifts from aristocracy to the superior. A political act expressed by some leaders so as to win

Favours.

4. Spoils such cattle, slaves, as sources of revenue.

5. Duty paid on girls’ marriage. A portion of dowry was paid as a tax to the government.

6. Scholars also paid duty

Fall of the Hausa States

The fall of the Hausa States was sparked by a number of reasons

• Disunity, the Hausa States were organized independent and were not united against their rivals.
• They had equal power and so difficult for one to establish dominion over the others.

The Hausa cities were conquered by Songhai under Askia Muhammad and the final conquest was from the emperors of Kanem Bornu.

The rise of mercantilism in Europe

• Before the 15^th century, Europeans had very little knowledge about Africans and their life. The known area to Europeans was the Carthagean North Africa and some extent Western Sudan as a ‘land of gold’. The situation changed between 1400 and 1600 when Portugal pioneered the age of exploration and discovery under the patronage of Prince Henry of the Aviz Dynasty. In 1415 Prince Henry the Navigator established a school of navigation and cartography at Sagres in Portugal.
• The age of exploration started with the union of Portugal and Spain to form the Iberian Empire, before that unification Prince Ferdinand of Aragon wed princess Isabella of Castile in 1469; the marriage united Christian Spain under their rule.
• The Iberian Empire established trade relations in the Middle East and Asia, before 14^th century they were trading with Asia through Mediterranean to Constantinople via the Black Sea to India and other parts of Asia. The Iberians relied on trade because their region was not good in agricultural production.
• However, the “Black Death”, a bubonic disease that took place in Between 1348 and 1351, killed up to three in five people as it spread rapidly through pre-industrial cities, unchecked by sanitation or modern medicine. This plague claimed the lives of tens of millions of Europeans who were potential to feudal agricultural economy. The small remaining population moved to new emerging centers where trade was booming to sell their labour for wage. Slowly feudalism started to collapse and in its place a capitalist mode in a form of Mercantilism emerged.
• The Crusade Wars of 14^th and 15^th centuries and the insecurity there after, the route through Constantinople in Turkey was closed in 1453. The closure of this route forced the Iberians to search another route to Asia by rounding the African continent.
• In 1487 Bartholomew Diaz reached the southern tip of the African continent. Vasco da Gama reached India via East African coasts between 1497 – 9. Christopher Columbus working under the Spanish Monarchy reached West Indies and America in 1492.

The Atlantic slave trade

• The Atlantic slave trade I also known as “Triangular trade”. It was a trade in slaves which was closing the Atlantic Ocean. It joined basically three continents Africa, America and Europe. It started with the Portuguese explorations when Gonzalves, a Portuguese commander returned to Lisbon with ten Africans and presented them to Prince Henry so as to justify that he had reached the land of the Negroes in 1441.
• The Africans were converted to Christianity and it was planned that they would be taken back and evangelize their fellow Africans. But by the time of the Prince’s death in 1460 many Africans were exported; about 700 and 800 annually.
• When the first Portuguese reached West Africa they were mainly interested in tropical goods such as ivory, pepper, gum and above all gold. They established trading posts at El mina in Gold Coast and Whydah in Benin.
• Meanwhile in 1480, the Portuguese had discovered the uninhabited equatorial island of Principe` and Sao Thome. They grew sugar cane plantations by using slaves from main land. Through the use of slaves in agricultural production the Portuguese were able to produce cheaply and gained many profits. The next 150 years Portugal imported slaves to work in Europe and American plantation and mining centres. Through Portuguese and Spaniards expedition, mercantilism in a form of Trans Atlantic slave trade developed. The Europeans took advantage of the discovery of the new lands through trade and exploitation.
• By the time the Portuguese merchants were concentrating on African coast their neighbour the Spaniards were opening the Trans Atlantic route to the Americas and Caribbean. They opened large plantations of cotton, tea, tobacco; gold and silver mines. These sectors needed labour to start with; they used the indigenous Red Indians who were not good for the task. Most of them died of either by heavy labour or infectious diseases brought by Europeans.
• Planters immediately turned to Europe whereby the solution was thought in the use of Indentured Labour. The people who were sentenced to go to jail were taken to serve in the plantations in America. This also proved a failure because after finishing their sentences the indentured opened new farms and also demanded labourers.
• Naturally, the Spaniards who had used slave labour –Africans, found the solution was to turn to African slaves. The first bunch of African slaves to the new world was from Lisbon in 1501.
• So far as many mines were opened and plantations being set up the demand for slaves increased. Between 1530- 1600 an average of 13,000 slaves a year were sent from Africa to the Americas. Most of the slaves were from Ghana, Cameroon, Congo and Angola.
• The earlier stages of Triangular trade were dominated by Portuguese and Spaniards but later on Britain, France and Holland joined them between 1600 and 1763. the commodities were African slaves and non- human goods such as the industrial goods from Europe e.g cloths, books, looking mirror, outdated guns. These commodities were exchanged with slaves, ivory rhino horns, indigo, beeswax and came wood.
• Slaves were taken to America to be used in the plantations and mines. They were sold at higher prices. From the Americas the merchants took agricultural products such as cotton, coffee, tea, tobacco sugar and minerals needed in the European industries.
• Mercantilism is considered to be the core of capitalism through primitive accumulation of capital by piracy, looting, plundering and slave trade. For example, in 1572, Francis Drake obtained a privateer's commission from Queen Elizabeth I (essentially a license to plunder any of King Philip of Spain's property.) He planned to attack Spanish ships bringing silver and gold from Peru.
• The wealth accumulated from America, India and Africa was used to build up industries and improve agriculture in Europe and America.
• At this point in time, trade was officially restricted to powerful monopoly companies which afford building and maintaining garrisons. The forts were considered essential in 17^th century for conducting slave trade. The companies included the English company called the Company of the Royal Adventurers into Africa, the French West India Company and the Dutch East India Company among others.

