Conservative and Evolutionary Trends in the Implementation Narratives on the Harmonization Policy in Cameroon Education System

It is generally agreed that a curriculum however well designed must be implemented throughout a centralized school system if it is to make any impact or if students are to attend its goals and objectives. In the Cameroon Educational system, the Government has enacted several policies beginning with the policy of harmonization in 1963, a few years after she became independent. These policies which are guidelines for educational practices include but are not limited to; harmonization, bilingualism, multilingualism and ruralization. The importance of these policy issues had been earlier stated in the Conferences of Education in Africa which started with the Addis Ababa Conference of 1961, reiterated in the National Education Law of 1998, the Sector Wide Approach of 2006 and most recently in the Growth and Employment Strategic Plan for 2010-2020 and the vision 2035. In order to implement the above curriculum policies, many principles and actors must be involved. Looking at the principles of curriculum implementation, Fullan (2007) contends that one of the most important issues is that implementation is a process not an event. It occurs gradually overtime during which characteristics of the change, school system, and external factors must be continuously addressed. It is in this context that this paper seeks to find the extent to which Cameroon’s Curriculum policy of Harmonization has been implemented in schools by all concerned, from the period of 1961 to 2015. It will also look at how these efforts have affected teaching and learning in the school system