Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Identification and Critique of the Values Education Notion Informing the Itorero Training Program for High School Leavers in Post-genocide Rwanda

  • Published:
Interchange Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

While the academic literature is replete with affirming that ‘values-explicit’ citizenship education programs are biased and indoctrinatory, there is scant attention to substantiate this claim. The present paper fills this gap; it investigates the values education notion informing Itorero, a non-formal citizenship education platform for high school leavers (HSLs) in post-genocide Rwanda. The research reported here used a survey questionnaire, focus groups and interviews. The article engages with character education, care ethics, cognitive moral development and values clarification approaches to highlight the values education notion deemed preferable to competing concepts. It is revealed that in educating HSLs for values, Itorero is vehemently committed to character education. I argue that the overreliance on this approach raises serious concerns particularly because values education as it is done in Itorero seems like the cultivation of supportive behavior towards the government in office. Its content focuses on understanding what the government wants and the crafting of dispositions required for the implementation of defined policies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Althof, W., & Berkowitz, M. W. (2006). Moral education and character education: Their relationship and roles in citizenship education. Journal of Moral Education, 35(4), 495–518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arthur, J. (2008). Traditional approaches to character education in Britain and America. In L. Nucci & D. Narvaez (Eds.), Handbook of moral and character education (pp. 80–98). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arthur, J., & Cremin, H. (Eds.). (2012). Debates in citizenship education. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arthur, J., Davies, I., & Hahn, C. (Eds.). (2008). The SAGE handbook of education for citizenship and democracy. London: SAGE.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bailey, R. (1998). Teaching values and citizenship across the curriculum. Glasgow: Kogan Page Limited.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, W. J. (1991). Moral literacy and the formation of character. In J. S. Benninga (Ed.), Moral, character, and civic education in the elementary school (pp. 131–138). New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergman, R. (2004). Caring for the ethical ideal: Nel Noddings on moral education. Journal of Moral Education, 33(2), 149–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berkowitz, M. W. (2000). Civics and moral education. In B. Moon, S. Brown, & M. Ben-Peretz (Eds.), Routledge international companion to education (pp. 897–909). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boyd, D. (2010). Character education and citizenship education: A case of cancerous relationship. Philosophy of Education Archive, 384–392.

  • Codère, H. (1973). The biography of an African society. Rwanda 1900–1960. Tervuren: Musée Royal de l’Afrique Centrale.

  • Davies, I., Gorard, S., & McGuinn, N. (2005). Citizenship education and character education: Similarities and contrasts. British Journal of Educational Studies, 53(3), 341–358.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dewey, J., & McLellan, J. (1964). What psychology can do for the teacher. In R. Archambault (Ed.), John Dewey on education: Selected writings (pp. 195–211). New York: Random House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Galston, A. W. (1988). Liberal virtues. The American Political Science Review, 82(4), 1277–1290.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Halstead, J. M., & Pike, M. A. (2006). Citizenship and moral education. Values in action. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Halstead, J. M., & Taylor, M. J. (Eds.). (1996). Values in education and education in values. London: The Falmer Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Halwani, R. (2003). Care ethics and virtue ethics. Hypatia, 18(3), 161–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harrison, J. L. (1976). Values clarification: An appraisal. Journal of Moral Education, 6(1), 22–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heater, D. (2004). A brief history of citizenship. New York: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoagland, S. (1991). Some thoughts about caring. In C. Claudia (Ed.), Feminist ethics (pp. 246–263). Lawrence: University Press of Kansas.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoge, J. D. (2002). Character education, citizenship education, and the social studies. Social Studies, 93(3), 103–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kerr, D. (1999). Citizenship education in the curriculum: An international review. School Field, 10(3/4), 5–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kilpatrick, W. (1992). Why Johnny can’t tell right from wrong: Moral literacy and the case for character education. New York: Simon & Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirschenbaum, H. (1977). In defense of values clarification. The Phi Delta Kappan, 58(10), 743–746.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kohlberg, L. (1975). The cognitive-developmental approach to moral education. The Phi Delta Kappan, 56(10), 670–677.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kohn, A. (1997). How not to teach values: A critical look at character education. Phi Delta Kappan, 78, 428–439.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kymlicka, W., & Norman, W. (1994). Return of the citizen: A survey of recent work on citizenship theory. Ethics, 104(2), 352–381.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Law No 41/2013 of 16/06/2013 establishing the National Itorero Commission and determining its mission, organization and functioning, Rwanda Official Gazette No 29 of 22 July 2013.

