Year 7s virtually explore exhibit at Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada

On 13 February 2020, the Year 7 students at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa virtually toured a museum exhibit currently being held at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada. 

The exhibit, “Caravans of Gold”, is the first major exhibition addressing the spread of Saharan trade and the shared history between West Africa, North Africa, the Middle East and Europe from the 8th to 16th centuries. The exhibit ties into the curriculum the Year 7s are currently learning, which is focuses on looking at how Africa was and what Africa is now. 

“Year 7 students are in the middle of a unit entitled 'Africa Then and Now’ and being able to connect with the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto helped bring to life some of the ideas being discussed in class,” said Natasha Haque, a Humanities Teacher Coach at the Academy. “The value of this exhibition is how it shows our interconnected histories, and especially celebrating Africa’s historic global significance which is mostly under-recognised.”

Along with virtually touring the exhibit, the students also spoke with contemporary Ghanian-Canadian artist Ekow Nimako who has used black LEGO pieces to create sculptures inspired by the rich histories showcased in the "Caravans of Gold" exhibition. According to the Aga Khan Museum, "Nimako’s sculptures build on the cultural symbolism, renown scholarship, and architectural ingenuity of medieval Africa’s kingdoms, shattering assumptions about the region, and offering viewers a fuller, and more complex, picture of the past."   

Through this exciting experience, the Year 7 students said they enjoyed the virtual museum and hope to continue with these types of learning practices in the future. 

“The virtual experience was fun,” said Year 7 student Zeeshan Hashwni. “It was very interesting. I got to learn a lot about Africa and it’s rich diversity. There were a lot of things we learned from the virtual museum and we all enjoyed it a lot. We especially appreciated how the museum was able to do a special viewing of the exhibit for us.”