Education is the foundation of any modern society. For any nation to achieve sustainable development, the education system plays a vital role. In today’s information age, it is knowledge, and not capital that is the most important resource for socio- economic development. “Today, the knowledge, skills, and resourcefulness of people are increasingly critical to the world economy. The developed world is reacting quickly, with education a major political priority. High human capital is developed in high quality education systems…lifelong learning is also used to help workers adjust to rapidly changing economies”, . According to , in the most successful education cultures in the world, it is the system that is responsible for the success of the student- not solely the parent, not solely the student, and not solely the teacher. President Benjamin Mkapa of Tanzania is concerned that higher education in Africa is becoming increasingly obsolete. “Our universities must produce men and women willing to fight the intellectual battle for self confidence and self assertion as equal players in the emerging globalized world, (. The knowledge revolution has seen exponential and continual increases in knowledge in advanced countries the indicators of which are registration of new patents, databases, and journals as well as increasing expenditure on research, and development. Participation in the new economy requires a new set of skills; higher qualifications, greater intellectual independence, flexibility and ability to continue learning well beyond the traditional age for schooling. The system is created by the culture and thus, for Batswana to effect a positive change in the economy, they need to find the power and will to change their own culture- one parent, one student, and one teacher at a time.
Evidence from around the world has shown that although access to both formal and non- formal learning opportunities is essential, it is not sufficient to meet the actual goals of education, “that every girl and boy should make the transition to adulthood equipped with the skills, knowledge, and competencies- cognitive and non- cognitive- to live a healthy, safe and productive life . According to the Center for Universal Education at Brookings, there is currently a global learning crisis which has three dimensions, one of which are post- primary education options which often focus in developing young people’s knowledge and skills in areas that are neither needed in their daily lives nor appropriate for preparing them for the world of work. Although the number of years in school has been used as a proxy indicator for quality, in the face of the global learning crisis, additional measures are needed that focus on acquiring relevant knowledge and skills needed in a rapidly changing world. In Botswana, there has been a low return on investments in education. Statistics show that upon completion, only one in six graduates is able to find employment . In order to achieve the goals of education, there should be a focus on the quality of education being offered. This paper will interrogate Botswana’s socio- cultural, political, and economic environment so as to generate some meaningful discussion around strategies for implementing education that is relevant, contemporary, and responsive to the socio- economic needs of Botswana as a developing country.
Until recently, Botswana was one of the success stories of Africa. Revenue from its mineral wealth, along with political stability enabled Botswana to invest heavily in economic and human development. Yet the remarkable economic performance has neither generated enough economic diversification and job growth nor lifted the citizenry out of poverty. The problem with relying on a single or just a few commodities is that countries become susceptible to the global market fluctuations, and other political and economic influences. This was evident in the most recent global recession which led to a sharp fall in commodity prices and a reduced demand for African exports. For example, the diamond production in Botswana fell from 32 595 thousand carats in 2008 to 17 734, 22 018, and 22 901 thousand carats in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively, due to global economic recession . In addition to constraints on international trade, Southern African countries faced constraints on access to external capital because developed countries were forced to cut down on Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) flows as the crisis created a downward pressure on donor aid budgets. This has resulted in reduced public spending and budgets for education the world over. The government of Botswana has since had to implement cost sharing measures because the policy on free education which has served the country so well is no longer sustainable.
