Specializes in African history. He has lived thirty-one years in Congo (Zaire), seven during his youth, twenty-three as a teacher of history to African students, and one year as an educational advisor and as a leader of seminars in the teaching of African history. Beginning in 1977, he spent one year out of five teaching courses in African history at Wittenberg. Beginning in 1993, he has taught there continuously, and is now in his eleventh year at Wittenberg.

In Congo, when not in the classroom, he did historical research on the colonial period of the country, emphasizing African perceptions of events. He conducted oral interviews in the Kituba language in the villages, and researched in the archives of the zones and sub-regions of Bandundu Region in southwestern Congo, and in the National Archives in Kinshasa.

Articles resulting from this research have appeared in eight scholarly journals. With Congolese Dr. Diawaku Di Nseylila, he co-authored a book, Zaire: Perception and Perspective. He has also completed a translation from French of a book of Congolese beliefs and rites,Encyclopedia of Ritual Symbolics.  Smith received his B.A in History from the University of Oklahoma in Norman, and his M.A.in History from Claremont Graduate School in California. He took further graduate studies in African history at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and the University of California in Los Angeles.
 
 

My favorite history course - DETAILS!!

Publications

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Course Descriptions

Syllabus:  African History Through Novels by Africans

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