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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Tani Emmanuel Lukong
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DOI:10.17265/2161-623X/2026.10.007
University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon
Family-based knowledge transmission constitutes a foundational yet often under-theorized dimension of adolescent development in African societies. Rooted in African Indigenous Knowledge Systems (AIKS), family practices such as storytelling, apprenticeship, moral instruction, role modelling, and communal participation serve as primary mechanisms through which values, skills, and identities are cultivated. This article critically examines how these forms of knowledge transmission influence adolescents’ academic motivation and identity formation across African contexts. Drawing on sociocultural and ecological theories, the paper argues that family environments do not merely support schooling but actively shape learners’ orientations toward education, aspirations, and self-concepts. Empirical evidence from countries such as Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana illustrates that culturally grounded family practices can enhance motivation, resilience, and identity coherence, particularly when aligned with schooling experiences. However, tensions emerge when formal education systems marginalize indigenous knowledge, creating dissonance between home and school environments. The article advances a contextually responsive framework that integrates family-based knowledge into educational practice, emphasizing the need for culturally sustaining pedagogies, parental engagement, and policy reform. It concludes that recognizing family-based knowledge transmission is essential for fostering meaningful academic motivation and identity development among African adolescents.
family-based knowledge transmission, adolescents’ academic motivation, identity formation in African societies
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