INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LATEST TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING,

MANAGEMENT & APPLIED SCIENCE (IJLTEMAS)

ISSN 2278-2540 | DOI: 10.51583/IJLTEMAS | Volume XV, Issue I, January 2026

Peace Education: A Tool for Resolving Direct and Structural

Violence Against Teachers in Lukulu District

Munukayumbwa Mundia, F.M. Chipindi, Villiza Silwamba, Pilira Tembo, Alvin Chiwoyo

University of Zambia

DOI : https://doi.org/10.51583/IJLTEMAS.2026.150100015

Received: 07 January 2026; Accepted: 12 January 2026; Published: 23 January 2026

ABSTRACT:

This phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of teachers affected by direct and structural violence

in the divided community of Lukulu district of the Western Province of Zambia. The objectives of this study

were to; explore teachers' experiences of direct and structural violence in some selected schools of Lukulu district,

investigate the causes of direct and structural violence against teachers as well as provide recommendations for

resolving direct and structural violence against teachers in Lukulu district. The study was guided by the structural

violence theory (Galtung, 1969), Peace education theory (Harris, 2003) and the Critical Peace education theory

(Wulf,1974). The study employed interpretive phenomenological analysis, thereby interviewing fifteen

participants in the categories of five school managers and ten teachers from five purposively sampled schools.

Thematic analysis was used to interpret the findings and investigate the ways in which division, direct and

structural violence against teachers affected the delivery of education, development and welfare of teachers. The

study revealed that structural violence against teachers manifested in verbal abuse of teachers by senior managers,

direct political violence on the teachers perceived to belong to other political parties by the ruling party cadres,

violence in form of insults from pupils, parents and community members and chronic gossiping and rumour

mongering which proved to be detrimental to the wellbeing of the teachers. Additionally, the study highlighted

some of the causes of violence against teachers such as political interference in the running of educational

institutions, corruption, bribery and favouritism; lack of transparency and accountability in the appointment of

teachers to management positions and poor representation and support from respective teacher unions. Besides

that, the study revealed several effects of violence against teachers such as physical injuries, loss of human life,

suicide, loss of property, closure of schools, loss of teaching and learning time as teachers tend to pursue court

cases against perpetrators of the violence. In view of the foregoing, this study recommended implementation of

policy reforms that addresses the structural inequalities and peace education such as establishment of the

directorate of peace education, development and international education at national, provincial, district and

school levels that should have in its structure a national peace education, development and international

education director, provincial peace education and development mentors, district peace education and

development mentors and school peace education and development mentors. These officers would be critical to

advancing the peace education agenda through comparative and international education advocacy.

Finally, this study contributes to Galtung (1969)'s concept of positive peace by proposing three forms of positive

peace education. These are direct positive peace education, structural positive peace education and cultural

positive peace education. These are critical to the resolution of direct, cultural and structural violence against

teachers.

Key Words: Peace, Peace education, structural violence, Division, Direct violence, Positive peace, teacher

welfare.

INTRODUCTION

Contemporary societies are increasingly becoming divided with individuals and institutions resorting to the

usage of violence as a means of resolving conflicts. This pervasive use of violence which manifests in physical,

systemic and symbolic forms has become a global human rights concern resulting in widespread suffering,

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psychological trauma and loss of life(Cremin & Guilherme(2016),Cummings(2020). Within this societal context,

teachers are particularly vulnerable to multiple forms of violence because of their public facing and engagement

role within a diverse social environment.

Numerous studies affirm that violence against teachers is a growing International challenge; Shenilla 2012;

Williams 2013; Cremin & Guilherme 2016; Byongook, etal (2015) and Cummings (2020). Galtung (1969)'s

seminal work categories violence into direct, structural and cultural forms. Direct violence is physical in nature

and involves a concrete identifiable actor while structural violence is embedded in social, political and economic

systems that perpetuate harm without a clearly traceable perpetrator.Vorobej (2008) notes that structural violence

results in harm but is not caused by a clearly identifiable actor.

An analysis of different scholars' work shows diversity in the epistemological and ontological landscape of peace

education as a tool for resolving violent conflicts in comparative and international development education. The

theoretical underpinnings of peace education revolve around structural violence theory and peace education

theory, integrative peace education theory and human needs theory. Structural violence theory and peace

education theory were devised by Johan Galtung while the integrative peace education theory was proposed by

H.B. Danesh (2006) says that the integrative peace education theory defines peace as being a psychological,

social, political, ethical and spiritual states which can be expressed in terms of interpersonal, international,

intrapersonal, intergroup and global areas of human life. Katerina(2005)examined the critical theory to

illuminate how critical literacy and critical pedagogy in peace education provides practical applications of

transformation in terms of cultural and symbolic typologies of Critical theory is also important for delineating

discrimination and oppression, critical pedagogy in peace education transcends the recognition the recognition

of diversity to result in Solidarity.

Therefore, this research explores teachers experiences of direct and structural violence and investigate the factors

that cause divisions among teachers. The research also recommends positive peace education as an effective tool

for resolving direct and structural violence against teachers.

OBJECTIVES:

Explore teachers’ experiences of direct and structural violence in some selected schools of Lukulu district.

Investigate the causes of direct and structural violence against teachers in some selected schools of Lukulu

district.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What are the teachers' experiences of direct and structural violence in some selected schools of Lukulu

district?

2. What are the causes of division, direct and structural violence against teachers in Lukulu district of

Zambia?

