Rewrite SA story - union

The SA Democratic Teachers' Union wants history textbooks to be rewritten to tell "the real" South African story.

The union believes history should be a compulsory subject at high schools, with particular emphasis on South Africa .

This will form part of Sadtu's proposal to Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga when the union meets her to discuss a range of topics, including the teaching of indigenous languages.

Sadtu further plans to engage the ANC on the matter, which is likely to spark fierce debate.

Last year, more than 109000 matrics wrote history as a subject.

Sadtu deputy general secretary Nkosana Dolopi is adamant the youth "have to understand the past to build a stronger future". He said history was prioritised in most developing countries such as Cuba.

The current curriculum, he said, placed too much emphasis on European history instead of "local heroes and heroines and their struggles".

"We want a clear story about [the late former president Nelson] Mandela. Our children must know that Mandela belongs to the ANC. He was groomed; he was developed by the ANC.

"Our children must know that there was a time in our history when he was regarded as a terrorist by the very same people who today regard him as a hero."

Though historian Dr Tshepo Moloi of the University of the Witwatersrand commended the move, he said selecting content should be done with caution.

"It shouldn't be that the ANC is portrayed to have been the only liberation party in the struggle or about putting blame on anybody. It should be balanced," he said.

Human Settlements Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, who campaigned for history to be made compulsory, was excited by the move.

She recently raised the idea at the ANC lekgotla. Sisulu said history in its entirety would ensure the past was not repeated.

"History creates a consciousness of people among people. Look at how proud Americans are of being American; they share a common heritage - it is what binds them as a nation," she said.

DA spokesman on education Annette Lovemore dismissed Sadtu's proposal as "ideological brainwashing".

"[History] must be relevant to every child, not some. Sadtu cannot dictate what should be taught at schools. They have a very strong political leaning that is problematic," she said.

Dolopi said the sacrifices of young activists such as Hector Petersen and Solomon Mahlangu should be given prominence.

"Our children must know that at some stage we owned land - the Khoi and the San and the African people used to own land. We were herders of cattle, we were not workers ... we were farming. [Then] came Jan van Riebeeck [and] later we were changed from owners to workers of land."

Liliesleaf Trust founder and CEO Nicholas Wolpe said South Africans needed to embrace every aspect of history, "whether good or bad, and not neglect facts".

He said compared to the Declaration of Independence in the US and Britain's Magna Carta, little was known about the Freedom Charter, let alone its existence.

"Some high school children taken on tour around Liliesleaf farm think we are referring to the road when asked what they know of the word 'Rivonia'," he said.

Dr Chitja Twala, a senior history lecturer at the University of the Free State , supported the proposal, saying history was critical both inside and outside classrooms.

National Professional Teachers' Organisation of SA president Basil Manuel said he supported the idea of making history relevant but did not believe in making it compulsory.

"Languages are compulsory because you have to have a command of language," he said.

He said his organisation's focus was on breaching the gap between maths and maths literacy.

Education analyst Graeme Bloch also said history as a subject should not be compulsory.

"I think we should learn about each other, develop a common view of poverty and inequality, and our history thus." Additional reporting Olebogeng Molatlhwa