Teaching Character Education Across the Curriculum and the Role of Stakeholders at the Junior Secondary Level in Botswana

Abstract

Various educational policy statements in Botswana support the teaching of values across the curriculum in Botswana (Republic of Botswana 1977, 1994, 1997). In other words, a topic can be taught across the subject spectrums. The notion of the interdisciplinary approach to teaching shares the idea that a topic is better taught and understood when more than a subject is involved in the teaching and learning of the subject matter. The deep understanding of a phenomenon cuts across the use of only a discipline to teach or 'do justice' to the topic under consideration. This paper justifies and illustrates the teaching of an aspect of character education across the subject boundaries, and in this case, with the use of a passage from English literature text to also teach a topic in social studies at the junior secondary school level in Botswana. It provides an illustration of how 'unity', as an aspect of character education can be taught in English literature and Social Studies in Botswana in an interdisciplinary manner. It finally recognizes the role other stakeholders can play, apart from the formal school system, in the continuing efforts to enhance character education in Botswana.