3. To provide recommendations for the resolution of direct and structural violence against teachers in

Lukulu district using peace education

Critical Peace Education Theory

The critical theory of peace education was developed by Wulf in 1974. Wulf 1974) says that critical peace

education originates from a deep understanding of education as criticism of society and concepts such as

structural violence, organized peacelessness and participation are inherent in critical peace education. Wulf

(1974), postulates that the critical peace education theory examines the interdependence of international and

internal social structures of power and dependence in and outside the school.

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Bajaj (2013) etal postulates that critical peace education provides peace educators and researchers with the

conceptual and textual resources for gaining understanding of the structural adjustments to enhancing the

possibility and promise of peace education in diverse locales across the world. Bajaj and Hantzopolous ( 2016)

says that critical peace education is anchored on three principles. Bajaj (2016) etal postulates that critical peace

education theory pays attention to how unequal relations and issues of power must inform both peace education

and corresponding action. Secondly, Bajaj (2016) says that the critical peace education draws from local realities

and local conceptions of peace, amplifying marginalized voices through community based research, narratives,

oral histories and locally generated curricular. Thirdly, critical peace education theory draws from the social

reproductive theory and critical pedagogy to view schools as both potential sites of marginalization and

transformation.

The critical peace education theory helped us to interrogate how direct and structural violence against teachers

affect education and development. As Galtung (1969) rightly said that structural violence does not only hurt the

body but mind and spirit as well. Therefore by exploring teachers experiences of direct and structural violence

in Lukulu district, the study will help to identify structures churning out violence in the ministry of education

and recommend measures to mitigate and transform the situation.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The literature review conducted showed some theoretical foundations of the scholarly research on peace

education as a tool for resolving violence and division against teachers. This literature review comprises two

parts which are the teachers experiences of direct and structural violence as well as the causes of direct and

structural violence against teachers.

Teachers Experiences of Direct and Structural Violence in Lukulu District

Okeke & Simpiwe (2024) using phenomenological case study investigated teachers’ experience of school

violence in South Africa. The findings of this study showed that experiences of school violence emotionally

stressed and demotivate the participants who were interviewed. Although data revealed that the teachers in the

study expressed strong feelings of insecurity and disappointment with the teaching profession, the study was too

general and broad in scope.

Bounds& Jenkins (2018) investigated the problem of teacher directed violence in the United States of America.

Although this study is relevant to the discourse of violence against teachers, the methodology used is not in

consonant with the one being in my study.

Murungaih (2023) explored the Nigerien teachers’ educational beliefs through a phenomenological study of their

lived experiences. The above mentioned study focused on lived experiences using the Lawrence-Lightfoot and

Davis (1997) portraiture, a social science research method that is derived from the phenomenological design.

The study focused on post violence peace building and did not apply peace education which is the main gist of

my research.

Byonkook (2015) etal did a study which explored the negative consequence of victimization and factors

associated with victimized teachers' emotional distress in a South Korean context. This study established that

students' verbal and contact physical aggression are highly correlated with teachers' emotional distress.

Additionally, the study found that the teachers' gender, student-oriented approach, and several incident

characteristics (number of offending students, direct settlement with offending students) are significant

predictors of emotional distress caused by either students' verbal threat or non-contact aggressive behaviors.

Byonkook etal (2015) did another study whose findings show that the extent of reports of victimization to school

authorities by victimized teachers was considerably high. Nevertheless, the study further noted that a huge

number of victimized educators held views to the effect that school intervention authorities’ intervention violent

incidents were ineffective and inadequate.

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Kreke (2020) analyzed how primary school teachers recognize violent behavior and how they execute moral

education in the areas of the specific structural reasons for violence. This study indicated that the majority of

teachers have appropriate pedagogical knowledge to recognize the specific structural reasons for violence and

are able to identify the appropriate moral education or support strategy to address the identified violent or

disruptive behavior. Nevertheless, the study is focused on the use of moral education for addressing structural

vi

Causes of Direct and Structural Violence Against Teachers in Lukulu District

Sukyadi etal (2017) analyzed the causative factors of violence against teachers and the preventive measures

aimed at stopping the violence against teachers from reoccurring. The highlighted study employed in-depth

interview, observation and focus group discussion as research methods. The findings of this study indicated that

communication errors and conceptual differences in enforcing rules were the identified causes of violence

against teachers. However, this study concentrated on school based factors as being the causes of violence against

teachers and neglected to employ peace education as an important tool for resolving such conflict against

teachers. .

Theodora (2020) investigated the various types and consequences of violence against teachers as well as the

teachers’ perceptions about the factors that motivate students to engage in violent behaviors against them. In

addition to the above, relevant data of this study was collected through semi-structured interviews while analysis

of data was done through conventional context analysis. The results of the above mentioned study from the

interviews shows that violence against teachers experienced in both indirect and direct forms. While the

consequences were noted to have an impact on the teachers’ psychological wellbeing, as well as their private

lives, the learners and therefore a myriad components of the entire school climate.

Marko Prpić (2021) analyzed the connection between experiencing violent behavior of students directed at

teachers and school climate. This research was anchored on four hypotheses, which negate the relationship

between violent behavior of students directed at teachers and various dimensions of school climate. The research

sample included 451 students who were secondary finalists in schools located in Zagreb. The findings of this

study suggested that there is a statistically significant difference in the perception of three out of four dimensions

of school climate between the students who have experience with violent behavior of students directed at teachers

and those students who do not have such experience. Furthermore, the results indicate that the students who have

experience with violent behavior of students directed at teachers assess students’ autonomy more negatively.

While this study is relevant to the discourse of violence against teachers, it does not show how peace education

can be used to resolve such conflict.