Africans were enslaved by the following ways:-

• Criminal sold by chiefs as punishment
• Free Africans obtained from raiding or kidnapping
• Reselling off domestic slaves.
• Prisoners of wars due to inter tribal wars waged so as to get captives
• Through exchange with European goods. Europeans began to ask for slaves in exchange for their goods, beer, cloths, books, mirror, tobacco etc.

Effects

• Depopulation, about 24 million people were taken from Africa. Disregard of peoples lives; torture and killing.
• Raiding wars was a serious cause of misery, bloodshed and destructions. Slaves were no longer treated as human beings but rather as properties. Even those who remained suffered the trauma.
• Famine due to lack of production. People feared to be captured in farms.
• Underdevelopment of African continent. Slaves v/s commodities. Only 3 pounds were paid for a fit male slave
• Slave trade tended to eliminate indigenous industrial technology because of imported goods.
• Intermarriage, between European merchants and African women.

The 19th century jihadic movements in west Africa

• Islam is one of the major religions of the world. It was founded by Prophet Muhammad (SAW) He preached against the old pagan beliefs of the Arabs and introduced the Koran: the book whose content was dictated to him by God. He called people to discard idols and follow Allah; the true God.
• Prophet Muhammad had many convents to Islam, its literally meaning is “submission to God”. After his flight from Mecca to Medina in 622AD his followers took up swords and conquered the whole of Arabia, Syria and some parts of Africa.
• The Muslim Arabs conquered Egypt in 642AD. Using Egypt as their base, they extended their Jihads westwards under the leadership of Ugbaibn Nafi, a general who had been sent to conquer North Africa. His conquest and occupation collapsed soon after his death. It was up until the time of General Hassan bin an Nu’man North Africa fell under the Muslim in 708.
• In order to spread Islam, the Arabs recruited Berbers into the Arab army. It was[1] essential the Berber to soldiers in the Arab army profess the Islamic faith. Despite the presence of Islamic religion, the Muslim faith was not accepted as a whole by the Berber in general until the 11^th century.
• It was the Berber merchants rather than the Arabs who brought Islam across the Sahara to West Africa. The people responsible were the Sanhaja Berbers. They were determined to control the trade routes across the Sahara. Sanhaja was actually a loose confederation of three large ethinic groups of which Lamtuna and Godala were the largest and most important.
• The Sanhaja Berber of the Lamtuna group set up a Jihad in which they forced the indigenous Africans of Mauritania to accept Islam. Jihads were holly wars undertaken by Muslims to non-believers.
• In West Africa there were four major jihads in the 19^th century. They include jihads organized by:-
• Uthman dan Fodio in Hausaland -1804
• Seku ahmadu in Massina -1818
• Al- Hadji Umar in Bmbara -1852
• Samouri Toure among the Mandinka -1870

Apart from Toure who was a Mandinka all other jihads were organized by Fulbe or Fulani pastoralists of Western Sudan. The Fulani saw jihads as an opportunity to reform Islam as it was then practiced as a way of readdressing political, economic and social grievances. Nevertheless, jihadist saw themselves as being ordained by Allah and their jihad is seen as a fulfillment of prophesies by the Prophet Muhhamed: as far as they were concerned they were executing a divine will.

