Hearing Voices Inside Schools: Issues of Sexuality in Upper Classes in Primary Schools in Botswana

Abstract

Hearing Voices Inside Schools: Issues of Sexuality in Upper Classes in Primary Schools in Botswana Mavis B. Mhlauli, Jabulani A. Muchado Abstract The absence and or presence of sexuality education in our curriculum have provoked several debates within the Botswana society. Some people feel that issues of sexuality should be incorporated in our school curriculum while others believe that they should not. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the teachers’ and students’ perceptions on issues of sexuality in primary schools in Botswana. The study focused on teachers and students in selected primary schools in Northern and Central regions of the country. The study was qualitative in nature and employed the naturalistic inquiry paradigm. This study used transformative academic knowledge for its conceptual framework. Snowball or chain sampling was used for the selection of the participants. Data were collected using qualitative methods which included interviews, participants’ observation, focus groups and a grounded survey. Data were analyzed inductively using grounded theory through the constant comparative technique. The major finding of the study revealed that there is an intergenerational conflict of ideas and views between teachers’ and students’ pertaining to issues of sexuality in primary schools in Botswana. The conclusion drawn from this study is that the discussion on issues of sexuality remains a topical and deeply controversial issue among teachers and students in primary schools. The study, therefore, recommends that the Ministry of Education and Skills Development (MoE&SD) should consider formalizing and infusing sexuality education within the primary school curriculum. Full Text: PDF DOI: 10.15640/jehd.v4n2a15