GAPS FROM THE LITERATURE:

An analysis of different scholars’ work shows diversity in the epistemological and ontological landscape of

peace education as tool for resolving violent conflicts in comparative and international development education.

Nevertheless, the reviewed literature does not give hope in terms of resolving the problem of direct and structural

violence against teachers. On the contrary, studies on violence against teachers have always concentrated on

violence in general as opposed to having a specific focus on direct and structural forms of violence.

Furth more, the reviewed related literature shows that the theoretical underpinning of peace education have

always revolved around the structural violence theory, peace education theory and the human needs theory. My

study is different because it uses the Peace education theory, Critical peace education theory and the structural

violence theory to explore the concepts of division, direct and structural violence against teachers some selected

schools of in Lukulu district.

Additionally, this study has been inspired by the fact that although studies have been done in peace and conflict

studies on peace education as a conflict resolution tool, no study has been undertaken in comparative education

and international development education to resolve the problem of division, direct and structural violence against

teachers. The absence of research in comparative education and International development education that seeks

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to address the problem of direct and structural violence against teachers inspired my undertaking of this study.

As notable from the reviewed literature, although studies in the past have been done on peace education, no

study has been done on structural and direct forms of violence against teachers in Zambia. Therefore, it is

envisaged that the findings from this study will be used to resolve the effects of direct and structural violence

against teachers that is currently lacking in the reviewed literature. The reviewed literature is also void of a

specific peace education theory that speaks to the resolution of direct and structural violence against teachers.

This study will fill this theoretical research gap by coming up with a comparative education and international

development education theory that seeks to promote peace education as a conflict resolution tool of direct and

structural violence against teachers.

METHODOLOGY

The study employed interpretive phenomenological analysis thereby interviewing 15 participants in the

categories of five school managers and ten teachers from purposively sampled schools. Observation of the

participants in their natural environment was also used. Interpretive phenomenological analysis is an answer to

qualitative enquiry (Samantha etal, 2016). As indicated above interpretive phenomenological analysis is used to

examine and explore individuals' lived experiences of a phenomenon. Kamla (2017) interpretive

phenomenological analysis as a qualitative research approach which examines ways in which people give

meaning to their life experiences. In relation to the above, Husserl (1970) notes that examination of everyday

experiences is possible if there is a step back from the natural attitude. Step back from the natural attitude

according to Pnina (2011:17) implies being unreflectively immersed in the taken for granted world. Furthermore,

Moustakas (1994) and Husserl (1970) postulate that interpretive phenomenological analysis is a methodological

framework that has evolved into a process that seeks reality in the expressions of individuals' lived experiences

of a named phenomenon.

FINDINGS:

Explore the Teachers Experiences of Direct Violence in Some Selected Schools of Lukulu District

In this section, we focus on teachers' experiences of direct violence in some selected schools of Lukulu district.

We share the main themes of direct violence such as the teachers' experiences of violence in their interactions

with administrators, peers, learners, parents, religion, politics and the economy.

Specifically teachers’

experiences of direct violence include being victims of gossip, targets of political hooliganism, religious violence,

parental aggression and community violence.

Gossiping: The study found that there is chronic gossiping and rumour mongering that goes on in the schools.

This chronic gossiping puts peace at stake. The vile gossip that go on particularly among the female teachers

and the boasting about spouses and the like were noted to be a source of altercations among the teachers.

Like prejudice, positive and negative gossiping is generated and sustained by the gossiping clubs in schools.

Positive gossiping was noted not to be destructive to the reputation, integrity and credibility of the person being

gossiped and thus no violence is reported. However, violence against teachers due to gossiping was mostly

experienced when vile gossip was sent out. Respondent A particularly shared a quite injurious experience about

vile gossip as below

“Couple X working at this school are wallowing in nothing but endless loans. They are really deep in loans.

Look, yesterday the wife went to buy soya chunks. “Uh, they just eat soya chunks every day. Actually they just

beans, vegetables and soya chunks. Recently, the husband was sued by Shylock for failure to pay pack a huge

debt.

The culture of gossiping in schools, as always is with violence, breeds more violence.According to Booma etal

(2024) gossiping can negatively affect the educational climate by enhancing and sustaining behaviors of mistrust

and anxiety, which adversely affects teaching effectiveness and student engagement. As shared by the

respondents, the teachers who gossip other teachers in the staffroom give nicknames to the persons they enjoy

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gossiping about to avoid any mention of real names. Now, more trouble is created once the nicknamed gets to

know their nick names. For example, a fight ensued between a teacher and deputy head teacher at Mendai

Primary School when the latter came to know that he had been nicknamed "Rhino". Years later their relationship

was never the same; it had irreversibly and irretrievably broken down.

This study notes that education managers are in most cases the targets and victims of vile gossip. From the

narratives of the respondents, education managers are usually labelled as thieves, womanizers, prostitutes,

witches and satanists by the teachers and some community members. For example, at one of the schools that

was visited, the former Head teacher (now retired) reported experiencing being hounded out of the school by

irate residents on account of false gossip that he misappropriates the school grant whilst not..

Because of the school grants that government has been disbursing in schools, there have been community

perceptions that school managers are misusing the said grants. According to the respondents this has had the

effect of bringing conflicts between the teachers and the school administration and between the school

administration and the community.

Insults: Teachers from the purposively selected schools shared their experiences of violence in the context of

insults. Different kinds of insults are heaped on teachers as learnt from the respondents. The teachers and

education managers suffer insults from three different sources. These are from pupils, parents and community

members.

