“There is still peace. There are no wars.”: Prioritizing unity over diversity in Botswana’s social studies policies and practices and the implications for positive peace

Experiences of (Dis)Unity: Students’ Negotiation of Ethnic and National Identities in Botswana Schools

“…Schools bring to every community primarily non‐local teachers, economically dependent on the government (Gulbrandsen ), who transmit a nationalized curriculum that they follow with great fidelity (Tabulawa ). The formal curriculum conveys the benevolence of the state, through assurances of equality for all citizens and redistribution of resources for national development (Mulimbi and Dryden‐Peterson ). At school, students hear through the curriculum and see through the example of their teachers that mastery of this nationalized curriculum represents a path—accessible to all—to paying jobs and inclusion in the modern nation‐state (Gulbrandsen ).…”

“…Further, key aspects of the national identity taught in schools are rooted in the majority ethnic group, connected to Tswana cultural practices and the Setswana language (Dryden‐Peterson and Mulimbi ), which independence and post–independence‐era state leaders have actively worked to consolidate into one self‐identifying ethnic group, rather than eight disparate tribes (Gapa ; Janson and Tsonope ). School curriculum encourages toleration for different ethnic groups, accepting that differences in arts, languages, and lifestyles exist between them and should be treated as private matters rather than publicly recognizing minority group experiences and perspectives (Gutmann ; Mulimbi and Dryden‐Peterson ). As such, Botswana has adopted a recategorization approach toward inclusive identities (Gaertner and Dovidio ).…”

“…Over the most recent two decades, as individual and group advocacy to recognize minority ethnic groups has grown, the government has begun introducing multicultural discourse into national planning (Dryden‐Peterson and Mulimbi ), including that “[t]he education system will recognise, support and strengthen Botswana’s wealth of different languages and cultural traditions” (Presidential Task Group for a Long‐Term Vision for Botswana , 5). Yet, despite this public rhetoric indicating a shift from assimilation to multiculturalism, recognition of ethnic identity in Botswana’s education policies and in the content of teaching and learning in schools remains conspicuously absent (Jotia and Pansiri ; Mulimbi and Dryden‐Peterson , ; Nyati‐Saleshando ).…”

“…Public schools are key institutions for this socialization of subjects into national citizens (e.g., Boli ; Coe ; Green ; Uslaner and Rothstein ; Weber ), and schools have acted as a particularly powerful state intervention into individuals’ subjectivity in Botswana (Gulbrandsen ). Botswana has actively tried to mitigate possible intergroup conflict, most particularly through identity construction within the education system (Dryden‐Peterson and Mulimbi ; Mulimbi and Dryden‐Peterson ).…”

Remapping citizenship: Relationships between education levels and ethnonational identities in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Liberia

“…In education, most national-level policies are designed to increase national unity via citizenship education and a common language of instruction (Wainaina et al, 2011). However, given the varying levels of equity in education for the members of minority ethnic groups in some societies, education focused on nationalism without minority recognition often marginalizes students from particular ethnic groups (Mulimbi and Dryden-Peterson, 2018; Sefa Dei, 2005). Theorists working in postconflict contexts note that education for peacebuilding should address questions of redistribution, recognition, representation, and reconciliation in order to support both justice and peace for different ethnic and other groups in a society (Novelli et al, 2015).…”