YEAR 4 UNIVERSITY OF ESWATINI

MATUBUKO PHENDULILE
B. A SOCIAL SCIENCES
FACULTY OF SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY 423
ASSIGNMENT ONE
202003488

Question; Using Vago’s (1999) working definition of social change, provide an analysis of
social change in Eswatini with specific reference to a social phenomenon or a social institution
of your choice. Support your argument with evidence from the literature.
0.0 This essay serves to give an analysis of social changes that has occurred in the education
institution of Eswatini, the discussion will include the identity of the change, level of change, the
duration of change, magnitude of change, rate of change, the definition of change as well as the
conclusion.

First and fore most (Khare, 1996) social change according to Vago’s (1999) working definition
of social change, posits that social change refers to the transformation of culture and social
institutions over time. In Eswatini one relevant phenomenon has experienced significant social
change in recent years is education or schools. One of the most significant changes in the
education institution in Eswatini has been the shift to a more inclusive and democratic education
system. There have been significant transformation in its educational policies and practices
moving from a primarily colonial system to one that is focussed on empowering young people to
become critical thinkers and problem solvers. This has been achieved through the government’s
introduction of policies aimed at strengthening and reforming the education institution.
1.1. According to (C. Berry, 1999) the identity of the change in recent years has been the
changes in government policy also the improvement in technology, the shift in societal
values for example women were marginalized before these changes they were not allowed to
access education but now that is not the case since the values have changed. In addition to the
identity of change is that the country has faced a number of economic challenges over the
years that has played a crucial role in shaping the education system. Stakeholders have
played a crucial role in improving the quality of education also ensure that all students have
access to all the resources they need to succeed.
1.2. Level of change, on my own opinion the education institution of Eswatini is still
undergoing changes, yes it has changed because it has mastered some changes like that of the
Western education systems for example online learning, which started to be more effective
on 2020 during COVID-19 where people couldn’t attend classes physically but only had to
switch to the zoom meetings, google classrooms and the e-learning portals just to mention a
few. Even though Eswatini is facing some challenges in changing this respective
phenomenon.
1.3. Duration of change, according to (Project, 2018/19-2020/21) the duration of social
change can vary depending on the specific changes that were implemented and the level of
support and the resources available, for Eswatini the changes took a very long time because
Eswatini is a less developed or rather a developing country, it has a high poverty rate thus
they may not have sufficient resources that are required to implement all these social changes
within a short space of time. However some changes like curriculum updates or new teaching
methods can potentially be implemented very quickly and have an immediate impact on the
students and educators, but some changes like restructuring the education system took too
 long, because it involved considerable planning and coordination across multiple levels of
government and education stakeholders. Also the ongoing monitoring and evaluation to
ensure that changes are effective and sustainable.
1.4. The magnitude of change (Chanana Karuna, 1996) asserted that the magnitude of social
change of Eswatini can be significant. Before independence education was only accessible to
a select few. But after that the government has made education a priority. (Chanana Karuna,
1996) asserted that there are some challenges like the lack of resources, and need for greater
investment in teacher training and infrastructure for example building of classrooms and
teachers houses. Therefore the potential for positive social change in education institution is
very high. Since after independence Eswatini has made a significant progress in expanding
access to education across all segments of the society. Furthermore the integration of
technology in education has allowed for a more innovative learning environment thus with
these changes it is clear that there has been a significant magnitude of social change in
Eswatini’s education institution.
1.5. The rate of the change (Khare, 1996) stated that the rate of change has been quite slow in
recent years. There have been efforts to modernize the education system but progress has
been limited because of the lack of resources and poor access to technology. Going back to
the analysis of the changes, another aspect of the changes has been the uptake of education
technology. Technology has become a vital component of education in the country for
example in school’s kids are taught how to use computers at an early age, also online
learning assignment and tests are submitted online ad they can be stored for a long time
unlike hard copies which sometimes get misplaced or lost.

Moreover institutions use e-learning portals to substitute face to face interactions. The use of
technology has not only improved the quality of education but has also enabled people in remote
areas to access educational resources and services for example the online libraries rather than
going to the library in person waste time looking for books. (Project, 2018/19-2020/21)asserted
that another change is the focus on skill development and vocational training, we have vocational
training centres like Gwamile Vocational training centre, Limkokwing University of creative
technology and many others where young people are trained and prepared for job market or
enable them to start businesses
In a nutshell there is still so much work to be done to bring Eswatini’s education institution up to
par with other countries. This will require sustained investment in education infrastructure,
professional development for teachers, anadd innovative approaches to teaching and learning.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
C. Berry, R. W. (1999, 09 18). Social change and eduction in Eswatini.

Chanana Karuna, A. M. (1996). social change or social reform. Retrieved from women empowerment in
society, social structure change.
Khare, R. S. (1996). social change description from functional to critical cultural significance. Vl no 1.

Ngo, A. (2019, 05 22). changes in the education system of Eswatini from the past to the present.
Retrieved from https://blog.studentsnepal.com

Project, T. m. (2018/19-2020/21, 07). The National Education And Training Improvement Programme.
Retrieved from www.gov.sz: https://planipolis.liep.unesco.org

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