Pupils insult teachers for different reasons. Mostly they are insulted during sports events. This is usually when

they are performing their roles as referees or Urmpires If a team that they are supporting during interschools

loses, the blame is put on the teacher and is as a result insulted and in some cases even physically manhandled.

Parents come to the school to hear disciplinary cases due to the malignant behavior of their children.

Unfortunately some parents instead of providing parental advice to their children, they end up in a bitter

exchange of words with the teachers; hauling insults and threats at the teachers. For example respondent F shared

that:

A certain boy that I teach once came to class carrying a knife and wearing boots. Then I tried to counsel him

against carrying knives to class. He answered back and said “you are actually one of the teachers that I don't fear

in this school. I reported the case to the Head teacher who in turn invited the parents. When the parents came,

they played boss, demeaned everyone and issued threats and insults to everyone.

Political Violence: Some managers also experience direct violence as a result of politics. For example

respondent F shared that

“The other issue is that during elections I was picked to be one of the poll staff in 2021 elections and attended

aptitude tests. I became number 1 and given a double stream station. I was immediately dropped publicly and

given a very small polling station with less than 50 voters. This made my life so difficulty such that the Ruling

party cadres could harass me and my family publicly that immediately after 2021 elections I was going to join

my family in the village to look after animals. Up to now I still can't believe that PF is out of office. Because the

harm they caused to my life."(Interview 006, February, 2025)

Abusive Education Managers: It was noted that some administrators or education managers used abusive

words against their subordinates. Tired of being verbally abused and threatened, a newly recruited teacher had

no option but to resign his job. Tearfully, he said:

"Don't worry about everything that you have heard,, the thing is that I have failed to work with the head teacher

I tried but I think I reached at a point of just letting go of my career... I could not work in a place where I'm

always frustrated ; being mistreated and being charged with letters all the time. About the education of the

orphan I was keeping, God will always be there for us, I will try to find other ways to raise her start up tuition

fees as long as her CAMFED people will offer"...(Interview , 007, February, 2025)

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Teachers' Experiences of Structural Violence in Some Selected Schools of Lukulu District

Structural violence against teachers was defined as being the ways in which organizational structures impact

the lives of teachers in a school. With the above definition in mind, i will now show how this kind of violence

affects teachers in selected schools of Lukulu district. Many of the participants acknowledged that this type of

violence is very difficult to detect as it is indirect and is deeply rooted within the structures of the organization

(Ministry of Education) and thus sustaining the forces that generate suffering against teachers.

Several factors or causes such as unfavorable policies, lack of a legal framework that protects teachers, non-

representative trade unions, nepotism, corruption, poverty, poor conditions of service and failure to respect the

terms and conditions of service by the employer were identified as being responsible for structural violence

against teachers in Lukulu district. Therefore, below we share some of the teachers’ experiences of structural

violence in line with some of the above mentioned themes.

Unfavourable Policies: The respondents shared that the Ministry of Education which happens to be their

employer doesn't seem to have policies that protect the welfare of teachers. Respondent A had this to say about

the above.

"I don't know what really to say about this but look. We don't just have policies in place that specifically target

to empower us as teachers. My experience having taught for twenty five years is that as teachers in Zambia we

have been neglected. Our parliamentarians have failed over the years to come with policies that protect the

teachers from all forms of violence by society and the employer. In my view, this is important because it would

have been protecting teachers who suffer structural violence at work. Ouite right, I know that there are laws that

regulate the general conduct of education in Zambia but these laws only spell out what punishment should be

meted to a teacher who commits an offence; they don't tell us what the teacher ought to enjoy as a result of his

employment. For example, you see, I have been teaching for twenty five years and recently graduated with my

bachelor's degree but the system cannot upgrade my salary and there is no where I can complain. Had such things

been properly enshrined in the constitution, life would have been great for me and many others who have chosen

to share their lives with kids as educators. Just like we have the teaching profession act of 2013, we should also

have the Peace education act'.(Interview 001, February, 2025)

Non-Representative Trade Unions: It was noted that the teachers and the education managers purposively

selected to participate in the study were members of the teacher unions such as the Basic Education Teachers

Union of Zambia, Zambia National Teachers Union and Secondary Education Teachers Union of Zambia.

However, the respondents narrated that their leaders were not efficient and effective in representing them. In

particular, respondent C shared his experience as follows:

“I have been teaching for twenty two years but have a sad experience to share with regards to the topic of

structural violence. I belong to a union called Betuz and also belong to the Head teachers Association of Zambia

by virtue of my position as an education manager. My situation is that I was made to act as a head teacher at a

certain school within the district. Later on, I substantively got appointed as a senior teacher and thereafter I was

confirmed as a deputy Head teacher while acting as a Head teacher. Unfortunately I got involved in an accident

that left with a permanent disability and then I got transferred to another school and the letter of transfer was

written as "you are being transferred in the same capacity as deputy head teacher". I was made to act under some

one ignoring the fact that I had acted as a head teacher for a period exceeding the probation period for substantive

promotion and as a result should have been confirmed in my previous position as head teacher. My employer

completely forgot that I had acted for four years. This is very painful considering that the accident I had occurred

while I was traveling on duty and subsequently left me physically challenged, without any compensation or

confirmation in my previous position where I was made to act for four years. To make matters worse, I am placed

in a school that is ten kilometers away from the central business area. Being a disabled educator and manager, I

expected the office of the District Education Board Secretary to transfer me to a school within township. The

office doesn't seem to pay attention to these issues despite bringing them to their attention. The union is also

aware about these issues but it looks like they have failed to handle them. My conclusion is that the union where

I belong has failed to represent me and have these issues sorted out."(Interview, 002, February, 2025)

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Authoritarianism by Education Managers: Authoritarian practices by some education managers were blamed

for the generation and sustenance of structural violence. Respondent B shared with this researcher how he was

tormented by his administrators until he was left with no option but to resign. He shared his experience as follows.