  • Lickona, T. (2004). Character matters. New York: Touchstone.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lickona, T. (2011). Character education: Seven crucial issues. In J. L. DeVitis & T. Yu (Eds.), Character and moral education: A reader (pp. 23–29). New York: Peter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu, X. (2014). The problem of character education and Kohlberg’s moral education: Critique from Dewey’s moral deliberation. Philosophical Studies in Education, 45, 136–145.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lockwood, A. L. (2009). The case for character education: A developmental approach. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maison des Jeunes de Kimisagara. (2008). Rapport de la recherche sur l’école traditionnelle du Rwanda (Itorero) [Report of a Research on the Rwandan traditional school (Itorero)]. Kigali: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLaughlin, T. H. (1992). Citizenship, diversity and education: A philosophical perspective. Journal of Moral Education, 21(3), 235–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLaughlin, T., & Halstead, M. (1999). Education in character and virtue. In T. McLaughlin & M. Halstead (Eds.), Education in morality (pp. 118–131). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mgbako, C. (2005). Ingando solidarity camps: Reconciliation and political indoctrination in post-genocide Rwanda. Harvard Human Rights Journal, 18, 201–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Itorero Commission. (2011). National Itorero commission strategy. Kigali: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Itorero Commission. (2012). Volunteerism policy paper. Kigali: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ndaruhutse, E. (2008). Les compagnies ‘Amatorero’ au Rwanda ancien et contemporain [‘Amatorero’ camps in ancient and contemporary Rwanda] (Unpublished Honours dissertation). Kigali: Kigali Institute of Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (1984). Caring: A feminine approach to ethics and moral education. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (1992). The challenge to care in schools: An alternative approach to education. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (1995). Philosophy of education. Boulder: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (2002). Educating moral people: A caring alternative to character education. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (2010). Moral education in an age of globalization. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 42(4), 390–396.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nzahabwanayo, S. (2016). Citizenship and values education in post-genocide Rwanda: An analysis of the Itorero training scheme for high school leavers. Doctoral dissertation. Johannesburg: University of the Witwatersrand.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oliver, D., & Heater, D. (1994). The foundations of citizenship. Hertfordshire: Harvester Wheatsheaf.

    Google Scholar 

  • Piaget, J. (1932). The moral judgment of the child. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Purdekovà, A. (2011). Rwanda’s Ingando camps: Liminality and the reproduction of power (Working Paper No. 80). University of Oxford: Refugee Studies Centre.

  • Ramphele, M. (2001). Citizenship challenges for South Africa’s young democracy. Daedalus, 130(1), 1–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raths, L. E., Harmin, M., & Simon, S. B. (1966). Values and teaching: Working with values in the classroom. Columbus Ohio: Merrill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Riesenberg, P. (1992). Citizenship in the western tradition: Plato to Rousseau. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sears, A., & Hughes, A. (2006). Citizenship: Education or indoctrination. Citizenship and Teacher Education, 2(1), 3–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sim, J., & Low, E. L. (2012). Character and citizenship education: Conversations between personal and societal values. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 32(4), 381–394.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Slote, M. (2007). The ethics of care and empathy. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Slote, M. (2010). Moral sentimentalism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snarey, J., & Samuelson, P. (2008). Moral education in the cognitive developmental tradition: Lawrence Kohlberg’s revolutionary ideas. In L. Nucci & D. Narvaez (Eds.), Handbook of moral and character education (pp. 53–79). New York and London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Staeheli, L. A., & Hammett, D. (2010). Educating the new national citizen: Education, political subjectivity and divided societies. Citizenship Studies, 14(6), 667–680.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steiner-Kramsi, G., Turney-Purta, J., & Schwille, J. (Eds.). (2002). New paradigms and recurring paradoxes in education for citizenship: An international comparison. Oxford: Elsevier Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Suissa, J. (2015). Character education and the disappearance of the political. Ethics and Education, 10(1), 105–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sundberg, M. (2014). Training for model citizenship: An ethnography of civic education and state-making in Rwanda (Unpublished doctoral thesis). Uppsala University, Uppsala.

