Educators' Perceptions, Experiences and Observations of School Violence in Lesotho

• NCJ Number: 217073
• Journal: Acta Criminologica Volume: 19 Issue: 3 Dated: 2006 Pages: 11-28
• Author(s): NC de Wet
• Date Published: 2006
• Length: 18 pages
• Publication Format: Document (Online)
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: South Africa
• Note: To access the full text PDF: 1) select the provided link; 2) from the Acta Criminologica Web site, select "Table of Contents"; 3) select the corresponding Volume and Issue (see the NCJRS abstract record for the exact Volume and Issue); 4) scroll the Table of Contents to the exact article; and 5) click on the "full text" icon. Downloaded on January 23, 2007.

Annotation

This paper presents findings from an investigation into educators’ perceptions, experiences, and observations of school violence in Lesotho.

Abstract

The study found that the respondents mostly witnessed learners being threatened and attacked or assaulted by fellow learners at their respective schools. From the data presented in the paper, it appears that nearly half of the learners, about 49 percent, and about 27 percent of the educators use drugs at least once a month. In addition, approximately 25 percent of the learners and approximately 5 percent of the educators carry weapons to school at least once a month. Data also revealed that about 11 percent and 6 percent of the study respondents witnessed incidents where learners and educators attacked or assaulted learners at least once a week, respectively. A concerted effort is needed by the Lesotho Department of Education and other role players to develop and provide schools with effective all-encompassing programs to address school violence. Due to the unpredictability surrounding some acts of school violence, as well as taking into consideration financial constraints, it is suggested that a humane approach to violence reduction be adopted. Although violence and school violence are not new phenomena, both were scarcely treated as academic objects of study before the 1960s. Academic consideration of the subject began in the United States and Scandinavia with research intensified due to public attention. However, little evidence could be found of publications on the subject of school violence in the small landlocked Kingdom of Lesotho. This paper presents findings from an investigation conducted to determine the experiences of a group of 269 Lesotho secondary school educators who were victims and witnesses of school violence. References