“I was deployed at my school in 2021 as one of the thirty thousand newly recruited teachers. I loved my job and

worked very hard. During my time as a teacher I successfully managed to maintain a high pass rate in the

subjects I was teaching for two consecutive years. However, I was humiliated by my administrators. The Head

teacher would shout at me like a baby and on one occasion she told me that I was nothing to her; she said she

was older than me and my mother and therefore could not tolerate any nonsense from me. I said nothing but was

deeply hurt and devastated by the harsh words. As a young teacher, I needed guidance and not humiliation." One

day I broke down in tears and decided never to return to work. I wrote a resignation letter and left the Ministry

of Education. It was a difficult decision to make but I had no option but to leave as I could not withstand the

hostile environment at work. "(Interview, 003, February, 2025)

Expensive Loans: Expensive loans are one of the causes of pain and suffering among teachers. The expensive

loans from banks, shylocks and other lending institutions make the net pay for teachers to be very little. Chituta

(2024) postulates that while loans offered a means for essential purchases and temporary financial relief, they

often contributed to a cycle of indebtedness and psychological discomfort. Challenges included high stress levels,

reduced net pays, indebtedness, increased divorce and suicide case(Hope Chituta, 2024). Respondents from the

purposively selected schools said they had suffered structural violence and complained about expensive loans

that were being given out to them by banks.Additionally, respondent C shared that she had applied for a loan

from a local bank. Unfortunately, the bank got about three percent of the money through insurance,

administration and arrangement fees. She said

"Other than just deducting the agreed loan repayment amount the bank ended up confiscating my whole salary.

I was denied access to my salary for a period of five months. This lack of a salary as a result of the loan deductions

brought deep suffering to me and my household. In this painful situation, I had nowhere to run to. I contacted

my union and the office of the District Education Board Secretary for assistance but they could not help the

situation. The deductions only stopped after the loan was fully repaid.

The teacher’s experiences of structural violence also revealed the practice of illegalities by insurance companies.

(Interview, 004, February, 2025)

Structural violence against teachers in the selected schools also showed its tentacles in the way teachers were

being paid their salary related allowances. The respondents narrated that they were a lot of discrepancies in the

payment of salary related allowances. For example respondent D shared as indicated below:

"I was teaching in a remote school and was therefore entitled to being paid remote hardship allowance but was

never paid the money. I later came to discover that a secondary school teacher based in town was given the pay

point number number which should have been given to me as a primary school teacher and was therefore

receiving the remote hardship allowance which I should have been receiving. " After much struggle, I was put

on the pay point of another remote school and was subsequently paid the remote hardship allowance but without

any arrears. So I lost arrears for a period of four years. A year ago, I was transfered from the remote school to

a peri urban school . No sooner had I arrived at my new place of work than the system effected some recoveries

of remote hardship allowance. To make matters worse, an insurance company also encroached on my payslip

and started deducting huge amounts of money. This put me under a lot of financial stress as I am sponsoring my

son who is studying at a certain University. (Interview, 005, February, 2025)

Causes of Direct and Structural Violence Against Teachers in Lukulu District

Political Interference: Political interference was cited as being one of the causes of direct violence in the

purposively selected schools of Lukulu district where the research was undertaken. It was learnt that the

participants were in the pas directly attacked by carders of the former ruling party (the Patriotic Front).

Respondent J shared that he had suffered abuse in his execution of duty as a primary school head teacher at the

hands of the ruthless carders. He shared his experience as below

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“I will never ever forget how the Patriotic Front - PF Regime traumatized my life and family. I was targeted as

a civil servant on the basis that I was a half Tonga who could be supporting opposition UPND party. The situation

worsened when the then Ruling Patriotic Front party parliamentary aspiring candidate wanted to grab School

land at my former School in Lukulu district of Western province in 2020 at his home village and his former

primary school. I was Deputy Head teacher of the named school in his own village. The traditional leadership

and the entire Community opposed him and stood with The PTA. Unfortunately I didn't know that the then Head

teacher was a supporter of the then ruling party and any move the PTA made the information reached the

encroacher through the Head teacher. The situation got worse in 2021 when the then ruling party adopted the

same man. I was made to be transferred immediately through the directive from the higher authorities. In a space

of 2 months I was given 2 transfers, initiated by the ruling party taking me out of places where they had a bit of

support.

As they were still looking for such a place. The thing became worse as His entire home Community turned

against the ruling party because of his behaviors. This prompted several visitation from the Permanent Secretary

-Western province directly campaigning for their candidates in order to win support from his relatives. The then

Foreign affairs minister also visited the area. I was openly told to resign and join politics to continue supporting

my fellow Tonga or being fired after elections. When they saw that their support was very negative. The PS

ordered DEBS office to transfer me immediately 2 months before elections. The vehicle to transport me was

organized by PS' office. The day the vehicle came i was on way to Mongu to attend the funeral of a relative in

Mongu. I was ordered to get out of the vehicle or be fired immediately. I was forced to drop out of the vehicle

and jumped into another vehicle back to my school to get transported to a new station. This was a painful move.

I was transported immediately to a school which ends at Grade and I had my 2 sons in grade 12 who were very

much affected. All my livestock and harvest were just left in the hands of a person I urgently organized to take

care of the same and some of my properties got lost. "(Interview, February, 2025).