  • Superka, D. P. (1976). Values education sourcebook: Conceptual approaches, materials analysis, and an annotated bibliography. Colorado: SSEC Publication.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tan, C., & Wong, Y. L. (2010). Moral education for young people in Singapore: Philosophy, policy and prospects. Journal of Youth Studies, 13(2), 89–102.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, S. (2014). Making good citizens from bad life in post-genocide Rwanda. Development and Change, 45(3), 415–433.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Unity, National, & Commission, Reconciliation. (2009). Itorero ry’Igihugu [National Itorero]. Policy Note and Strategic Plan. Kigali: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Gunsteren, H. (1998). A theory of citizenship: Organizing plurality in contemporary democracies. Boulder CO: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vansina, J. (2004). Antecedents to modern Rwanda: The Nyiginya kingdom. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wayne, R. E. (2004). Negotiating the politics of citizenship education. Political Science and Politics, 37(2), 249–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winton, S. (2007). Does character education “really” support citizenship education? Examining the claims of an Ontario policy. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, 66, 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wynne, E., & Ryan, K. (1993). Reclaiming our schools. A handbook on teaching character, academics and discipline. New York: Merrill.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by the Rwanda Education Board (REB). Opinions expressed and conclusions arrived at are those of the author and are not necessarily to be attributed to REB. The author is grateful to his institution of work - University of Rwanda, College of Education (UR-CE) - for granting him a study leave to concentrate on this research.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Education & Curriculum Studies, University of Johannesburg (UJ), PO Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg, 2006, South Africa

    Sylvestre Nzahabwanayo

Authors
  1. Sylvestre Nzahabwanayo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sylvestre Nzahabwanayo.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The author declares that he has no conflict of interest.

Appendices

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

PCA four-factor structure on aims of values education

 

Loadings

Factor 1: Cognitive moral development

 

 1. Developing reasoning capacities

0.84

 2. Developing moral judgment

0.68

Factor 2: Values clarification

 

 1. Teaching measuring consequences

0.82

 2. Teaching to choose among alternatives

0.73

Factor 3: Character education

 

 1. Teaching taboos

0.79

 2. Teaching core values

0.78

Factor 4: Care ethics

 

 1. Teaching to speak and listen to others

0.86

 2. Teaching to care for others

0.41

Appendix 3

See Fig. 1.

Fig. 1
figure 1

CFA on aims of values education

Full size image

Appendix 4

Interview guide for district trainers and NIC officials

1. Based on the teaching dispensed in Itorero, how would you describe ‘good citizenship’? What does it mean to be a ‘good citizen’ – a good Rwandan?

2. What does citizenship education provided in Itorero mostly aim at?

3. What does values education provided in Itorero aim at?

4. In your opinion, does the Itorero training scheme for high school leavers have some challenges? What would you suggest to overcome them? Who should implement the strategies you are suggesting?

Thank you!

Appendix 5

Guiding questions for focus group discussions with HSLs

1. When you hear the word “Itorero”, what first comes to your mind?

2. Based on the teaching dispensed in Itorero, how would you describe ‘good citizenship’? What does it mean to be a ‘good citizen’ – a good Rwandan?

3. What does citizenship education provided in Itorero mostly aim at?

4. What does values education provided in Itorero mostly aim at?

5. In your opinion, does the Itorero training scheme for high school leavers have some challenges? What would you suggest to overcome them? Who should implement the strategies you are suggesting?

6. What did you like most in the training? What did you dislike most?

Thank you!

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nzahabwanayo, S. Identification and Critique of the Values Education Notion Informing the Itorero Training Program for High School Leavers in Post-genocide Rwanda. Interchange 49, 111–132 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10780-017-9312-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10780-017-9312-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation