University Botswana Journals
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EXCAVATING BLIND SPOTS IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH: REFLECTING ON A LECTURER’S EXPERIENTIAL PAST
Get PDFBuoyed by reflexivity, this paper examines blind spots that lie ahead of a qualitative research journey with particular reference to the development and production of academic dissertations and theses. It is based on the author’s many years of interactions with students and their works, mainly as a research supervisor and examiner in different universities in Southern Africa. The paper observes that the aspects which students and supervisors either unintendedly or strategically ignore, neglect or are unaware of, keep them from seeing the phenomenon clearly, leading to partialities and distortions in the final research product. Overall, the paper provides a potential template for use by both the novice and established researchers in overcoming the various forms of hidden obstacles to quality research.  
MANDARIN CHINESE LANGUAGE TEACHING IN BOTSWANA: UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA
Get PDFGood relations between Botswana and China have led to many developments in diplomatic relations and in commerce and trade. This has resulted in the presence of Chinese in Botswana and in the need to learn Chinese. The teaching of Mandarin Chinese language outside China has become popular for many years now. Recently in Africa there is significant growth in the number of people interested in learning Mandarin Chinese. The northern part of Africa has made a lot of progress in the area of teaching Chinese language and culture, for instance Egypt and Sudan are seemingly doing well in their establishments of Chinese Studies. However, in southern Africa, developments in Chinese language teaching and learning are much more recent and Botswana like many countries across the world, has also taken the initiative to heed the call and introduce the teaching of Mandarin Chinese at the University of Botswana. Some of the primary and secondary schools were also not left out in embracing this initiative, particularly private schools. Globalisation and internationalisation process contributed towards the University of Botswana launching the Confucius Institute in 2009 and later on, establishing a Chinese Studies Programme in 2011. This research entailed a case study of the University of Botswana and focused on discussing the teaching of Mandarin Chinese and Chinese language instructors. A qualitative inquiry strategy was engaged and individual interviews were used to collect data. Data analysis was done manually. The teaching of Mandarin Chinese language is relatively new in Southern Africa including Botswana. There has been little research in this area, as such, this paper seeks to contribute to related research along the area of teaching Mandarin Chinese in Southern Africa, particularly in Botswana.
 
AN OPTIMALITY THEORETIC STUDY OF THE SYLLABLE STRUCTURE AND TYPOLOGY OF YORÙBÁ NOMINALS
Get PDFThis paper analyzes the syllable structure and typology of non-derived Yorùbá nominals within the framework of Optimality Theory. The objectives of the study are to determine the preferred syllable structure and typology attested in Yorùbá and state the reason for such preference in the language. The study adopted the qualitative research methodology, and the data, collected from selected native speakers of Yorùbá, using the Ibadan wordlist, were content analyzed. The paper established that non-derived Yoruba nominals that allow onsets keep them simple due to the higher-ranking status of the constraint *COMP-ONS in the language. The study also found out that an inter-vocalic consonant in non-derived Yoruba nominals is optimally syllabified as an onset to the next syllable rather than as a coda to the preceding one due to the higher-ranking status of *CODA in the language. Thus, the paper concluded that the preferred syllable structure in Yorùbá is CV, and that the language operates the open syllable typology, as attested in the literature. The paper recommends the continuous application of Optimality Theory to African language data in order to ensure that the languages are scientifically researched with extant contemporary linguistic theories
RISK PERCEPTION AND KNOWLEDGE OF CYBERCRIME AND ITS PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES AMONG YOUTH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA
Get PDFAs more people invest in the cyber world, they become prone to cybercrimes. Previous studies revealed that with technological and cyber advancement, our cyberspace has been infested with malicious acts by cyber criminals while awareness and knowledge of cybercrime and related security among cyberspace users have been relatively lacking. The purpose of this study was to investigate how much knowledge the young cyberspace users at the University of Botswana (UB) have regarding cybercrime and preventive measures and strategies to fight it. Using a convenience sampling technique, data was collected from 57 female and 43 male participants. The study established that the youth at UB are aware of cybercrime, and that this awareness ranged between poor or little knowledge on cybercrime. Findings also noted low detection of cybercrime. To effectively fight cybercrime, the article recommends routine collaboration among policy makers, law enforcers, experts in both the public and private sectors, among other stakeholders
FOSTERING COOPERATIVE LEARNING IN AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE METHODOLOGY COURSE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA
