Reimagining Learning Sciences Through African Indigenous Knowledge Systems: Toward A Contextually Responsive Pedagogical Framework for African Classrooms

Abstract: The field of learning sciences has significantly reshaped contemporary understandings of teaching and learning by emphasising collaboration, knowledge construction, inquiry-based learning, and sociocultural mediation of cognition. However, its theoretical foundations remain largely rooted in Euro-American epistemological traditions that often overlook culturally embedded learning systems operating in African societies. This article critically interrogates the epistemic limitations of dominant learning sciences frameworks when applied within African educational contexts and argues for the repositioning of African Indigenous Knowledge Systems (AIKS) as foundational rather than supplementary resources for pedagogical transformation. Drawing on sociocultural learning theory, Africentric epistemology, and culturally relevant pedagogy, the paper develops a contextually responsive pedagogical framework that integrates indigenous storytelling traditions, observational apprenticeship, communal participation, ecological learning practices, and mother-tongue instruction into formal classroom environments. Using illustrative examples from Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Tanzania, the study demonstrates how indigenous learning structures historically supported cognitive development, moral formation, environmental literacy, and inclusive participation long before the institutionalisation of colonial schooling systems. The article further argues that the marginalisation of these systems reflects enduring colonial knowledge hierarchies that continue to shape curriculum design, teacher education, language policy, and assessment practices across much of Africa. By proposing an integrative pedagogical framework grounded in African sociocultural realities, the paper contributes to ongoing debates on decolonising education, strengthening inclusive classroom practices, and advancing culturally responsive learning sciences theory. It concludes that reimagining learning sciences through African Indigenous Knowledge Systems not only enhances classroom relevance and learner engagement across African schooling contexts but also expands global theoretical understandings of how learning occurs within relational, ecological, and community-centred knowledge environments. Ultimately, the article positions African epistemologies as vital contributors to the future evolution of equitable and contextually grounded learning sciences scholarship across the Global South and beyond.