The economic slowdown forced mining companies to scale down production and lay off workers because of the decline in demand for minerals. In Botswana, the decline in diamond exports resulted in reduced government revenues. To tackle these challenges, the government of Botswana is focusing on reforms aimed at diversifying the economy, improving productivity and accelerating economic growth. According to the , a key challenge for African states is how to pursue more effective policies to accelerate and sustain high growth and make it more inclusive and equitable…
Poverty around the world largely has a ‘woman’s face’. The Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis conducted a study on poverty that brought to light the fact that women and female headed households suffer poverty more acutely than male headed households (Tabengwa et al., 2000). According to Selolwane (1995), there has been an increase in the number of households headed by women in Botswana, and most of these households are characterized as having an income below the poverty line. However, a 2011 poverty analysis done in Botswana by UNICEF indicates that the proportion of people living below the national poverty datum line had declined extensively from 31% in 2002/ 3 to 21% in 2009/10. This development has been attributed to government’s socio-economic policies and programs to eradicate poverty . The UNFPA (2014) report further observes that despite these well intentioned actions, poverty remains high and is more prevalent among female headed households. According to the report, 46% of female headed households suffered from poverty compared to 27% of male headed households in 2011. According to a more recent analysis, despite the efforts made by government to enhance the socio economic status of women, there is still a gap in terms of labor participation among female and male youth. The current analysis has shown that unemployment is still common among females than males . Women in Botswana encounter great economic disadvantages and this is attributable to a wide range of factors. Tabengwa et al. (2000) remarked thus:
“[u]nquestionably, the discrimination experienced by women at different levels is a major cause of their lack of empowerment. An important indicator of women’s low economic status is the labor market statistics. The workforce is largely male dominated and statistics show that as at 1998, women only made up 37% of employed Batswana despite the fact that they make up most of the population.”
When Botswana gained independence in 1966, agriculture contributed 40% to the GDP with beef accounting for 97% of exports . By 2001, agricultural contribution to GDP had declined to only 5% with beef accounting to 3% of exports (…). This reduction in agricultural productivity has been the result of high rate of urbanization in Botswana. According to the rapid growth of urbanization has resulted in high demand for employment, infrastructure, and services, outpacing the rate at which they are provided in towns and cities. Scientific tests on water samples from the Gaborone Dam and Notwane River have confirmed there is pollution of groundwater by nitrates and bacteria from pit latrines in the SHHA residential areas . Environmental sustainability in Botswana is being threatened by contamination of rivers and streams by sewage outflows and inappropriate waste disposal.
Agricultural production in Botswana has become increasingly subject to commercialization and centralization. At the time of independence, agriculture provided a source of employment and income for almost 90% of the population . Today only a handful of elite farmers- many of them government officials such as Members of Parliament, Councilors, Land Board Members and Senior Government Officials- control the major share of the national cattle herd. It can be argued that the concentration of livestock wealth in the hands of the urban elite has also concentrated political power in its hands due to the linkages that exist between wealth, social status and political influence. This has resulted in Botswana having one of the world’s greatest disparities between the rich and the poor. In the process, ethnic minorities such as the Basarwa have been exploited as herdsmen by these elite classes.
The Agricultural sector is not sustainable because it is supported by subsidies from other sectors of the economy for the benefit of the beef barons and the richer rural households. Over the years, there has been insufficient development of initiatives such as spin- off industries related to beef production. For example, instead of investing in leather tanning and manufacturing of leather products, which could have provided employment to Batswana, hides were sold to the EU- mainly Italy and Spain- and thus exporting employment. It is only in recent years that the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) of Botswana started a leather incubation project which is aimed at developing the leather industry in Botswana. Even with such initiatives, very few Batswana take advantage of the opportunities because the education system of Botswana has not instilled an entrepreneurial spirit in the citizens. Students go to school with the hope of finding employment on completion of their studies. The view of this paper is that the education system of Botswana models people to become consumers of capitalist goods rather than prompt them to become innovative and creative.
Botswana is a multiparty democracy. criticizes the country’s political culture in that it structurally by statute excludes minority groups and certain non- Tswana speaking clan groups from decision making in the political system. When respondents were asked, in the Afrobarometer Survey, how often during the past year they had contacted one of the following; local government, councilor, MP, an official of government, ministry, a political party official, o a traditional ruler; an overwhelming majority, 745- 785 reported they had never done so, . Respondents to in depth interviews indicated a degree of dissatisfaction with the quality of representation and accountability, and were of the opinion that politicians pursue the interest of their parties or themselves at the expense of the citizens, as well as citizens inability to interact with their selected representatives . Despite the Government of Botswana’s view as civil society as partners , Botswana’s civil society has been describes as weak and apolitical, even though NGOs are free to form and operate. Batswana have been described elsewhere as having a complacency culture.
