Racially Segregated Education in South Africa and Southern Rhodesia: Was majority rule achieved earlier if repression in education was less severe?
Summary
Before majority rule was achieved, Zimbabwe and South Africa were both ruled by a white settler minority. The African majority became emancipated in 1980 when Southern Rhodesia became Zimbabwe, but South Africa only gave up apartheid in 1994. Good quality education helps achieve political awareness and economic independence. As the African majority reached emancipation earlier than the African population in South Africa, it could be that African education in Southern Rhodesia was of a better quality than the African education in South Africa. Furthermore, the access options to all forms of education were better in Southern Rhodesia than in South Africa. This hypothesis was proven false. The causes for emancipation appear to be more in the economical sphere, although the repressions in both countries were indirectly caused by repression in education.