Religious Diversity in Lesotho's Secondary Religious Education Syllabus: Genuine Inclusion or Superficial Tokenism?

Lehlohonolo, Kurata (2023) Religious Diversity in Lesotho's Secondary Religious Education Syllabus: Genuine Inclusion or Superficial Tokenism? International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development, 7 (4). pp. 414-422. ISSN 2456-6470

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Abstract

Religious diversity has become an increasingly prevalent phenomenon worldwide, extending its impact to Lesotho as well. Lesotho accommodates a wide array of religious beliefs, encompassing Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and indigenous religions. In response to this burgeoning religious landscape, the prominence of Religious Education (RE) in Lesotho's schools has grown, with the current secondary RE syllabus incorporating a theme on religious diversity. While the inclusion of this theme represents a positive step toward addressing societal continuous transformation, a critical evaluation of the genuineness of this theme is imperative. Therefore, this study employs a qualitative case study approach grounded in the theory of knowledge-constitutive interests to scrutinize the authenticity and efficacy of the theme of religious diversity within the syllabus. For data collection, document analysis is utilized to examine the RE syllabus, while purposive sampling facilitated the selection of two syllabus components: Learning outcomes and Suggested learning experiences. Findings emanating from the analysis revealed that while certain aspects of the religious diversity theme strive to foster an authentic portrayal of religious diversity, a portion of the theme falls short in providing substantive content or meaningful engagement. As a consequence, this study suggests that the review of the RE syllabus should ensure its alignment with the evolving understanding of religious diversity and its continued relevance to Lesotho’s religious context.

Item Type:	Article
Subjects:	L Education > L Education (General)
Divisions:	Postgraduate > Master's of Islamic Education
Depositing User:	Journal Editor
Date Deposited:	08 Aug 2023 08:23
Last Modified:	08 Aug 2023 08:23
URI:	http://eprints.umsida.ac.id/id/eprint/12188

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