Causes of Jihads in West Africa

1. The revival of Islamic religion in the region

• West Africa observed a rapid expansion of Islam between the 7^th and 16^thcenturies, but due to growth of European power and Christianity around the16^thcentury Islam was put on the defensive side. The 18^th century saw a determined effort to revive Islam. It started with the Wahhabi movements in Saud Arabia. In West Africa jihads were carried out by the Fulani who embraced Islamic religion in the 14^th century.
• The Muslim reformers were very critical of Islam practiced in the 19^th century. The people of Sudan did not abandon their traditional practices. They mixed Islam with their beliefs. The jihadists’ reformers wanted Islamic converts to be true believers and pious Muslims. Muslim scholars such as Al- Kunt (1729-1811) and Jibril Umar greatly influenced the Jihadists of the 19^th century. For example Al- Kunt’s writing and preaching stimulated interests of Muslims and generated intellectual and ideological excitements. Both Fodio and Seku regarded Kunti as their spiritual guide.

2. The belief on the coming Mahdi

• A Mahdi is a spiritual and temporal leader who will rule before the end of the world and restore religion and peace. In the Muslim world it was believed that a Mahdi would be coming in 13^th century Islamic Calendar which was from 1785-1882.
• It was due to this expectation in the late 19^th century the jihads developed in West Africa. People were ready to accept anybody who claimed to be a Mahdi or forerunner of the Mahdi (e.g Muhammad Ahmad of Dongola in Sudan 1843-1885) declared himself Mahdi in 1881 and captured Khartoum.

3. Spreading Islamic religion.

• In West Africa there were some areas which had not touched by Islam. The Mossi and the Bambara for example, continued to practice their traditional religion. In Hausa the goddesses of hunting and agriculture were still worshipped. Therefore, Jihads in Western Sudan aimed at converting the remaining infidel societies into Islamic religion.

4.The jihads were against nominal Muslim rulers of Western Sudan.

• These movements wanted to remove from power the local rulers who practiced syncretism. The reformers criticized the decline of Islam and Islamic learning. They were against corrupt leaders, their abuse of power and worldliness. Jihad was a right option to unseat unwanted rulers.

5. Jihads in West Africa were organized partly due to economic, social and political grievances of the Fulani.

• Fulani were pastoralists who moved from one place to another. More often the Fulani were denied grazing land by the farmers. They were required to pay taxes for grazing land which was said to be illegal. They also paid fines for damages caused by their cattle on crops. In general the Fulbe lacked political power to execute decisions on their favour in the village or towns they settled.

Jihads of Uthman Dan Fodio

• The Jihads in Hausa States were the first in the 19^th century. They were led by Uthman dan Fodio. According to the Kano Chronicles, Islam in Hausaland was introduced between 1349 and 1385 by the Dyula from Mandinka. Islam remained the religion of the urban trading class. The rest of the agriculturalists remained pagan until the jihads of Uthman dan Fodio in the 19^th century.
• Uthman was born in Maratta in Gobir in 1754. He studied under various scholars of the Qadiriyya order by Alfamuhu, and under Gibril Umar of Sadez. He studied as a shehu preacher. Because of his learning, he worked for the King as his adviser but when he criticized King Yunfa’s ways of life he was dismissed. Following his dismissal, dan Fodio became a rebel. In his preaching Fodio attacked and condemned corruption and unjust governments.
• He was against illegal taxation; grazing taxes, dowry taxes, forgiveness taxes
• He advocated education for women
• He insisted on spiritual and moral value of Islamic religion.
• After the death of Bawa in 1790, the succeeding was alarmed by the growing size of Uthman’s followers. Dan Fodio was expelled by his former student Yunfa who was the king of Gobir in 1802. The Islamic reformer Fodio assembled a Fulani army to lead a Jihad against the Hausa city states.
• Uthman made a flight or hijira from Degel to Gudu, in 1804 he declared a Jihad against the corrupt government of Gobir. He received help from Zamfara state which disagreed with Gobir earlier.
• Although the reformers were few and possessed weaker weapons, they were able to win the war due to their superior morale and good planning. After conquering Gobir, the reformers attacked the Hausa states. By 1809 the main Hausa towns were under Uthman dan Fodio. He formed the Sokotho Caliphate.
• Gradually, Nupe, a part of Oyo Empire and Bornu were added to Fulani Empire with its capital at Sokotho. Before his death in 1817, Uthman divided the empire into two and gave the western half Gwadu to his brother Abdullahi and the eastern half Sokotho to his son Mohammad Bello who reigned from 1812 to 1837.

