Bringing indigenous knowledge to the centre of scientific research 

We undertake qualitative and quantitative research that is rooted in the perspectives of practitioners of mmino wa setšo practitioners using case study and longitudinal designs.

RSFAM project

We have qualified and skilled researchers who conduct research in large teams commissioned by music foundations, and other research entities. Co-founder and director of MTD, Mr Mahlaga J Molepo is a field researcher in Music in Africa RSFAM Project. The RSFAM project is a multi-faceted initiative aimed at empowering African music professionals with information, training and tools to maximise their earning potential. Another key goal of the RSFAM project is to advocate for improved legislation in the music industry against the backdrop of a rapidly changing operational environment for music creators. Read more…..

Mmino wa Bana as a Determinant of Reading Recorded Knowledge among Rural Teenagers in Ga Molepo, South Africa

 

This article takes a phenomenological approach that combines interpretivist and critical forms of research paradigms to explain mmino wa bana (children's songs) as a determinant of reading recorded knowledge among teenagers in Ga Molepo, South Africa. Data was collected from focus groups in a purposive sample of rural teenagers engaged in learning through song and repetition. The multiple case study method was employed to draw data from multiple sources including the rural teenagers' childhood experiences and literature in library and information science, the behavioral sciences (i.e., anthropology, sociology, and psychology), musicology, and folklore. Photovoice was used to visualise rural teenagers in their natural habitat. This research argues that recorded knowledge in the form of books and other printed material is what drives reading within the school system and the purview of mass reading. Mmino wa bana (children’s songs) in traditional communities are taught to rural teenagers as a means of negotiating social, cultural, political, and economic space for expression, hence the need to explain their ideological underpinnings. The ideological underpinnings that inform mmino wa bana determine rural teenagers’ acceptance or rejection of the technological inventions (i.e., recorded prints) from other cultures. An improved understanding of the important role music plays in traditional African community life can assist in creating successful reading programmes for rural teenagers in various social environments (i.e., classrooms, reading programmes, libraries, etc.).The findings reveal that best practice in reading programmes should consider ways of knowing from traditional and modern communities. The driving of reading programmes in South Africa and the continent at large requires a critical interpretivist approach that acknowledges the nature of being of traditional communities and their local epistemologies. Read more...

 

Current projects

There are no projects currently running. Watch the space to collaborate on new projects or simply contact us.

Previous projects:

  • Music in Africa RSFAM project

  • Mmino wa Bana and Dinonwane: A Short Musical Production

  • Mmino wa Setšo – A Documentary [recalled]

  • Immortalizing: pencil portraits [unpublished]

  • 2nd Annual Dinaka/Kiba Festival: Rutang Bana Ditaola Workshop Dataset [unpublished]

  • Lerato la Mmino wa Setšo [unpublished book]

  • MTD on the road: a collection of photos spanning 7 years