The government of Botswana has embraced tourism development as a strategy to combat poverty and diversify the revenue base away from overdependence on diamond production. The tourism sector currently ranks second in contribution to the country’s GDP . The tourism sector has significant potential for growth. According to analysts, although the Botswana tourism Board is doing well in marketing the country’s tourism, there remain three other areas which require attention; diversification of products’ emphasis on wildlife; enhancing sectors capacity to provide services; and reforming sectors management to ensure that a greater proportion of tourism revenue is retained in the country (AFDB, 2014). According to Botswana tourism statistics, only 10% of tourism revenue is retained locally (AFDB, 2014). As Mbaiwa (2004) observes, this is mainly because of the sectors enclave nature… Mbaiwa (2004) further elucidates that the bulk of bookings are handled in South Africa and the supply chain is dominated by foreigners. This results in large sums of money accruing to other nations in the form of taxes and foreign direct investments. The development of tourism has led to the establishment of community based initiatives which have resulted in income generation and employment of local people. The problem with these community based organizations (CBOs) is that there is often a lack of business and management skills. This results in management positions in tourism businesses being held by expatriates with little skills transfer to the locals. Other studies have shown that the problem with tourism in Botswana is that it focuses on wildlife. Recommendations have been made to develop cultural and eco- tourism so that locals may benefit more from the tourism industry (Mbaiwa, 2004).
The heavy dependence of Botswana on foreign skilled labor was inherited from the colonial period. According to neglect of education in the colonial period meant that the country was bound to depend heavily on foreign skilled labor at independence. At independence, the country was believed to have about 40 Batswana who were university graduates and about 100 people with a secondary school leaving certificate . Harvey and Lewis further note that the British government had no real interest in Botswana or its people for their own sake, and in a much quoted phrase stated that it would do “as little in the way of administration and settlement as possible. One symbol of this neglect is the fact that Botswana was administered from South Africa until independence in 1966. Using a theoretical framework submitted by British sociologist Giddens, the education system of Botswana can be said to have been undermined by disembedding mechanisms. Disembedding occurs when functions of an institution are removed from local context. Education in the colonial state protected the interests of the colonial powers and locals were only trained in administrative and clerical jobs .
The imposition of the western education was meant to reinforce the colonial conditions by inculcating the values of the colonial society and training individuals for the service of the colonial state. According to Richie Moalosi, in analyzing Botswana’s current culture, it is important to draw from post- colonial theory which recognizes the importance of exploring the interaction between the colonizing, colonized, and the decolonizing cultures, as well as the tensions involved in the production of hybrid cultural identities. The dominant national culture of Botswana today is dual heritage and intermingling of the local and English culture dominions- subtly mixed and alternated in rural and urban situations. According to post colonial theory, nations which were formerly colonized tend to resist the values and systems of their colonizers after gaining independence. ..What the former colonies need to realize is that de-colonization does not mean the restoration of pre- colonial heritage but an imaginative creation of a new form of consciousness. There is an opportunity for Botswana to map out the foundations for an “African modernity”. This cultural task demands a deliberate and calculated process of syncretism where valuable continuities with pre- colonial culture are emphasized and vitalizing contributions from other cultures are welcome in exercising inventive genius in making a healthy and distinguished synthesis from them all (Dirlik, 1997).
In addition to colonialism, Botswana’s socio- cultural, political, and economic environment has been affected by globalization. Globalization is a broad based historical phenomenon linked to the development of capitalism. It includes a basic transformation of economies. Production processes are being relocated to developing countries and barriers to the movement of goods and capital across national and regional boundaries are being removed. Neo-liberal economic and social policies are being adopted worldwide, including an increasing reliance on trade liberalization, less government spending, and government adjustment to the fiscal demands of international institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) (Ehlers and Lazenby, 2004).
According to Carr et al. (2002), each country and region responds to the following trends as a result of globalization:
“[t]he internalization of production that allows corporations to locate production sites in different geographical locations; rapid technological change in information; trade liberalization accompanied by attempts to remove all restrictions on foreign direct investment (FDI); the formation of regional trade and economic blocs; the rise and extreme mobility of financial capital as a global player and its strong influence on national policies; the increasing power of multinational corporations (MNC’s); the restructuring of the state with emphasis on reducing provision of social welfare, privatization, deregulation, and ceding of power to multilateral frameworks or regional machinery like WTO, SADC, and NAFTA”.
