A new “living sun”: childhood and orality towards an African ancestral pedagogy

Abstract

In this work, we propose an ongoing effort to decolonize hegemonic narratives, reaffirm the role of orality, contribute to teacher education from a decolonial perspective, and enable the inclusion and valorization of traditional knowledge within educational networks. The primary objective is to promote an antiracist early childhood education practice that values non-Western forms of knowledge, emphasizing the importance of orality in teacher training from an African ancestral perspective. This approach seeks to recognize orality as a meaningful pedagogical practice within the learning process, enhancing knowledge and lived experiences rooted in children’s everyday oral practices. Furthermore, it is essential to note that implementing orality as a teaching methodology in the classroom does not imply the exclusion of conventional written language. Adopting a bibliographic and qualitative approach, this study draws on theoretical contributions from African and Brazilian scholars - among them, Amadou Hampâté Bâ, regarded as the father of African oral tradition; Cajé; K. Kia Bunseki Fu-Kiau and A.M. Lukondo-Wamba, titled Kindezi: The Kongo Art of Babysitting. As a result, we reflect on how educational practices rooted in Afro-Brazilian religious communities (terreiro) and African philosophical foundations — whether oral or written — can be integrated into formal schooling. This integration serves to honor and value the experiences and lived realities of socially engaged subjects, contributing to an educational model that affirms Black culture and embraces social, cultural, and religious forms of knowledge production.