Abstract:

Indigenous knowledge is slowly gaining momentum in the educational curriculum in most countries globally, where it is now being integrated in most science subjects, even Life Sciences. The inclusion of indigenous knowledge in the educational process would not be complete without using appropriate teaching methods in the science classroom. These can be attained when the teachers tap into their indigenous knowledge and understanding. The Ubuntu philosophy as a theoretical framework underpins the paper and follows the qualitative research approach. This is a systematic literature review paper and secondary data from academic journals and articles were collected, analysed, and interpreted. Three steps were used to collect relevant papers for data collection, identifying articles, coding, and data extraction or theme formation. Literature contends that integrating indigenous knowledge in Life Sciences can be archived by using the Inquiry-based learning method. The paper identified social integration of the curriculum with the community members appropriate in fusing indigenous knowledge to teach Life Sciences. The integration of native knowledge in the science curricula might fill the gap in science education paths that learners receive in schools with society and reduce the foreignness in the classroom. The paper concludes that integrating indigenous knowledge in the teaching of Life Sciences is required to link the gaps that occur in the mind of the learner. While shifting ideas out of the subject matter content as commonalities emerged with indigenous knowledge from the communities, especially the knowledgeable community member's invitation to the classroom. The present paper serves as a reference for other researchers and educators to advance research on the indigenous knowledge paradigm for better teaching and learning of Life Sciences.

Keywords:

Indigenous knowledge, Life Sciences, Curriculum, inquiry base, integration