Change is being experienced at national level as a result of these trends. For example; there are changes in production and labor management processes, changes in the nature and definition of jobs, increased prevalence of virtual office, e- commerce, and e-jobbing, as well as changes in orientation of economies from the industrial age to the information age. Carr et al. (2002) posit that, “Given the vast difference in acquisition of assets, information, communication facilities, capital, technology, human resources, and infrastructure that differentiates nations, some countries will play an active role, while others will respond passively to market forces.” In response to the globalization phenomenon, Botswana government adopted a privatization policy in the year 2000. Around twenty three organizations in the business of communication, energy, food and others have been spearheaded for privatization and there have been massive retrenchments. Neo- liberal reforms and social policies spearheaded by the World Bank and IMF are transforming economies worldwide. Transformation is not only occurring in the economy, cultural values are also changing as a result of the globalization phenomenon. In the past, significant agents of socialization were the family and the school, at present, the media and global communication implements such as fiber optics, satellite, internet, and e- mail is providing additional sources .
The Education Act of Botswana was formulated in 1966. In 1976 the first National Commission on Education was appointed to review the education system of Botswana. The outcome of the commission’s work was the first national policy on education of 1977, Education for Social Harmony/ Education for Kagisano. The main aim of the review was to make education available to a much wider section of the population and to break away from the pre independence education system that was a legacy of the colonial period which restricted access to quality education to the privileged few.
In 1992, the Botswana government appointed another National Commission on Education. The Commission was mandated to advice on how best to ensure that the education was system was responsive to the needs and aspirations of the people of Botswana in view of the country’s complex and ever changing social and economic situation. The commission’s report resulted in the development of a Revised National Policy on Education (RNEPE) which seeks to prepare the people of Botswana for transition from an economy based on subsistence agriculture to one anchored on industry. According to the BFTU (2007), RNPE demands the development of a curriculum that is vocational in orientation, has a broad number of practical subjects and emphasizes foundation skills applicable to the world of work. The policy further emphasizes that whatever curriculum is developed, must relate to the world of work in the form of curricular activities that espouse the processes and organization of production and demands of working life. “Donor policy has abetted this focus on vocational training”, . Organizations such as the World Bank and IMF have traditionally promoted infrastructure and strong institutions as keys to development- These require skilled workers- Engineers to build infrastructure; bankers and accountants to set up strong financial institutions; and health systems require personnel trained in modern medicine. In 1996, the nation of Botswana adopted a National Vision 2016, which reflected the aspirations of Batswana on their long term future. Vision 2016 viewed education as a vital mechanism for empowering citizens in economic and social participation. The vision emphasizes development of entrepreneurs who are capable of creating employment through the establishment of new enterprises.
The timeframe for Vision 2016 has lapsed and the country is now engaging stakeholders in formulating new goals for Vision 2036, but the citizenry of Botswana cannot yet be said to be economically and socially empowered. According to , many scholars and thinkers have suggested that while implementing educational programs, the question of ‘why’ must precede the questions of ‘what’ or ‘how’. Why refers to philosophy- why would we like to do such a thing and what would be the advantages or disadvantages? This paper writer assumes the position of the ‘New Literacy’ School who see literacy as much more than just the standard reading and writing skills on the school syllabus. They criticize functional literacy because literacy is not “an independent variable separated from social context”, . Literacy here is seen as a set of social practices inferred from events mediated by written texts. Literacy plays a role in creating, affirming or denying a cultural identity; therefore it should be developed as community resource and to amplify political voice . If Botswana is to progress towards empowered lives of people, including affirmation of the nation’s culture, political voice, and economic progress that can be sustained over generations, there is a need for empowered grassroots communities. Scholars have noted that adult’s formal illiteracy has a negative impact on formal literacy across the whole community. It is not unusual to find that children whose parents did not have much schooling do not progress far with their own education. This is known in economics as a vicious cycle: “Illiteracy in one generation means poverty for that generation, which in turn means an inability to educate the children, thereby giving rise to another generation of illiterate adults and the cycle is ready to be repeated, trapping a whole dynasty in low human capital” (Bash et al, 2008).
