Higgins Joseph is a Fulbright Scholar at Pitt and has studied special education and literature. But she also loves teaching about African cultures, especially because of how many people stereotype Africa, she said.
“I feel there’s a lot of stereotypes around Africa, but these countries have their own resources,” she said. “They have better things going on, so I love talking about Africa because I love to demystify the stereotypes.”
Joseph spoke last week in the library about African cultures during Highlander Time.
She was born in Kenya, but moved to the United States to be a world language teaching assistant at Pitt.
“I went for my undergrad in Kenya and then came to Pitt,” Joseph said. “So I assist in teaching Swahili and doing outreach events.”
In Kenya, Joseph majored in special education with a focus on learning with emotional and behavioral disorders, and she studied English and literature as well. She made the decision to go abroad after getting her degree “because of better opportunities.”
Joseph was invited to speak at Baldwin by gifted teachers Krystal Schulte and Kathleen Deemer. She was recommended by a member of the Model African Union, a group that hosted an event that Baldwin gifted students attend.
Schulte said they were immediately interested in having Joseph come in to speak.
“I think we’re becoming a more global society,” Schulte said. “So to be successful, you have to be able to understand other cultures. I think the appreciation and respect helps us as humans to have a more harmonious future.”
Joseph’s presentation focused on many interesting aspects of different African cultures. She pointed out that there are so many cultures in Africa, not just one.
“So many people talk about Africa as a country, which is not a good thing. There is so much diversity in the continent,” she said.
Joseph grew up in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, so the city life in Pittsburgh was not hard to adjust to.
“I feel like I didn’t have a hard time because I came from the city and I was really used to diversity, and also, I watched a lot of movies, so I was exposed,” she said.
Despite the cities being similar, Joseph said that the education systems in Kenya and the U.S. are not the same. Most classes in Kenya are lecture-based, Joseph said, so the amount of discussion in classes in the U.S. was a culture shock.
During Joseph’s presentation, she also talked about the multitude of languages spoken in Africa, including in Kenya.
“I grew up in the capital city … and it has a lot of diversity because in the capital we have people from different tribes, so Swahili is the only language that is used to connect everyone,” she said.
Throughout the presentation, Joseph brought students to the front to participate in African dance. Freshmen Firdaus Ibrahim and Rahma Adamshariff participated in a contemporary dance with Joseph.
She also taught students Swahili phrases such as “Hujambo” which means “How are you?” and “Sijambo” which means “I am fine.”
This summer, Joseph is returning to Kenya before moving back to the U.S. to pursue a master’s degree at the University of Minnesota.
“I think coming into the Fulbright program has given me clarity on which job I want in the future and just helped me to know that I’m ready for grad school,” Joseph said.
Freshman Kayla Rume said she really enjoyed hearing about Joseph’s story and her point of view on the world.
“I’d say I have a similar view as well because I’m from Nigeria,” Rume said. “I was really excited about this because I kind of felt connected to home in a way.”
Rume said this event was important for people to experience because of conflicts throughout the world.
“I think it’s important because with everything going on in our world, not many people think about other people outside their own country,” Rume said.
