Samuel Buchanan

His 342
April 12, 2016
“Bantu Education”
Through Mark Mathabane’s autobiography, of growing up in a South African ghetto, he

shows the atrocities of apartheid. Mathabane reveals to the reader how unequal their society was,

and how it affected every day life. One of the great horrors of apartheid was the effect that the

Department of Bantu Education had on continuing the cycle of racism and poverty. By analyzing

the Bantu Education system, a clearer picture of how the system of apartheid functioned, as well

as the effect it had on ordinary people, and how anti-apartheid movements could end the system

of oppression. Ultimately the government of South Africa used Bantu Education as a tool to

reinforce the system of apartheid, by stunting the growth of black South Africans.

The main goal of apartheid was to create separate worlds for both whites and blacks.

Nowhere was this more evident, than in the education that black South Africans received, or lack

thereof. The system of apartheid used education, essentially to keep blacks ignorant. Dr.

Verwoerd, prime minister and architect of Bantu Education put it this way “the native child must

be taught subjects which will enable him to work with and among his own people; therefore

there is no use misleading him…Bantu Education should not be used to create imitation

whites.”(193) the very purpose of Bantu Education was to continue the separation of blacks and

whites. To ensure this white South Africans orchestrated a system in which the fundamental

aspect was tribal knowledge. This was justified by putting an emphasis on the importance of

heritage, but in the end it was just a system to keep blacks uneducated. Another aspect of Bantu

Education that had sinister effects was the use of native language only within the schools. “The

school’s only medium of instruction was Tsonga” (137). If it was not for Mathabane’s insatiable
thirst for knowledge then he too would have fallen into the trap, placed by apartheid. How this

was a trap becomes evident later on when Mathabane finds that English is the most important

language to learn and is required when going beyond just the basic primary schools. By only

allowing schools to teach tribal knowledge and forcing them to use only their specific tribe’s

language, severely stunted the development and possibilities of black South African youth. In the

end the system was used for that specific purpose. By not allowing blacks to acquire a decent

education, white South Africans were cementing their place within the hierarchy, as well as

limiting the amount of resistance they received from blacks.

Another effect that Bantu Education had was on the lives of ordinary people. This

manifests itself in several forms one of which is the lessons that Bantu Education sought to

teach. These lessons are not for the benefit of black youth, but to continue the system of

apartheid. “Debates were simply another tool used by the Department of Bantu Education to

train us for our ‘place’ in South African life, to define the boundaries of our aspirations.”(252)

when Mathabane reaches secondary school his school does not use debates to better the

community or stimulate thought, but to continue the same narrative. This is why they placed the

best debaters to affirm their beliefs, such as defending the view that “Country life is better than

town life”. One of the other lessons that Bantu Education taught was abuse, if you break the rules

then you are beaten, this conforms to the apartheid system of abuse for minor offenses.

Mathabane received abuse from his teachers for not paying on time, or not having the proper

books. This was another lesson taught by their education system. You had to have the correct

papers to even attend, and then have enough money to pay each month as well as uniforms and

books. Education was expensive; all of the bureaucracy caused by the government was in an

effort to not educate black children. “Since I began school, I had heard people around me say
that whites had built black schools only to teach us how to be their slaves.”(150) this was the

quintessential lesson of Bantu Education, that this is a white world, and to do as you’re told or be

beaten. This lesson was demonstrated day in and day out, and affected the lives of ordinary

South Africans.

Another aspect that affected the lives of ordinary South Africans was the relationship

between Bantu Education and apartheid. While black South Africans were receiving a subpar

education, at best, apartheid provided the white children with a warped, white man perspective of

black South Africans. “My teachers tell us that Kaffirs can’t read, speak or write English like

white people because they have smaller brains, which are already full of tribal things.”(192) this

is one of the many examples in which the apartheid government sought to not only mislead

blacks, but also whites. These efforts were done for the purpose of continuing the separation of

blacks and whites. It would also have an effect on the way in which these groups interacted. By

lying to their children, as well as keeping people in separate worlds, it allowed the use of

stereotypes to inforce the view point that whites are better than blacks. It also allowed fear and

anger to be used to control not just blacks but whites as well, for the purpose of continuing

apartheid. Another big contrast between white and black education were the facilities. While

white schools had big brick buildings with lots of school busses, the Bantu Education facilities

paled in comparison. Mathabane’s school did not even have a single school bus. Also white

children were provided a variety of literature and encouraged to read. “Never had I seen that

many books in my life; even our school, with a student population of over two thousand, did not

have half as many books.”(191) when Mathabane enters the playroom of Mrs. Smith’s son, the

differences between the two worlds became apparent, which made him question the system even

more. While white people had the opportunity and resources needed for success this was not the
case with Bantu Education and the system that sought to keep blacks ignorant, illiterate, and their

only job opportunities being the mines, farmers, or as servants.

If the system of apartheid uses ignorance to continue their system, then education, a true

education, is the tool towards freedom. Throughout the autobiography the biggest mantra used

by his mother is that education is the way out of poverty, that it is the key to success. However

Bantu Education itself was designed to stunt the potential of black youth. Within the students a

sense of hate and frustration was growing. They were not being provided the resources, or

knowledge needed to change the system, to acquire freedom. “the spark needed was when the

Department of Bantu Education decreed that all black schools had to teach courses in Afrikaans

instead of English.”(259) this was the final straw for the students, they would be forced to speak

the language of their oppressors. So the black students - not the ANC, and definitely not

communist outsiders - protested for Bantu Education reform, the police reacted by firing on

peaceful protest, murdering children. The events that occurred in Soweto led to protests by other

students across South Africa. In the end it was Bantu Education that was the cause that unified

the students to stand in opposition to the apartheid government, and demand equal rights.

In conclusion Bantu Education was a tool used for the purpose of reinforcing the system

of apartheid. The fundamental aspect of Bantu Education was to teach the black students only

tribal knowledge, by doing this the government can insure that the black South Africans will

have a subpar education, allowing whites to better control blacks. The main lesson that was

taught by Bantu schools was that blacks should learn their place. This has the opposite effect in

the end when the terrible schooling unifies black students to protest and demand reforms. Finally

the system of apartheid and bantu education had a close relation, while black schools were only

focused on teaching tribal knowledge, the white schools were teaching racist apartheid ideology.