Minister wants DS courses to stimulate curiosity

THE Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Prof Adolf Mkenda has directed higher learning institutions to teach development study courses in a way that will stimulate curiosity to students.

Prof Mkenda issued the directives in Dar es Salaam yesterday at the 2nd International Conference of Development Studies held at the University of Dar es Salaam.

According to him, when the courses will be well taught they will stimulate critical thinking which will allow people to analyse the economic development history of the country because it is crucial since the nation has passed through various phases.

He said that the courses have been taught for a long time and have been providing an opportunity for students to look at issues related to social development.

“These courses should be taught in a way that stimulates the curiosity of students, it should not be taught as a sermon because a sermon is like a certain belief,” he said.

He said development studies should be well taught in order to understand where the nation is doing well or where mistakes were done so that they do not repeat themselves.

Prof Mkenda noted that currently the government is undertaking major review of the 2014 Education Policy by looking at various things, such as qualifications of teaching staff.

“One of the important things which has been incorporated and will be seen when the draft is made public is to bring practical knowledge or skills so that when students learn in class, they also undergo practical study so that when they complete their studies they are capable of working in their respective fields,” he said.

On his part, Director of Development Studies at the University of Dar es Salaam, Dr Colman Msoka said the conference focuses on review of development studies teaching at the university in the past 50 years.

He said Development Studies (DS) courses have been offered in Tanzania for about 50 years now and there was a policy rationale and goal for establishing the field of study in Tanzania.

“Obviously, time has changed, development challenges have shifted and key actors have equally changed. The ICDS 2022, therefore, is a forum for an urgent and imperative need, to re-imagine the rationale for the continued intellectual legitimacy of the field,” he said.

He said this year’s conference builds on the first Conference of Development Studies held in 2019 at the University of Dodoma, whose debates and discussions aimed at making DS vibrant in understanding and addressing development issues, particularly in the global south.

“The conference targets academicians, researchers, development practitioners, policymakers and journalists, among other key stakeholders in Development Studies,” he said.

He said the meeting is among the agreed activities of the Tanzania Development Studies Association (TDSA), an association which was founded to bring together institutions that teach and research on Development Studies (DS).

“The founding members of this association come from DS teaching units of the University of Dar es Salaam, the University of Dodoma, Mzumbe University, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences and the Sokoine University of Agriculture,” Dr Msoka said.