Consequences of Jihads

• Creation of Islamic states

Jihads helped in the formation of Fulani Empire of Sokotho, Massina and Futa Djallon.

• Spread of Islamic religion

Through Jihads, Islam enjoyed massive conversion of non-Muslim societies e.g the Bambara and Hausa People.

• Intellectual revolution

Perhaps, the greatest success of the Jihads was in the field of education. Many schools and colleges were founded to educate followers the meaning of Islam as a religion.

• The new governments controlled corruption and abolished unfair taxes.
• Established peace and harmony in the Islamic states through the use of sharialaws.
• Jihads were sometimes regarded as sources of wealth through raiding. War captives were sold as slaves and captured goods confiscated as booty. Slaves who supported the reformers were set free and those who didn’t were re-enslaved. In their later stages Jihads are said to have become increasingly more political and less religious in character.

© 2017 Kiluwasha

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Full Guide Step by Step Writing Academic Research Proposal

Fore words

As we were coming down towards the end of the Academic year, I promised to give you a guideline on how to go about writing your proposal. Kindly take time to read the guideline and try to see how you can accommodate these procedures when writing your proposal.

Take this guideline as benchmark for writing your proposal. Therefore you need to consult as many research books as possible so as to enrich the contents of this guideline and come up with a proposal of recommendable standard.

However, these guidelines differ much depending on the nature of the University and Discipline. Therefore, there is no common format/approach for writing proposals across Universities and Disciplines.

As you write your proposal make note of the following:

(i) You are undergraduate student; therefore, your work must reflect that you are a mature academician ready for an independent work.

(ii) Try to adhere to all principles of academic writing, remember plagiarism is a crime against scholarship. Therefore your arguments must be supported by proper citations/acknowledgement of sources.

(iii) Take time to read extensively and intensively about your research topic so that you are aware and sure of what you intend to do. This will help you in defining your problem, stating your objectives, stating your problem, identifying knowledge gap, and deciding on appropriate research methods to adopt.

Chapter One

The problem and its setting.

1.0 Introduction

This section aims at introducing a chapter. It highlights major parts of the first chapter. At this point therefore, you need to point out/outline all the major parts of the first chapter. This section must be short paragraph (not more than five sentences) offering a summary of the contents of the chapter.

For example: this chapter is presented under the following sections: background information; statement of the problem; and objectives of the study. Other sections are research questions/hypothesis (depending on your choice); significance of the study and definition of key terms and concepts. Delimitation of the study is also included in this chapter.

1.1.0 Background to the problem

This section is the heart of the research. It should be at lest 2 pages long. The section forms the basis of other sections of your research. For example: justification of the study, objectives of the study, statement of the problem, and knowledge gap. Therefore, this section should be written in a very precise manner to give a complete picture of your work. A well defined background will produce good objectives, good statement of the problem and will clearly show what is known about the study and what is not known. Give all the information that will help your examiner to understand the generality of the problem. You just need to briefly explain how a particular problem has arisen and why is it a problem. It should be noted that, background information is a summary of your literature review.

Generally what is expected at this point is:

• Give a brief history of the problem, stating clearly why the problem exists with reference to various scholars.
• What is known about the study, give the major arguments raised by various scholars
• State what is not known (indicate why you believe that it is, in fact, a researchable problem).

1.2.0 Statement of the problem

This is a summary of the background section. This section should not go beyond one paragraph. A candidate needs to state what is known about the study, what is not known about the study and what is expected out of the study.

For example: Existing literatures about the causes of truancy indicates that…………………………………..Astounding as it may appear, there is no major study on the role of parents towards high rate of truancy in Tanzanian primary schools, particularly in Nyamagana District. Therefore, this study seeks to find out and establish the role of parents towards high rate of truancy in Nyamagana District.

1.3.0 Objectives of the study

These states what the researcher seeks to achieve at the completion of the research project. This is important because it is the basis for evaluating whether the research has accomplished what it set out to do.

1.3.1 Main objective

This refers to the general intention of the research. It should spell what the research is supposed to accomplish. In most cases it carries the title of the study.

