ERIC Number: EJ801796
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008-Jul
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0951-8398
EISSN: N/A
When All the School Became a Stage: Young Children Enacting a Community's Fear and Sense of Loss
Fritz, Elzette; Henning, Elizabeth; Swart, Estelle
International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), v21 n4 p375-387 Jul 2008
This article gives an ethnographic glimpse of how an urban South African school mirrored a community's sense-making during times of rapid social change. The glimpse is extracted largely from an ethnography that was composed in 2000. In this study of school life, the biennial play was central to the year's activities. In the play the tone, content and style reflected a performance of the discourse of the school community--a discourse of fear and despondency, while searching for hope in spiritual song. Today this previously all White, Afrikaner school is still predominantly White, as Black children's parents prefer English-medium schools. On the surface the school appears to be a safe haven for those who were fearful of losing their social position, their language and their way of living, but the initial breakdown of the fabric of the school does not seem to have healed during the time after the study had been completed. (Contains 9 notes.)
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Blacks, Minority Group Children, Drama, Ethnography, Social Change, Fear, Depression (Psychology), Urban Areas, Educational Environment, Whites, Racial Differences, Cultural Influences, Racial Segregation, Racial Discrimination, Educational History, Social Influences, Elementary School Students, Inquiry
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/default.html
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: South Africa
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A