--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The education I received was a British…" description: "\"The education I received was a British education, in which British ideas, British culture, British institutions, were automatically assumed to be super..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/nelson-mandela-248_african-culture_the-education-i-received-was-a-british-e_700553.jpg" --- # The education I received was a British education, in which… ![“The education I received was a British education, in which British ideas, British culture, British institutions, were automatically assumed to be superior. There was no such thing as African culture.” quote by Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/nelson-mandela-248_african-culture_the-education-i-received-was-a-british-e_700553.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/nelson-mandela-248_african-culture_the-education-i-received-was-a-british-e_700553.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/nelson-mandela-248_african-culture_the-education-i-received-was-a-british-e_700553.jpg) > “The education I received was a British education, in which British ideas, British culture, British institutions, were automatically assumed to be superior. There was no such thing as African culture.” [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. British education was presented as superior, ignoring African cultural value. **In simple terms:** Education was biased toward British norms. Key Takeaway Recognize and value diverse cultural perspectives. Themes colonialism education identity Mood critical hopeful Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - curriculum reform - teacher training - multicultural classrooms Key Concepts Cultural hegemony postcolonial theory Questions to Reflect On - How can curricula honor local cultures? - What steps can educators take to decolonize teaching? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched biases takes time and effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [African culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/african-culture/) [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [British culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british-culture/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) ## Related quotes > [“On the first day of school, my teacher, Miss Mdingane, gave each of us an English name and said that from thenceforth that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/on-the-first-day-of-school-my-teacher-miss-mdingane-gave-each-of-us/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Shakespeare is as naturally a part of American culture as it is the British culture; the Americans have a natural interest in their heritage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-wanamaker/shakespeare-is-as-naturally-a-part-of-american-culture-as-it-is-the/) [Sam Wanamaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-wanamaker/) > [Through its imperialist system Britain brought about untold suffering of millions of people. And this is an historical fact. To be able to admit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/through-its-imperialist-system-britain-brought-about-untold-suffering/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Even under Poch, he had a different culture to the British. It wasn't that he didn't understand it. You know the British like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-rose/even-under-poch-he-had-a-different-culture-to-the-british-it-wasn-t/) [Danny Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-rose/) > [There is no more striking illustration of the immobility of British institutions than the House of Commons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-h-asquith/there-is-no-more-striking-illustration-of-the-immobility-of-british/) [H. H. Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-h-asquith/) > [I must fight unto the death the unholy attempt to impose British methods and British institutions on India.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-must-fight-unto-the-death-the-unholy-attempt-to-impose-british/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Today, in British education, we don't have that kind of freedom. Now there are many regulations, many rules, and bureaucracies in the education system.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-craig-martin/today-in-british-education-we-don-t-have-that-kind-of-freedom-now/) [Michael Craig-Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-craig-martin/) > [British education is probably the best in the world, if you can survive it. 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It lets down too many children, excluding them from society, and, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rogers/education-in-british-schools-isn-t-good-enough-it-s-not-remotely/) [Richard Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rogers/) > [In India, we are forced to choose our specialisation very early, whereas in some other countries, this can be done much later in life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anand-mahindra/in-india-we-are-forced-to-choose-our-specialisation-very-early/) [Anand Mahindra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anand-mahindra/) > [And certainly in British culture, as I'm sure it's the same with American culture, we warm to cultures where people can make fun of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omid-djalili/and-certainly-in-british-culture-as-i-m-sure-it-s-the-same-with/) [Omid Djalili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omid-djalili/) > [While we like to think queueing is unique to British culture, the truth is that we are mere amateurs. The old Soviet Union turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-hartley-brewer/while-we-like-to-think-queueing-is-unique-to-british-culture-the/) [Julia Hartley-Brewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-hartley-brewer/) ## More by Nelson Mandela > [We must work together to ensure the equitable distribution of wealth, opportunity and power in our society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/we-must-work-together-to-ensure-the-equitable-distribution-of-wealth/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Especially for those of us who lived in single cells, you had the time to sit down and think, and we discovered that sitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/especially-for-those-of-us-who-lived-in-single-cells-you-had-the-time/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [If you don't allow people to contribute, to offer their point of view, or to criticize what has been put before them, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/if-you-don-t-allow-people-to-contribute-to-offer-their-point-of-view/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/courageous-people-do-not-fear-forgiving-for-the-sake-of-peace/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [As a leader... I have always endeavored to listen to what each and every person in a discussion had to say before venturing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/as-a-leader-i-have-always-endeavored-to-listen-to-what-each-and-every/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Some of the mission groups that have been responsible for our education have not been part of the government. In fact, they acted contrary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/some-of-the-mission-groups-that-have-been-responsible-for-our/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“I believed that I would become a counsellor to the Thembu king,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-believed-that-i-would-become-a-counsellor-to-the-thembu-king/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [What he means by this is that instead of saying you'll "try", you need to "do". 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If somebody gives to charity, then he gets a tax…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-am-aware-of-what-the-position-is-in-the-united-states-of-america-if/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [It is our duty to give support to the brother leader ... especially in regards to the sanctions which are not hitting just him,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/it-is-our-duty-to-give-support-to-the-brother-leader-especially-in/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [It was during those long and lonely years that my hunger for the freedom of our own people became a hunger for the freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/it-was-during-those-long-and-lonely-years-that-my-hunger-for-the/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) [Explore all 809 Nelson Mandela quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) ## More African culture quotes > [Perhaps it is time to debate culture. The common story is that in 'real' African culture, before it was tainted by the West, gender…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/perhaps-it-is-time-to-debate-culture-the-common-story-is-that-in-real/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [“That the United States Government can swiftly offer to help in gay fashion designer Edwin Chiloba's murder probe, which has been unraveled while ignoring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-santo/that-the-united-states-government-can-swiftly-offer-to-help-in-gay/) [DON SANTO](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-santo/) > [I've got to where am in life not because of something I brought to the world but through something I found - the wealth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-masekela/i-ve-got-to-where-am-in-life-not-because-of-something-i-brought-to/) [Hugh Masekela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-masekela/) > [A lot of my work reflects the incredible influence that America has had on contemporary African culture. Some of it's insidious, some of it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/a-lot-of-my-work-reflects-the-incredible-influence-that-america-has/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [“On the first day of school, my teacher, Miss Mdingane, gave each of us an English name and said that from thenceforth that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/on-the-first-day-of-school-my-teacher-miss-mdingane-gave-each-of-us/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > ['God Loves Uganda' is a powerful exploration of the evangelical campaign to change African culture with values imported from America's Christian Right. The film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/god-loves-uganda-is-a-powerful-exploration-of-the-evangelical/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [It's obvious that the rest of the world loves high African culture - African culture, period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-masekela/it-s-obvious-that-the-rest-of-the-world-loves-high-african-culture/) [Hugh Masekela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-masekela/) > [“Most people write me off when they see me. They do not know my story. They say I am just an African. They judge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idowu-koyenikan/most-people-write-me-off-when-they-see-me-they-do-not-know-my-story/) [idowu koyenikan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idowu-koyenikan/) > [We have to realize our black heritage in order to give us strength to move on and progress. 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