Get PDFCooperative learning is an established strategy designed to engage students actively in the teaching and learning process. It focuses not on individualistic or competitive efforts, but on group members’ support and encouragement of each other’s purposes to learn. Cooperative learning places emphasis on the belief that one member of the group cannot succeed unless the other members of the group succeed as well. Therefore cooperative learning is more than just placing students in groups to talk to each other on an assigned task as is normal practice in English language methodology courses, but a structured learning environment that is effective only if teacher educators understand that cooperation relies on the core principles of positive interdependence and individual accountability. This understanding is usually lacking in the type of group work given to English language student teachers. Therefore, despite the related merits of cooperative learning, effective implementation remains a challenge because of language educators’ use of instructional methods that resemble cooperative learning, but reward individualistic and competitive efforts as opposed to group performance. In the light of the foregoing, this conceptual paper, drawing from social interdependence theory, seeks to motivate for effective application of cooperative learning strategy in the training and development of English language teachers at the University of Botswana. In employing cooperative learning, the basic tenets of social interdependence theory should be applied. Careful consideration of these elements would ensure that teachers acquire not only subject matter knowledge but interdependent and social skills through teacher professional development as espoused in various education and policy documents in Botswana
ADVOCATING FOR DIALOGIC TEACHING IN ETHNICALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE CLASSROOMS OF BOTSWANA
Get PDFDialogic approach in teaching involves interaction between learners and their teachers. The absence of this dialogue in ethnic minority classrooms can contribute towards their marginalization. This paper examined the effectiveness of dialogic approach in ethnically and linguistically diverse classrooms in selected primary schools in Botswana. The hypothesis was that language barrier was a challenge to effective dialogic classrooms. Qualitative data were collected from ethnically and linguistically diverse regions using triangulated methods such as classroom observations, open ended questionnaires, interviews and field notes. Paul Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed Philosophy was used as an underpinning framework to justify minimal dialogic situations in classrooms. Findings indicated that dialogue was limited in the ethnically and linguistically diverse classroom due to language hurdle resulting in poor academic performance. The study concluded that, to facilitate dialogue in such a setup, the Language-in-Education Policy should be reviewed to accommodate other indigenous languages at the initial stages of learning
Barry Morton and Jeff Ramsay, Historical Dictionary of Botswana, Fifth Edition
Get PDFBarry Morton and Jeff Ramsay’s new edition of their Historical Dictionary of Botswana brought up todate, is a marvel, much like its predecessor volumes. It appears now with a different publisher, in a largerformat, with a different type face and different paper. It has a good feel. Anyone interested in this countryhas lost their marbles if somehow, they fail to get their hands on it. It is costly, but it is also indispensable.It is also such a good read. Routinely it should be in all decent libraries and most certainly in all Botswana’sministries, the Embassies and High Commissions around the world. Once again, its revised and brought upto date content is an impressive work of scholarship. The authors explain that the invaluable bibliographyhas been greatly expanded. Self-evidently, the knowledge of the country’s overall landscape possessed bythe few editors of these now five volumes is awesome. Nevertheless, there are bound to be small problems.How could it not be so? But let’s make a start
Reverend Bishop Enole Ditsheko, Wrestling Botswana Back from Khama
Get PDF‘Wrestling Botswana Back from Khama’ is first and foremost an attack on former President Ian Khamaand his 10 years of rule as Botswana’s fourth chief executive. The author Rev. Bishop Enole Ditshekosees Khama as a violator of the country’s political culture, a believer in his right as Seretse’s first son to bePresident, a corrupt accumulator of national resources for his private use, and the protector of a coalition ofgreedy businessmen who pillaged the national riches for profit. Khama’s successor, Masisi, is by contrast,portrayed as an emerging savior of Botswana democratic values who fooled Khama into thinking nothingwould change when he as Vice-President replaced Khama as President
BATLOKWA CULTURE DAY: A CELEBRATION OF CULTURAL IDENTITY AND PRIDE
Get PDFSince the United Nations declared May 21st as the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, Botswana has always celebrated culture day. National celebrations are held on a rotational basis every year, but this does not stop individual ethnic groups from celebrating their own cultures too. For this reason, in the past eight years, the Batlokwa have held their own celebrations to mark this day, which is characterised by various activities such as traditional music, dance, food and performances of certain rituals. In particular, this paper examines and outlines the events of the Batlokwa culture day held in the year 2012. The paper argues that in celebrating this day, the community did not only showcase its culture, but that it is also promoted it. The 2012 celebration made those who participated in it understand and appreciate Batlokwa culture and identity. Further, the use of technological devices to record the activities of the day and those of subsequent culture days helped to document and preserve them for future generations
MULTILINGUALISM IN SOUTHERN AFRICA: SEARCHING FOR NATIONAL IDENTITY IN DIVERSITY
Get PDFWhen the African countries gained independence in the late 1950s and early 1960s, they were confronted with three challenges, namely: to bring unity to the many and diverse semi-autonomous ethnic groups in the new nations, to forge sovereignty and national identity, and to build developed and modern states. The most crucial challenge was how to forge national identity and nationhood in a state of multilingual and multicultural diversity in each of the new states. Using the Optimal Language Policy Model, this study examines, in particular, the challenge of forging a national identity in a state of multilingualism or linguistic diversity. The article looks at how each of the southern African countries has dealt with the challenge, and the extent to which the chosen language policy has succeeded to bring true unity, identity, democracy and equality to all citizens, so as to ensure that they all have equal access to national resources and services. The study is based mainly on secondary data obtained from several sociolinguistic surveys. The findings of the study reveal that many southern countries have, rightly, opted for the inclusive and hierarchical language policies