According to Jose (2023) politicization of education causes policy instability, bipartisan divide, lack of

objectivity, inequitable education, lack of teacher and academic freedom as well as loss of trust. Political

affiliations as shown above complicate teachers' lives as well their profession in politically polarized

communities, teachers are often accused of aligning with one faction or another, regardless of their actual stance.

Phiri et al. (2023) noted that some teachers are targeted simply because they are perceived as influential figures

in the community. This perception can lead to threats, harassment, or even physical attacks during politically

charged periods. Teachers in such settings are forced to navigate complex social dynamics while maintaining

their professional responsibilities

One of the respondents narrated that direct violence against teachers despite being a wide spread scourge, is not

given due attention by the authorities. This makes it difficult to ascertain the full extent of the problem and

difficult to prescribe solutions to the problem. The failure to effectively and efficiently address the problem of

direct violence against teachers, give reports or under reporting it also creates a culture that sustains and

perpetuates this type of of violence as well as bringing to the fore the core challenges faced by the teachers in

keeping up discipline while protecting their own well-being. Understanding its prevalence and causes is essential

for creating safer school environments.

POVERTY: Additionally, physical violence against teachers is prevalent in some of the selected areas of Lukulu

district , where poverty levels are high. Some of the poverty stricken youths, engage in killing and beating people

including teachers for money. The killing of one of several headteachers and teachers at some schools gives

credence to this assertion. For example, respondent F narrated as below:

"I was a teacher at one point in Lukulu West Constituency now called Mitete district when I experienced the

gruesome murder of my head teacher. What exactly happened is that I we were playing football with him and

other team members when the worst happened. While we were playing football, we saw two men wearing masks

suddenly running into the field of play. The two men were wearing masks and cutting a gun and an axe. Suddenly,

they shot at him in full view of the huge crowd that was watching. He fell on the ground and then the murderers

started axing him. They hacked him to pieces as the crowd disappeared into the bushes for fear of being gunned

down. This gruesome murder of my head teacher left me traumatized. I immediately sought a transfer from

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there to here and changed my name. My official name at the office and the one I am known by the community

are different. This was all done to disguise myself from the assailants. "(Interview: 2025)

Over Crowded Classrooms: The other identified factors are overcrowded classrooms, limited resources, and

the stress levels of students and parents contribute to these incidents (ZNUT, 2023). The respondents also argued

that they sometimes become victims of unintended frustrations that are rooted in broader societal issues. For

example, respondent E shared that her school had been experiencing cases of theft.

"She said on night three gun men came to her school and stole solar accessories such a battery, solar panels and

an inventor. So we heard them getting the last solar panel from the rooftop. Hearing the noise from the rooftop

we organized ourselves as teachers to catch the notorious thieves. Unfortunately, they gave us two warning

gunshots which left us scampering for fear of our losing our dear lives. While we ran for our lives, the robbers

went away with the solar items. A police report was made but no arrests were effected. (Interview: February,

2025)

The above shared experiences emphasize the critical need for specific and targeted interventions that are aimed

at protecting teachers from the systemic shocks that are contributing to such forms of direct violence. As

observed above, the complex societal issues seem to have an effect on the safety and well-being of teachers

within the schools.

The incidents of direct violence were reported to be mostly occurring during exacting of disciplinary actions or

over conflicts arising from poor academic performance (interview, 2025). For example, enforcing school rules

or addressing behavioral concerns can escalate into physical confrontations, especially in schools lacking

effective management strategies (Mwansa & Kalaba, 2021). Furthermore, as I have noted elsewhere in this

document that teachers in Zambia generally operate in an environment that does not have a legal framework that

supports and protects them from harm. According to Respondent A(2025), confrontations between teachers and

students sometimes can result into some episodes of violence particularly when pupils feel unfairly treated,

hated, hurt and humiliated.

Causes of Structural Violence Against Teachers in Some Selected Schools of Lukulu District

Non-representative teacher unions. Despite teachers subscribing to different unions, the respondents submitted

that the proliferation of unions within the education sector in Zambia has led to unions losing their bargaining

power as a result of the divisions. The narrative by respondent A that teachers in the district experience various

challenges as poor accommodation, lack of access to a clean water supply for rural teachers and poor mobile

network connectivity deprives teachers of their happiness and opportunity to enjoy quality of life. Nevertheless,

the respondents' bemoaned lack of representation and support from their respective trade unions even when they

have been officially notified. An in depth interview with respondent A further revealed that unions also

perpetuate structural violence against teachers by excluding from accessing opportunities within the union. For

example, it was shared by the above mentioned respondent that despite claiming to be advocates for better

conditions of service for teachers trade unions in the education sector do not advertise job opportunities in order

to give an equal opportunity to all qualified members to participate.

Given the above position, non-representative trade unions can be construed to be silent agents of structural

violence for several reasons. Firstly, although they are sometimes invited by management to sit in for their

members, the outcome does not in most cases favor their members. Secondly, they are mainly preoccupied with

commerce interests at the expense of their members. For example, respondent O shared that he was wondering

that instead of building the capacity of the district union leaders so as to enable them effectively represent the

membership, the top range executive members were busy poaching members from the other unions in exchange

for chitenges, calendars and dust coats while their already existent members were gnashing their teeth in misery

and agony due to deprivation of good leadership.

Thirdly the respondents narrated that union leaders are involved in external and internal wrangles for money,

positions and influence. According to respondent B says that the internal fights are usually due to hunger for

money and positions and while the external fights are mainly for recruitment of new members.