1.3.2 Specific objectives

These are specific objectives arising directly from the general objective of the study. These are normally stated in measurable terms such as

• To identify……..
• To determine……..
• To describe……….
• To establish……….
• To find out……….

1.3.3 Research questions

These are specific objectives translated into questions. They are investigative assumptions, which guide the study. Each specific objective is translated into an independent question, therefore, the number of specific objectives determine the number of research questions to e developed.

1.4.0 Significance of the study

This refers to the relevance of the study in terms of academic contributions and practical use that might be made of the findings. It should reflect on knowledge creation or socio-economic value to the community.

Therefore, you need to identify the key beneficiaries (field of study, researchers, academicians, community or other stake holders in the area of study) of your study and describe how each beneficiary is going to benefit. In other words what will be the contribution of the new knowledge that you are going to generated?

For example:

(The title of the study was: The Role of Peasants in Struggles for Independence of Tanagnyika)

Findings from the study will push forward historical investigations of struggles for independence in new directions, showing the ways in which grassroots activists, particularly peasants were critical in struggles for independence in Tanganyika. Therefore, results would lay the basis for understanding the role of peasants in struggles for independence elsewhere in Africa, and third world in general where peasants were and are dominant. Also the study provides significant insights, which will be helpful to teachers, students, politicians, historians and other interested researchers in the study of political history particularly in Sukuma land and Tanzania in general

1.5.0 Delimitation of the study

At this point a candidate needs to define geographical and academic limits of the study. For example:

The study will be conducted in ………..District from four wards. Teachers, Ward Educational officers, Head of schools, parents and students will be involved. The study will deal with the role of parents only towards high rate truancy in Nyamagana District.

1.6.0 Definition of key terms and concepts

The same words may have different connotations to people, especially if they work in various disciplines. List and clarify or define the main words and concepts that you will use in your research.

Chapter two

Literature review.

1.0 Introduction:

This part aims at introducing the chapter.

For example: this section is about literature review related to the study. It is divided into two parts, Empirical Literature and Synthesis and research gap.

• Empirical literature:

An adequate literature review is required in all research proposals. The purpose of literature review is:

• To provide evidence to the examiner that a candidate is well acquainted with past and current knowledge in the field of study. This will help to identify the known and unknown knowledge
• To prove that the research will not duplicate past or current knowledge
• Literature review positions your research within the existing body of knowledge.The gathered evidence should be from different parts of the world and specifically from at least each continent.
• Research gap

This is the gap in knowledge that a researcher wants to fill through his/her research. It is established after a thorough review of literatures. Literature review helps a researcher to know about the existing knowledge and missing knowledge (research gap).

Source

Chapter three

Research methodology

1.0 Introduction

This part usually introduces the chapter. It outlines the major components of the third chapter. For example:

This Chapter presents Research Methodology through which information relevant to the research problem will be collected. In this area of Research methodology, the Researcher stated various steps and techniques that will be used in studying the research problem. The Chapter is presented under the following sections; Research design, Area of study and Sample and Sample size. Other sections are Data collection methods and Reliability and Validity of instruments.

3.1.0 Research design

At this point a candidate is expected to define the term research design, identify the kind of research design he/she will employ in his /her study (qualitative or quantitative design), give reason(s) for selecting a particular design (why qualitative or quantitative design) and state how a selected design will be used in the field.

3.2.0 Study area

At this point a candidate is expected to give a thorough description of the study area. The most important information for this section is outlined below:

1. Geographical information, including climatic information (temperature, rainfall, vegetation, soil, drainage) and geographical position (latitudes and longitudes) of the area are important.
2. Administrative information of the region, including administrative boundaries. It is important to include the following maps: Map of your country, map of the region and district
3. Social information like the people inhabiting the area, language(s) spoken, and culture of the people.
4. Economic information, particularly economic activities taking place in the region and economic status of the region are important
5. Demographic information (population data of the area)
6. Justification of the study area. Why is it important for the study to be conducted in the proposed area? It is important to have credible evidence from sources.

3.3.0 Sample and sample size

A candidate is expected to:

• Define a term sample
• Give the expected sample size (e.g. 100 respondents)
• Give reasons for selecting such a sample size ( e.g. due to limitation of resources, time and geographical accessibility)
• Describe the numerical composition of your sample (e.g. in particular the sample will consists of 30 teachers, 20 head of schools, 25 parents 25 students)

3.4.0 Sampling procedures

These guarantees that the data is representative and a basis for generalizing the conclusion.

