Bringing African Voices into the Undergraduate African Politics Classroom
by Megan Hershey, Whitworth University
Many African politics courses rely heavily on readings authored by North American and European scholars. Scholarly and primary sources written or created by Africans are often underrepresented, and a similar problem persists across regionally focused politics courses. Yet a diversity of sources and perspectives are essential to providing students with a well-rounded understanding of African politics. This article offers a brief argument for the pedagogical benefits of increasing the number of African-authored materials in African politics courses and provides a list of suggested resources for instructors eager to diversify their own courses. Sources – which range from novels and poetry to Twitter handles – are accompanied by a brief summary and suggestions for classroom use.
PS: Political Science & Politics / Volume 50, Issue 1 / January 2017, pp. 199-203