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These non-representative and responsive trade union leaders are responsible for the pain that their members go

through at the hands of hostile school leaders while they are busy marketing their union. The damage done to

teachers as a result of such predatory practices by teacher unions is deep. .

Corruption

Corruption is an endemic problem in the education sector in Zambia that continues to cripple the system.

Corruption in the education sector can be defined as “the systematic use of public office for private benefit,

whose impact is significant on the availability and quality of educational goods and services, and, as a

consequence on access, quality or equity in education” (Hallak and Poisson, 2007).Corruption covers a wide

range of activities, such as: favoritism; nepotism; clientelism; soliciting or extortion of bribes; and embezzlement

of public goods, among others Furthermore, the IEP(2015) conducted an analysis on peace and corruption and

found that there is a statistically significant relationship between peace and corruption.

Teachers are often victims of corrupt practices, which undermine their well-being and professional growth.

These practices create systemic barriers that prevent teachers from achieving their full potential, perpetuating

cycles of inequality and injustice within the education system. Addressing corruption is critical to creating a fair

and equitable environment for teachers and improving the quality of education in Zambia.

Misappropriation of Funds: Funds allocated for teacher welfare and school infrastructure are often

misappropriated by corrupt officials. A report by the Basic Education Teachers' Union of Zambia (2020)

highlighted cases where funds for teacher housing and school construction were diverted for personal use. For

example, some school administrators have been found to embezzle funds meant for teacher allowances or school

supplies.

The misappropriation of funds not only deprives teachers of the resources they need to perform their duties

effectively but also erodes trust in the education system. Teachers who are denied their rightful allowances or

work in dilapidated schools due to corruption feel undervalued and demoralized. This creates a sense of injustice

and undermines their commitment to their profession. To address this issue, there is a need for stronger oversight

and accountability mechanisms, ensuring that funds are used for their intended purposes and that corrupt officials

are held accountable.

Bribery and Favoritism: Teachers may be forced to pay bribes to secure promotions, transfers, or other benefits.

Addtionally, respondent B (2025) attested that many teachers paid bribes to school administrators and union

officials in order to get transfers or to be promoted. For example, an online message that was floating on a

BETUZ WhatsApp group for Lukulu posted by one of the members who complained about corruption in the

upgrading of teachers showed that the culture of paying bribes to get upgraded was unfair. The message posted

specifically read as" If you cannot pay k7,000,14,000 or k25,000 you cannot be upgraded, DEBS and PEOs

offices have became so corrupt such that the year of completion is not even considered."( Observation: February,

2025)

The prevalence of bribery and favoritism creates a culture of structural violence where inequality and injustice

are seen as a normal way of life; perpetuating suffering, misery and anguish, as teachers who cannot afford to

pay bribes are denied opportunities for promotion or other work related opportunities. This not only affects their

professional growth but also perpetuates cycles of poverty and exclusion. For example, a teacher from a low-

income background may be unable to pay bribes and thus remain stuck in a rural school with limited resources

and opportunities. The paying of bribes by some teachers in order to be transferred to urban schools or to be

promoted to higher positions of responsibility reinforces and sustains horrible images of structural violence

However, respondent C suggested that this issue can be addressed by replicating the strategy at the University

of Zambia of having integrity committees. The integrity committees may help to instill an air of transparency

and patriotism that is needed to foster a merit-based system for promotions and transfers as well as ensuring that

management decisions on promotion of staff are based on experience, qualifications and performance as opposed

to the alleged payment of bribes or personal connections.

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Lack of transparency and Poor accountability mechanisms: Corruption thrives in environments where there is a

lack of accountability and transparency. Issues such as unfair promotion practices, prolonged stagnation in job

groups, and lack of transparent procedures for career advancement have been reported. A report by Transparency

International Zambia (2022) found that many education officials were not held accountable for corrupt practices,

perpetuating a culture of impunity. For example, some officials who are found guilty of corruption are simply

transferred to other positions rather than being prosecuted.

The lack of accountability not only emboldens corrupt officials but also discourages teachers from reporting

corruption, as they fear retaliation or lack confidence in the system. This creates a culture of silence and

complicity, where corrupt practices go unchecked and continue to harm the education system. To address this

issue, there is a need for stronger enforcement of anti-corruption laws and the establishment of independent

oversight bodies to investigate and prosecute corrupt officials.

Effect on Teacher Performance and Morale: Corruption undermines teacher morale and creates a sense of

injustice. A submission by respondent B through the BETUZ What Sapp group comprising of all members in

Lukulu district indicates that many teachers feel demoralized and disempowered by the corrupt practices they

encounter in the pursuit of transfers and other opportunities within their work environment. Respondent B

specifically wrote

" I thank you my leader for your observations and recommendation to add on, teachers on positions for

administrative convenience to be confirmed as you know that motivation plays a role in development. Head

teachers should be motivated being the engine or instructional leader of the school. The system should normalize

the issue of acting by unfreezing the frozen positions some officers have acted for years but Acting period is

now 3 months *Some have acted for 10 years on administrative convenience. If the officer is not performing

why keeping him in such in a position? Drop and appoint one who can do the work and confirm. If one is kept

meaning is performing and equal to the task and should be confirmed. It's quite frustrating. I feel School

managers should be motivated (confirmation) the points raised above are true be put in place and we will see

even the performance will tick in the province we don't want position 10 always, some officer are frustrated

because in the community are known that they are head teachers yet the system does not recognize them as head

teachers. Where is the problem? When retirement come one retire in a different positions after serving for years,

I beg this issue to be looked at otherwise will be criticizing each other that they are not serious with work."