A candidate is expected to

• Define the term sampling procedures
• Identify the sampling procedures he/she will employ in the study
• Describe each selected procedure
• Give reasons for selecting each procedure
• Describe the way he/she will use each sampling procedure in getting respondents (e.g. x sampling procedure will be used in sampling A&B respondents because…………)

3.5.0 Data collection methods

A candidate is expected to

• Define the term data collection methods
• State why is it important to use a variety of data collection methods in research
• Identify the kind of data collection method he/she will use in the field (e.g. this study will employ the following methods of data collection; interview, questionnaires, documentary review (must be employed) and Focus Group Discussion. Then describe the identified methods as follows:

3.5.1 Interview

• Define the term interview
• Give reasons for choosing this method
• State to whom(what kind of respondents) the method will be administered
• Explain how you will use/administer this method in the field

3.5.2 Questionnaire

• Define the term questionnaire
• Describe the kind of questionnaires you will use in the field ( Close or Open ended)
• Give reasons for choosing this method
• State to whom(what kind of respondents) the method will be administered
• Explain how you will use/administer this method in the field

3.5.3 Documentary review

• Define the term documentary review
• Outline the kind of documents that you think are important in your study
• Explain where you will get such documents
• Give reasons as to why documentary review is important in your study

3.6.0 Validity and Reliability

3.6.1 Reliability

• Define the term reliability
• Give reasons why reliability is it important to consider reliability when preparing a proposal (research instruments)
• Explain how you would ensure reliability of your research instrument

3.6.2 Validity

• Define the term validity
• Explain why is it important to validate research instruments?
• Explain how you would ensure validity of your research instruments?

3.7.0 Data analysis plan

A candidate is expected to give a plan on how she/he will analyze the data collected.

3.8.0 Work plan

A candidate is expected to give a plan/ timetable of his/ her study. This is important in guiding the whole exercise of research.

Example of work plan

References

This should consists of list of books, journals, conference papers, etc cited in the proposal

• This should appear in an independent page
• You should use a common format throughout your work
• Books should be arranged from A-Z

Appendices

• This should also be in a fresh page
• This section should consist of questionnaires/interview guide that you will use in the field. Each category of respondents should have its own list of questions/interview guide.
• Design specific questions for each objective
• Questions set should be in a position to answer your research questions
• Questions should be few in number for them to be effective
• Poor framing of questions will result to poor data

For example:

APPENDIX A: questionnaire/interview guide for Head of school

• This should consist of questions to e answered by Head of schools
• They should be in an independent page

APPENDIX B: questionnaire/interview guide for teachers

• This should consist of questions to be answered by teachers
• They should e in a separate page

APPENDIX C: questionnaire / interview guide for students

• This should consists of questions to be answered by students
• They should e in a separate page.

Physical structure of the proposal

Body text

• Type face – Times New Roman
• Font – 12
• Double spacing

Titles/sub titles

• Body text – full justification
• Titles/subtitles – Bold, centered

Pagination

Pagination shall be at the bottom, center

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The best top ways to deal with the group of slow Learners Students.

Slow Learner

Slow learner is a child who has a limited ability of learning or a child who its intelligence is below average due to different reasons.

Fore word

Teaching slow learner is not a simple task 1,2,3. It needs some one who is patient, caring and who love teaching others to be be perfect in something. As the definition explains above that , slow learner is a child whose its intelligence is below average, there fore you must consider different teaching Technics so as to come up with the best results, and if you will find out that among of your Technic is more helpful, then apply it.

How to deal with group of slow learners

• first you have to identify them. that is if a school has large number of students, then they have to be sorted out first. Sorting them out will help the teachers to know exactly number of slow learner who they are going to work with.
• Second, they have to be distributed to the number of teachers available in a certain school, that is if the school has 10 teachers and the total number of slow learner is 10, every teacher will work with only one student. this will simplify working with one slow learner, as it will be easier to make assessment,working with him or her any time, the learner will feel special and it will help a learner to pay attention to what his or her teach instruct as the learner is alone.

