THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF INDIGENOUS HEALERS IN LIFE SKILLS EDUCATION

In this minithesis, I investigate the potential role of indigenous healers in life skills education in South African schools. The main focus of this study is to explore how indigenous knowledge of traditional healers can contribute to the development of life skills education in South African schools. This knowledge, which has historically been repressed and marginalized, needs to be given a rightful place in the development of South Africa. I first provide an overview of education support services in South Africa and in the United States of America. I then discuss health promotion in schools in the context of life skills and health education. An international and local perspective on indigenous knowledge is also discussed. In this study I focus on both the current and potential role of indigenous healers in life skills education and support services. The issue of ethics became central in this study because it was the first study of its kind to be conducted in this country. Hence this study also investigates the research ethics when conducting research with traditional healers..