The Department of Non- Formal Education runs the National Literacy Program and ongoing activities include providing adults with the equivalent of Standard 7 schooling or basic education throughout the country., literacy at the workplace for some companies and organizations, and English as a second language class. The writer posits that there is need to revamp the literacy strategy and curriculum to meet the needs of the nation and/ or align it with the Vision 2016, MDG Goals, NDP 10 and other pertinent plans and policies. From the socio- political and economic analysis of Botswana, this paper proposes consciousness literacy as the system of education that fits the current level of development in Botswana. Also known as critical consciousness, this is a popular education and social concept grounded in post Marxist critical theory and developed by educational theorist Paulo Freire in the 1970s. “Critical consciousness focuses in achieving in – depth understanding of the world, allowing for the perception and exposure of social and political contradictions. Critical consciousness also includes taking action against the oppressive elements in one’s life that are illuminated by that understanding” (Wikipedia, 2015). Botswana needs to position herself in a world that is interdependent, in which only international cooperation will solve the problem of hunger, disease, and environmental degradation and produce the possibility of a stable peace among nations. In order to achieve this end, Batswana need to rediscover themselves and it is through education that a lot of misconceptions can be challenged and corrected. The national literacy program can be revamped to encompass gender education, environmental education, political education, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, cultural education, global studies, etc, as per the socio- economic analysis of Botswana. According to Biao, a successful literacy education for Africa can be modeled around the Proposed Human Development Index Literacy Theory. This theory advocates for literacy acquisition at four levels; traditional literacy, basic human science, aesthetics, and lifelong learning (Biao, 2012).
Critical consciousness forms the basis for liberal education. Liberal education is defined as an emphasis on the whole development of an individual, apart from vocational training. According to , the beginning of liberal education is traced as far as ancient Greece- a slave owning community, divided between slaves and freemen. The freemen received a specialized, non- vocational liberal education that produced well rounded citizens aware of their place in society and in the cosmos (Hoener). Today liberal education is an important segment of higher education in all developed countries while in developing countries it is viewed as a luxury and not a necessity. Liberal education has been shunned by developing country governments as elitist, emblematic of the values of hated western colonialism, and too expensive. A liberally educated person is described by the Task Force on Higher Education and Society as someone who;
Can think and write clearly, effectively, and critically and who can communicate with precision, cogency, and force; has a broad knowledge of other cultures and other times, and is able to make decisions based on reference to the wider world and to the historical forces that have shaped it; has critical appreciation of the ways on which we gain knowledge and understanding of the universe, of society, and of ourselves; has some understanding of and experience in thinking systematically about moral and ethical problems; and has achieved depth in some field of knowledge (2000).
As already alluded to, in some developing countries, the manpower needs of rapid industrialization have helped slow down the spread of liberal education. Instead of giving students a broad, general education, the systems focus heavily on vocational and other specialized training. Upon acceptance at university, for the following 3-4 years, students pursue an education focused on giving them specific, limited set of vocational knowledge in a given field. Students memorize information from text books and are lectured at by professors. Students seldom engage in analytical, critical thinking class discussion and writing, and this has been cited as the reason why it is hard for students to write a passable paper.
In many developing countries, this lack of critical thinking might often have been viewed favorably by those in power. As Lao- Tsu said in The Way of Lao Tsu over 2500 years ago, “People are difficult to govern because they have too much knowledge”. Many post- colonial dictators have, for the sake of their own survival, understandably been keener to invest in vocational education than in liberal education. By teaching students how to think, rather than what to think, how to learn rather than what to learn, a liberal education produces graduates who are better able to adapt and respond to the demands of a fast changing economic and social environment.
With formal education, the emphasis has been placed on public schools as instruments of workforce development. This exclusive focus on the instrumental has occluded other dimensions of human development that liberal education strives to cultivate; citizen identity and competence, and individual capacity to live meaningful lives. The first question facing curriculum designers in designing a liberal education curriculum would be what to teach. Although developing countries have the opportunity to learn from the experience of the west, they also need to take into account their own economic, social, and political environment. Designing liberal education programs offers the opportunity to ask fundamental questions about what matters to a particular society. There is an opportunity to focus on in a county’s history, culture, and values.