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After being sorted and distributed

• Choose the best teaching methods to work with your learner. This will work by trying to apply different teaching methods, that is, at the beginning try to apply different methods as you can when teaching him or her, this will help you to understand which method is the most suitable for your student, as you make an assessment to your student in each every methods you use.
• Assessment, if you real want to have better to have better result to your student, please make sure you assess him or her as more as you can. This will help you as a teacher to understand the progress of your student, however it will have more advantage to your student, as the more test, quizzes, exams and or any other form of assessment will build your student with confidence to do activities you provide to him or her.
• Do not give up so easily, that is you have to be patient and kind as i have said before that teaching a slow learner is not a simple task. There fore you do not have to give up so easily because you may find that, you have taught him or her yet after giving him or her the work or an assignment ,either quiz, or test and or exam, and she score zero, do not be frustrated, what you are supposed to do is to try another teaching methods which will make him or her do the best next time.

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One more thing to work with your Learner

• Try motivating him or her . In this case you are not supposed to apply negative motivation like punishment, rather you are supposed to apply positive motivation such as interesting gifts.This will make your learner to work hard as she or he knows that is going to have something she like when do good in her or his learning activities. for this to work out, try to read your student first, that is try understand him or her well the thing she or he likes the most, and promise him or her to give him or her when she will do best. You must also be honesty so as when she or he do good work you truly give him or her the gift.
• Also you have to provide productive punishment when she or he misbehave or did something wrong, that is instead of using sticks and or any other harsh punishment, try to give him or her the work that will become more advantageous to him or her and you. Example if you are teaching him or her English language, give him or her a task to write a single sentence and she he must fill 15 pages or above of same single sentence.

Things to avoid when teaching your student.

• Avoid being aggressive.
• Avoid being harsh.
• Avoid him or her to give up on his or her work.

Source

Generally, transmitting knowledge skills from one person to another need some one is ready, loving, caring and patient. There fore teaching slow learner need kind of teacher who is qualified to teach slow learners because as i have said above that teaching slow learner is not simple task, there for teaching slow learner is not a job of everyone, that is not every one can be able to teach slow leaner.

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The Common Problems That Face Teachers in Tanzanian Schools

Government employed teachers, are those teachers who serves the government schools, either in primary or secondary schools. Their main duty is to teach and transferring knowledge, skills and culture to students or pupils in theses public schools. In the course of transferring knowledge to young generation they tend to face different challenges as explained below as follows:-

Lack of teaching and learning materials

• Many schools in Tanzania has no enough teaching and learning materials such as text books, teaching equipment, and other teaching materials. They hustle everyday searching for teaching materials in their environment including internet resources in order to get lesson notes. This is a greater challenge to teachers making them feel that teaching activity is a hard job.

Low salary paid to Teachers

• Government employed teachers are doing greater job transferring knowledge to the young generation but still they are paid little salary. This is great challenge to teachers and this make them even not concentrating on teaching because they just keep thinking about how to earn an extra cash for him or her to survive well. Because the paid salary is not enough to teachers monthly expenditure especially those who have big families. This challenge remove teachers concentration on teaching . I recommend the government to crosscheck payment system of teachers in order to make them feel as if they are real government servants by increasing their salary.

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Poor working environment

• Many government schools has no good favorable environment, that is you may find the school has no any office for teachers. Teachers are kept in an empty classroom and made it as their office. Another issue is the houses, many governmental built schools has no houses for teachers to live, this led to make teachers live far away from the school where by some areas are remoteness and they don’t have even electricity supply. This make teachers feel as if they are not civil servants. Therefore in order to resolve this problem the government should improve the working environment for its teachers.

Lack of teachers in rural areas

• Many government schools which are located at rural areas has low number of teachers while those urban schools have many teachers compared to urban schools. This is a great challenge to teachers who are in rural secondary schools, because you may find the school has a number of five hundred students and has only nine teachers. And some of subject may miss teachers especially science subject, you may find that mathematics teacher is one in a school with about five hundred students enrolled. This challenge make the teachers feel that teaching activity is tiresome job and difficult enough, because when it come the time you want to give the students test or exam, you start thinking on how are you going to mark all papers. Therefore in order to solve this problem the government has to crosscheck the schools with few teachers and hire or transfer more teachers to school with lack of teachers particularly in rural areas.

Challenges from the parents and guardians or civilians

• This means that some parents are they ignorant especially when they find out that his or her child is punished by teachers, some parents tend to claim teachers to for the case of punishing their children at school. Other parents or guardians they don’t want their children to be punished by teachers especially having punished by sticks, even if the student or pupils is misbehaving at school or broke out the schools regulations. Some tend to inter in conflicts with teachers and sometimes even bewitching the teachers. In order to resolve this problem parents and or guardians should not interfere the school regulations.

