Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools

Hugh Mangeya

doi:doi:10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools

Hugh Mangeya

Published in Science Journal of Education (Volume 10, Issue 1)

Received: 3 January 2022 Accepted: 18 January 2022 Published: 9 February 2022

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Abstract

The article explores how issues of spatiality and agency are implicated in the construction of teachers’ attitudes on the occurrence of graffiti within the Zimbabwe school system. Graffiti is an important third space in the education system that is, however, negatively conceptualised by both the teaching staff and school authorities, alike. Teachers are a crucial cog in the total education process who have the mandate to determine the range of spaces on which ‘legitimate’ discoursing and learning can take place. Teachers’ attitudes on the presence of graffiti on the school premises are mainly shaped by their perception of (1) the toilet as a discursive space and (2) the nature of the graffiti writers who are mainly perceived as (i) hailing from the ghetto (ii) intellectually and mentally challenged. Data was collected from interviews held with high school teachers in Gweru district. Analysis of the data is couched in Deetz’ theorisation of discursive closure. Analysis of the graffiti texts reveals that, in spite of its many positive contributions to educational institutions, teachers mainly attribute the presence of graffiti in the school to ‘slow learners’, students who come from the ghetto and single/absent parent backgrounds. This is further compounded by its main association with the toilet, which is a space that no ‘sane’ student is supposed to interact on.

Published in	Science Journal of Education (Volume 10, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13
Page(s)	18-27
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Graffiti, Discursive Legitimacy, Spatiality, Agency, Teachers’ Attitudes

References

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Hugh Mangeya. (2022). Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Science Journal of Education, 10(1), 18-27. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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Hugh Mangeya. Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Sci. J. Educ. 2022, 10(1), 18-27. doi: 10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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Hugh Mangeya. Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Sci J Educ. 2022;10(1):18-27. doi: 10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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@article{10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13,
  author = {Hugh Mangeya},
  title = {Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools},
  journal = {Science Journal of Education},
  volume = {10},
  number = {1},
  pages = {18-27},
  doi = {10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  abstract = {The article explores how issues of spatiality and agency are implicated in the construction of teachers’ attitudes on the occurrence of graffiti within the Zimbabwe school system. Graffiti is an important third space in the education system that is, however, negatively conceptualised by both the teaching staff and school authorities, alike. Teachers are a crucial cog in the total education process who have the mandate to determine the range of spaces on which ‘legitimate’ discoursing and learning can take place. Teachers’ attitudes on the presence of graffiti on the school premises are mainly shaped by their perception of (1) the toilet as a discursive space and (2) the nature of the graffiti writers who are mainly perceived as (i) hailing from the ghetto (ii) intellectually and mentally challenged. Data was collected from interviews held with high school teachers in Gweru district. Analysis of the data is couched in Deetz’ theorisation of discursive closure. Analysis of the graffiti texts reveals that, in spite of its many positive contributions to educational institutions, teachers mainly attribute the presence of graffiti in the school to ‘slow learners’, students who come from the ghetto and single/absent parent backgrounds. This is further compounded by its main association with the toilet, which is a space that no ‘sane’ student is supposed to interact on.},
 year = {2022}
}

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VL  - 10
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Author Information

Hugh Mangeya

Department of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies, Midlands State University, Zvishavane, Zimbabwe

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Hugh Mangeya. (2022). Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Science Journal of Education, 10(1), 18-27. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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Hugh Mangeya. Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Sci. J. Educ. 2022, 10(1), 18-27. doi: 10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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Hugh Mangeya. Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools. Sci J Educ. 2022;10(1):18-27. doi: 10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13

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@article{10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13,
  author = {Hugh Mangeya},
  title = {Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools},
  journal = {Science Journal of Education},
  volume = {10},
  number = {1},
  pages = {18-27},
  doi = {10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjedu.20221001.13},
  abstract = {The article explores how issues of spatiality and agency are implicated in the construction of teachers’ attitudes on the occurrence of graffiti within the Zimbabwe school system. Graffiti is an important third space in the education system that is, however, negatively conceptualised by both the teaching staff and school authorities, alike. Teachers are a crucial cog in the total education process who have the mandate to determine the range of spaces on which ‘legitimate’ discoursing and learning can take place. Teachers’ attitudes on the presence of graffiti on the school premises are mainly shaped by their perception of (1) the toilet as a discursive space and (2) the nature of the graffiti writers who are mainly perceived as (i) hailing from the ghetto (ii) intellectually and mentally challenged. Data was collected from interviews held with high school teachers in Gweru district. Analysis of the data is couched in Deetz’ theorisation of discursive closure. Analysis of the graffiti texts reveals that, in spite of its many positive contributions to educational institutions, teachers mainly attribute the presence of graffiti in the school to ‘slow learners’, students who come from the ghetto and single/absent parent backgrounds. This is further compounded by its main association with the toilet, which is a space that no ‘sane’ student is supposed to interact on.},
 year = {2022}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Graffiti and Discursive Legitimacy: The Politics of Spatiality and Agency in Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Student Graffiti in Zimbabwean High Schools
AU  - Hugh Mangeya
Y1  - 2022/02/09
PY  - 2022
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13
T2  - Science Journal of Education
JF  - Science Journal of Education
JO  - Science Journal of Education
SP  - 18
EP  - 27
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2329-0897
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjedu.20221001.13
AB  - The article explores how issues of spatiality and agency are implicated in the construction of teachers’ attitudes on the occurrence of graffiti within the Zimbabwe school system. Graffiti is an important third space in the education system that is, however, negatively conceptualised by both the teaching staff and school authorities, alike. Teachers are a crucial cog in the total education process who have the mandate to determine the range of spaces on which ‘legitimate’ discoursing and learning can take place. Teachers’ attitudes on the presence of graffiti on the school premises are mainly shaped by their perception of (1) the toilet as a discursive space and (2) the nature of the graffiti writers who are mainly perceived as (i) hailing from the ghetto (ii) intellectually and mentally challenged. Data was collected from interviews held with high school teachers in Gweru district. Analysis of the data is couched in Deetz’ theorisation of discursive closure. Analysis of the graffiti texts reveals that, in spite of its many positive contributions to educational institutions, teachers mainly attribute the presence of graffiti in the school to ‘slow learners’, students who come from the ghetto and single/absent parent backgrounds. This is further compounded by its main association with the toilet, which is a space that no ‘sane’ student is supposed to interact on.
VL  - 10
IS  - 1
ER  -

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