Learning for Sustainable Futures in Conflict Resolution among Secondary School Students in Kenya

Incidences of student violence have become a perennial occurrence in Kenyan secondary schools. Despite various task forces that have been set up to investigate and suggest remedies for this violence, this phenomenon still... [ view full abstract ]

Incidences of student violence have become a perennial occurrence in Kenyan secondary schools. Despite various task forces that have been set up to investigate and suggest remedies for this violence, this phenomenon still continues unabated. This paper critically reflects on this phenomenon using data documented by the Ministry of Education, media reports and supplemented by the ‘lived’ experiences of some students, teachers and school administrators. Using a paradigm that views students as conscious beings always negotiating and producing their identities which are continually developing according to the ways in which they experience the world around them, these reflections have established a set of competencies, knowledge, skills and values students really need to be able to address the challenges they face in school in a more humane and sustainable manner. Further, the paper shows how all these can be integrated in curriculum development and implementation in order to achieve a sustainable future in relation to how these students (and even later as citizens) can address such contemporary challenges without necessarily resorting to violence. The paper recommends some changes in the Kenyan secondary education system which, accordingly, must start with a shift in the value system, expectations of rewards from alternative routes and a realistic understanding of the value of education and the nature of children rights, among others.

Key Words: Student violence, sustainable future, values, skills.