Lack of motivation to teachers by the Government

• Motivation is something important to any person , motivation make a person to work more accurate knowing that she or he will get something after accomplishing something in a good way. Teachers in many schools has no motivation from the governments, you will find out that instead of motivating teachers the government motivate the students, where by the teacher is one to be motivated after the students being performed well. Example is the previous years the government was giving money and laptops and money to the students who did well in their examination. It used to call them to the parliament house and giving them those gifts. The question is who is to be motivated? , The one who made the students to perform well or the students who performed well? The one who is to be motivated is the one who made the students to perform well but not the students. Therefore the government should crosscheck its services to workers including motivations so as to make them work hard.
  

Lack of cooperation between parents or guardians and teachers

• This means that parents or guardians think that only the teacher is responsible for her or his child to perform well in his or her academics, that is parents do not crosscheck their students’ progress academically instead they live everything to be done by teachers. You may find that parents or guardians they tend to leave their children playing the whole time, instead of keeping them busy studying, this problem is mainly common to public schools (day schools) where students go to school and return home. In order to solve this challenge parents must cooperate with teachers by making follow up of their children academic progress.

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The simple present tense

The Simple Present Tense

I have been teaching Linguistic for 10 years now, however i realized that in order a person to speak and write in good English language, one must first Lean English Tenses, this is because English Tenses guide a person how to speak and or write according to the time. Being a linguistic teacher, teaching Swahili and English, i have came up with simple way to Learn all English Language Tenses categories with full formula winch will guide you how to learn and understand English language quicker.

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What is Simple Present Tense?

The simple present tense, is a tense which express actions which are in daily routine or habits. That is it tell us those actions in which some one or something do everyday, every time, every year, every month, every second and so on.

How will you recognize simple present tense?

The simple present tense can be recognized by the appearance of some words in your given sentences. These words include the following:-

• Every - which can be , every second, every minute, every hour, every day, every Monday, every Tuesday, every Wednesday, every Thursday, every Friday, Every Saturday, every Sunday, Every Week, every Month and every Year.
• Sometime- The appearance of this word indicate that the sentence is in simple present tense because the word sometimes denote that some one or something is doing a certain thing at unknown time, but its like his/her or its behavior to act like that.
• Always -This word also denote simple present tense in sentence, as it express that something or some one is doing something in routine or habits.
• Daily - This denote those activities being done every day.

Formula to use on Simple Present Tense

The formula of how to use simple present tense is divided into two category , however it may stand alone as one. Its division came from the rules on how to use simple present tense. I will start giving you the standalone formula which requires you to understand the pronouns, such as She, he, it and They , we, you, I.

The formula

1. SHE/HE/IT + VERB + S /ES /IES ( To the given Verb)

Example

i. She plays football every evening = she + play (verb) + S (Added in verb)

ii. It rains every day = she + rain( verb )+ S (Added in verb)

Formula 2.

THEY /WE/ YOU/ I + VERB + .........( nothing to add to the given verb)

Example

i. They cook every time.

ii. We eat every noon.

iii. I do my homework every weekend.

NB. The words, she, he, it and they, we, you, I, These are known as pronoun and pronoun stands before the name of things, Animals and people.There fore you may use names of things, animals and people in your sentences by considering the your formula.

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More examples on Simple Present Tense.

The following are mixed examples on simple present tense for both formula :-

i. She always cries for help .

ii. We learn new thing everyday.

iii. It rings every four minutes.

iv. He comes here everyday.

v. They always help us!

vi. I write good ebooks every weekend

vii. peter cleans his house every day

viii. we teach people new thing every day

ix. John makes good tables evry month.

x. She washes her clothes daily.

The use of simple present in plural form.

If you want to use simple present tense in plural form( Third personal pronouns), then you have to consider the second formula given above.

the following are examples :-

i. They watch movies every night

ii. John and peter always play to gather.

iii. we make good furniture.

iv. You cry every night.

v. They go to school every week.

vi. we make the best pizza every day.

vi. They sometimes go to the market.

viii. We always shop online.

ix. Anna and Jane love each other well.

x. We share our earning every month.

Try out to do the given question below

Try out this question to check out yourself if you understood the lesson .

• Question, change the given verbs in brackets into simple present tense

1. James (write) notes every day. (.......................................................)
2. She (buy) new smartphone every year .(............................................)
3. It (stop) at 04:00 pm every day (.........................................................)
4. I (eat) pizza every morning (.............................................................)
5. They (mistype) the letter every time. (................................................)

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