The above clearly shows how structural violence has contributed to the build up of demoralization among

teachers in Lukulu district. This demoralization may affect their ability to effectively and efficiently perform

their duties and thus contribute to high levels of poor performance among the learners.

Moving forward, corruption tortures the minds of the affected individual teachers as well as deprives them of an

income. The torturing of the affected teachers minds implies that corruption has a psychological toll on the

victims. This psychological impact of corruption on teachers cannot be over emphasized. For example,

respondents who shared their lived experiences with me about how corruption has hurt them said they felt

powerless excluded, robbed and, leading to a decline in their motivation and commitment to their profession.

This not only affects their performance but also creates a negative work environment, where mistrust and

resentment may prevail.

As Galtung (1969) postulate through his structural violence theory and since structural violence against teachers

happens within the structures of the Ministry of Education, there is a need for systemic reforms that promote

transparency, fairness, accountability and integrity in the Ministry of Education. As earlier mentioned above,

integrity committees like those at the University of Zambia may greatly help to create an environment that helps

teachers to become what they can become and thus derive maximum benefit from their environment and most

importantly contribute to positively to the productivity of their organization. More supportive and empowering

environment for teachers.

These corrupt practices create systemic barriers that prevent teachers from achieving their full potential.

Therefore, I recommend that corruption in the education sector be addressed through advertising of vacant

positions by the Teaching Service Commission so as to give an equal and fair play and opportunity to all

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candidates who qualify for the positions. Furthermore, peace education programs should be broad enough in

scope in order to include topics that help to promote transparency as well strengthen accountability, and promote

inclusivity. Additionally, positive peace education may help in creating a fair and equitable environment in

which all teachers achieve their full potential. This way we can enhance teacher motivation and morale as well

as improve the quality of teaching and learning, and this build a more sustainable, just and inclusive society.

Positive Peace Education

Having explored teachers' experiences of direct and structural violence as well as the causes of direct and

structural violence, we propose positive peace education as an important tool for resolving direct and structural

violence. . Gultang (1996) suggests that there is cultural violence, direct violence, and structural violence, there

are equally three types of positive peace education. These are direct positive peace education, cultural positive

peace education and structural positive peace education.Positive peace education (PPE) builds on Johan

Galtung's (1969) theory of positive peace, which emphasizes the importance of addressing not only direct

violence, but also structural and cultural violence, to achieve sustainable peace.positive peace education

(PPE) seeks to move beyond the absence of direct violence to address the deeper structural and cultural roots of

injustice and exclusion, including poverty, racism, colonization, patriarchy, and exploitative attitudes to the

environment.¹The ideas behind the concept of positive peace education is that when people are exposed to the

ideals of positive peace education, they will have enlightened minds that can critically and clearly respond to

issues of all forms of violence in a peaceful manner and thus behave as human beings who as per the IEP's

positive peace frame work do business happily and peacefully(because the environment is sound), share

information freely, accept and respect the rights of others, attain low levels of corrupt activities, have good

relations with their neighbors and can equitably share resources with fellow citizens. The above mentioned eight

pillars of positive peace are key in reducing community conflict that may have subsequent adverse effects on the

well-being of teachers.

As stated earlier above, there are three types of positive peace education which I suggest as follows; direct

positive peace education, cultural positive peace education and structural positive peace education. Direct

positive peace education entails direct actions of peace aimed at mitigating direct violence. Examples of direct

positive peace according to Galtung (1996) are physical and verbal kindness that are relevant and good to the

body of others and self. Love is the epitome of this: a union of bodies, minds and spirits (Galtung, 1996:32).

Structural positive peace education on the other hand refers to the process of educating the human mind in order

to help resolve the problems of segmentation, marginalization, exclusion, penetration and fragmentation within

organizations. According to Galtung(1996) structural positive peace is significant because it helps in ensuring

that there is freedom instead of repression, there is equity instead of exploitation, dialogue instead of penetration,

integration instead of segmentation, solidarity instead of fragmentation and participation, participation instead

of marginalization. Structural positive peace education is key in resolving structural violence related problems

that affect teachers.

Cultural positive peace education is important for resolving cultural violence. Cultural positive peace education

refers to a process of teaching and learning that helps the educands to get rid of cultures that generate, perpetuate

and sustain violence against teachers. Similarly, Galtung (1996) points out that cultural positive peace upholds

the legitimation of peace as opposed to the legitimation of violence. In other words this entails the building of a

culture of positive peace through education. Therefore, cultural positive peace education would consist of

transformation of conflicts through the building of a culture of positive peace through religion, the media, the

law, language, art and science (Galtung, 1996: 32).

¹Aizat Arystanbek, Assemgul Bukutova, Gulbagira Toleu, Lynne Parmenter, Hilary Cremin, Assylzhan Ospanbek,

Implementing positive peace education in schools: A systematic literature review of global practices,

Educational Research Review,Volume 50,2026,100759,ISSN 1747-938X,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2025.100759

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CONCLUSION

The study concludes that direct violence against teachers manifests itself in form of political violence, insults,

gossiping and verbal abuse by some abusive education managers. While structural violence against teachers

presents itself in form of expensive loans, poor working conditions of service, corruption and

nepotism.Additionally, the study, proposes positive peace education as a framework for resolving cultural,

direct and structural forms of violence against teachers. Finally, the study concludes that direct, cultural and

structural positive peace education is critical for the improvement of teachers' quality of life, performance and

wellbeing.

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