Schools in post-apartheid South Africa appear to be under siege by violence. In turn, school leaders find themselves in the unenviable position of not only having to deal with inadequate educator professionalism and learner underachievement--particularly in previously disadvantaged schools--but are under pressure to find ways to counteract the…

That the issue of violence sits uneasily on the conscience of higher education is evident in the view that educated people are as likely as uneducated people to participate in violence. The concern of conscience is equally prevalent in the view that the public role of the university is "the responsibility of a community of thinking".…

In this article I explore some of the limitations of violence, in particular focusing on how it can possibly be undermined by dialogical action. Firstly, I argue that, although violence is at times justified by some people, its disrespectful use against innocent others, makes it illegitimate and therefore un-dialogical. Secondly, the use of…