The next question would be how to teach. Proponents of liberal education argue that a learner centered approach, with an emphasis on self learning promotes lifelong learning. The talents and abilities of students should be identified as early as possible and educational programs developed to cater to their different needs, abilities, aptitudes, and learning modalities. There is a need to structure different educational routes for children of different ability and move towards a model of mass customization for the different groups in the provision of education. This approach to teaching is described elsewhere as andragogy which means helping the individual to learn. Andragogy is based on five theories; self directedness, experience, readiness to learn, orientation to learning, and motivation to learn.
Opponents of liberal education may argue that because of it broadness and typically low student teacher- ratio, liberal education tends to be expensive relative to the traditional way of teaching. As such not all students can be offered a full course of liberal education. This paper proposes establishing learning commons to solve the problem of access. Learning commons are system wide resources which may be a combination of computing centers, scientific laboratories, and libraries accessible to students from all institutions of higher learning. In this manner, students from many institutions gain access to educational resources that individual schools sometimes cannot afford. Furthermore learning commons would allow permit some institutions to teach some subjects that they would not otherwise be able to offer. These commons would need to be located in strategic places throughout the country and be adequately maintained and staffed. The commons could also serve as local points for public information and contribute in this way to civic strengthening.
The AACU’s’s take is that to infuse that arts and humanities into the schooling of our youth will require a strategic plan that addresses better preparation for teachers particularly in their own liberal education, enriched curricular offering for students, and the ability to ‘sell’ the value of liberal education. In their words, “Until we convince government that children must be encouraged to think independently, and not just give right answers, we will continue to struggle to introduce challenging materials into the school curriculum”. This is to show that introducing liberal education does not only require advocacy but political will as well. AACU recommends discipline centered seminars for teachers taught by carefully selected scholars, researchers, and other professionals in the humanities and the arts. The seminars would seek to foster a deep understanding and appreciation of a specific topic in a discipline or art. To support these kinds of professional development seminars, AACU recommends the enactment of a policy that requires renewal of a teaching license occasionally based on the seminars attended by legislature or by a state board of education. An example given is that over a period of five years, a teacher might be required by policy to have attended two such seminars that are considered culturally enriching and intellectually broadening. AACU further suggest that astute philanthropists could step in to pay the fees that the professionals, scholars and scientist command from preparing and conducting such seminars.
Another way of broadening teachers’ liberal education could be through holiday externships. Government could work out arrangements with local industries, museums, and other institutions to hire teachers as vacation externs to work with experts in their subject areas. This would not only supplement teachers’ salaries, but also upgrade their subject matter knowledge and help them understand the real world applications of their subjects. The teachers would then be enabled to bring back knowledge and insight into the classroom.
Liberal education and critical consciousness form the basis for lifelong learning. Lifelong learning is a philosophy that involves the development of knowledge, skills, and values throughout all stages of a person’s life, from early childhood to active adulthood. According to the AACU, if the arts are to have the opportunity to affect our children, they must be presented in at least one of two places- early education, where children are just getting some sense of the world- and probably most critically at puberty, when a child is coming into his or her own individuality and separating themselves from family. According to Biao (2012) change is inevitable as life is not static. Furthermore, through education and learning, whole societies can be made to prepare for changes and to adopt steps capable of enabling them to adjust very quickly to changes when they eventually come (2012). The concept of lifelong learning also recognizes that learning is not solely an intellectual process, but one that involves all aspects of people’s lives including their role in then community, performance in the workplace, personal development, and physical wellbeing. Lifelong learning results from a continuously supportive system which stimulates and empowers individuals to acquire the knowledge, skills, understanding, and values they require throughout their lives.
In conclusion, a well rounded literacy program helping the citizenry acquire political and civic education, gender education, environmental education, political education, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, health science and cultural education among others would undo the complacent habits of mind that is currently characteristic of Batswana. Introducing liberal education into the formal education system from primary school to tertiary would promote the civil society through its contribution to broad- mindedness, critical thinking, and communication skills, all of which are essential elements of effective participatory democracy. By exposing students to a wide range of differing views and encouraging them to make connections across different disciplines and cultures, liberal education is likely to promote tolerance and understanding for others. By broadening and deepening knowledge of history, the arts, and the sciences, it nurtures both pride in one’s own culture and respect for others. Liberal education can therefore have a strong influence on public spirit which both developed and developing countries require if their societies are to work together to solve problems and seize opportunities.
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