Background: This paper reports part of the findings of a study which exposed sexual violence in schools for learners with mild intellectual disability in South Africa. Special attention was paid on factors contributing to such a problem. Methods: Data were collected using focus groups and individual interviews with 16 learners with mild…

This paper explores how teachers in a poor township primary school in South Africa construct meaning regarding gender violence among children, and how they talk about addressing that violence. The paper argues that major influences on the endemic violence include complex societal structures that are inscribed with cultures of violent…

How might Life Skills be conceptualised in the Foundation Phase of schooling when a tradition of feminist literature has revealed the regulation, denial and the silencing of both gender and sexuality in early childhood? This article presents one Grade 2 teacher's perspective of addressing sexuality education in an impoverished township primary…

Interviews conducted with township girls in South Africa show enduring experiences of sexual violence both in and out of the school. Fear of boys and men were articulated in relation to boyfriends, male teachers, men in the township neighbourhood and men in the home. While the girls attempted to exercise agency in arresting their fears, these…

The present paper presents findings drawn from a qualitative study that investigated the impact of childhood sexual abuse on school functioning among young adult survivors in South Africa. Data were obtained by means of in-depth individual interviews with 22 young adults. Analyzing the interviews following procedures aligned to a grounded theory…

Current literature suggesting the negative impact of childhood experiences of sexual abuse on school functioning makes it imperative to consider the role of the teacher in helping survivors overcome the negative impact of such experiences. Schools cannot ignore the reason why some learners cannot learn. This article presents the findings of a…

Despite the growing recognition of the prevalence of incest which is challenging traditional views about the family as a safe haven for children, there is a serious paucity of scientific research on incest in South Africa in the new field of family violence. Almost a century after Sigmund Freud dismissed most women's reports of incest…

In this article, the story of 11 male psychotherapeutic patients with low self-esteem is told within the context of the research process. The literature suggests that the concept of "self-esteem" has a significant influence on the way an individual experiences his/her world. Therefore, the meaning that the psychotherapeutic patients…