San indigenous songs as cultural heritage for inclusion in Botswana music education programmes

Abstract

Botswana is a heterogeneous society and therefore the elements of dualism as well as cultural pluralism should be reflected in social institutions such as schools. The Naro of D’Kar are among the few minority ethnic San groups in Botswana still practicing their indigenous songs. While the government is positively continuing to implement the recommendations of the 1994 Revised National Policy on Education, this study explored Naro music, songs and dances to find possible ways in which these intangible elements of cultural heritage could be included in the music education curriculum. A qualitative ethnomusicological approach was applied in order to provide a systematic and scientific description of the contextual and cultural aspects of Naro music practices. Participants were purposively selected as indigenous culture bearers, including both adults and children. Focus groups as well as semi-structured individual interviews contributed to rich data gathering. Moreover, an extended period of field work allowed opportunities to observe various groups of Naro participating in music, song and dance activities, leading to an in-depth perspective of the research problem. All interviews and observations were audio- or video-recorded. An interpretative data analysis strategy was employed to identify themes. Findings reveal the rich cultural heritage of the Naro of D’Kar and how this is entrenched in their indigenous songs and dances. The purpose of Naro songs are closely linked to spiritual and physical healing rituals. Data analysis unveiled four broad categories in which Naro songs and dances may be classified namely songs for worship; songs for initiation; songs for social commentary; and lastly a broad category of songs for thanksgiving, recreation, hunting and children’s playsongs. The documenting, transcribing and audio/video-recording of Naro songs as performed in their original context and setting, add valuable resources which music teachers can use to facilitate inclusion of Naro music in the Botswana curriculum. This may lead to a paradigm shift in policy development whereby principles of Multicultural Music Education (MME) are embraced. Learners are envisaged to acquire knowledge and understanding of a broader society as well as an appreciation of their own cultural heritage including language, traditions, songs, ceremonies, customs, social norms and a sense of citizenship.