Pedagogical Challenges Besetting Business Studies Teachers in Secondary Schools: A Botswana Perspective

Abstract

This study sought to examine the pedagogical challenges faced by Business Studies teachers in Botswana’s junior secondary schools. Respondents’ views were recorded using structured interviews. The research revealed that Business Studies teachers in Botswana were facing certain challenges that can be grouped into three main categories: (1) challenges relating to teaching the subject matter and constraints in using ent repreneurial pedagogies and inadequacy of financial resources); (2) challenges relating to the students themselves (students’ lack of prior knowledge in the subject, scaffolding tasks in mixed ability classes, immaturity of students in relation to subject content and misconceptions by students that the subject is difficult); and (3) challenges relating to policy such as the inability to implement pedagogies prescribed in the syllabus. These challenges should not be regarded as unique to Business Studies. Collectively, however, they do bring to light some of the principles that could inform the development of a distinctive pedagogy for Business Studies