Musa Said Mwitondi

Human curiosity surrounding the origins of the species has many theoretical perspectives, including creation, myths and evolution. Of the three perspectives, human evolution is explained scientifically with the earliest evidence of human origin tracing its roots to Africa before migrating to other continents. Such a scenario has been wrongly interpreted in many countries, including Tanzania, where modern humans are believed to be the descendants of chimpanzees. Such misperceptions complicate understandings of human origins across time and space. This pilot study was conducted in two regions of Tanzania, Kilimanjaro and Arusha, near the renowned paleoanthropological sites of Olduvai Gorge and Laetoli, to correct such public misunderstanding of human origins. The target groups were primary students (grade III) and history teachers. Using simplified questionnaires administered before and after the training workshop along with an exhibition of casts of early human remains and tools, brochures, posters and banners, knowledge about human origins was imparted to the intended audience. The overall pre- and post-training results show that the knowledge gap around human origins at the grassroot level needs to be addressed nationally.