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Field school Swahili Field School Course Pack Field school study Topics Swahili Bibliography Swahili Culture Online East African Living Encyclopedia Traditional Music & Cultures of Kenya Living Swahili Dictionary

The Field School offers a unique opportunity for students to learn about Swahili culture, history and language as well as study the peoples living along the coast of Kenya today. The National Museums of Kenya (NMK) is uniquely placed to facilitate such a Field School. NMK has regional museums at Fort Jesus (Mombasa), Gedi (Malindi) and on the island of Lamu off the coast of Kenya. There are professional staffs at all these places to assist with the teaching of the Field School, which would be under the overall direction of the Department of Sites and Monuments. The Co-Directors of the field school are Dr. Mzalendo Kibunjia, Director, Sites and Monuments, National Museums of Kenya and Purity Kiura, Anthropology Department, Rutgers University and National Museums of Kenya. Students would be formally lectured on Swahili culture, history and language in the museums setting during mornings. This would be followed in the afternoons by visits to places and sites as well as interviews with local peoples in communities, villages or town settings. The visits would include such places as the old town in Mombasa (architecture), Gedi (archaeological site) and Lamu (more traditional culture). Students would have several assignments to write-up in relation to the above issues during the one month. Students would be expected to keep a daily log on their activities and what they have learnt. This daily log would be collected by instructors at the end of the Field School and would be part of the final evaluation for the course. In addition, there would be a final exam the last day of classes in which students would be examined on the contents of the course.