Abstract
BackgroundA number of reports to the Department of Education indicated high levels of aggression in a Grade 10 A class in a secondary school in Sedibeng District, Gauteng. Teachers, the school management team, school governing body, school-based support team, parents, community leaders and learners seemed unable to manage this constructively. Neither the culture of aggression nor the influence of this phenomenon on those entrapped in it were understood. No published research reports could be found on cultures of aggression in South African secondary schools. There was therefore a dire need to explore and describe the culture of aggression in this specific Grade 10 A class.ObjectivesThis article reports on patterns of a culture of aggression observed amongst learners in a Grade 10 class in a secondary school in the Sedibeng District of the Gauteng Department of Education.MethodA qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design was followed with an ethnographic approach. Purposive sampling was used to select participants. Data consisted of observations of ‘rich points’, interviews and field notes, and thematic data analysis and an independent coder were used.ResultsFindings reflected four patterns of a culture of aggression amongst learners, namely patterns of anger, bullying, fighting, and challenges to moral values. At the root of these were neglect of and non-adherence to human rights and a sound base of morals.ConclusionThe challenge is to assist the involved learners to respect each other's human dignity, so that relationships can be developed in which those involved act with sensitivity towards each other's needs. Such relationships often also result in the development of self-respect and a nuanced future orientation as part and parcel of mental health.
Highlights
Allen (2009:103) asserts that aggression is a social act and that various forms of socially acceptable aggression are reinforced on a daily basis through the media, public discourse and teaching
Marie Poggenpoel and Chris Myburgh (2008:3) of the University of Johannesburg said that such aggression in South African schools was a reflection of what was happening in society
No published research reports could be found on cultures of aggression in South African secondary schools
Summary
Allen (2009:103) asserts that aggression is a social act and that various forms of socially acceptable aggression are reinforced on a daily basis through the media, public discourse and teaching. In line with this, Grossman (2010:309) states that society inadvertently desensitises vulnerable learners to aggression and socialises them to accept it as a means of coping with their social environment and life’s challenges. He believes that this is a cultural shift that accounts for much of the tragic learner aggression occurring in schools. A number of reports to the Department of Education indicated high levels of aggression in a Grade 10 A class in a secondary school in Sedibeng District, Gauteng. No published research reports could be found on cultures of aggression in South African secondary schools. There was a dire need to explore and describe the culture of aggression in this specific Grade 10 A class
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