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This study explored metacognitive awareness level of University of Botswana students in the Faculty of Social Sciences. It also considered the more recent research focusing on the role of metacognitive awareness in reading and how it relates to proficiency. The following questions are addressed: (1) What are the self-reported reading proficiencies of the University of Botswana students? (2) Are the University of Botswana students aware of their metacognitive reading strategies? (3) What kind of metacognitive reading strategies are frequently used? (4) Is there a difference in metacognitive awareness of reading strategies used by high- and low-proficiency students respectively? The Survey of Reading Strategies Questionnaire (SORS) developed by Mokhtari and Sheorey (2002), and the semi-structured interview technique were used to collect data for this study. The findings indicate that University of Botswana English as Second Language (ESL) students reported high reading proficiency and high use of metacognitive strategies, but there was no vast difference in terms of proficiency. Students who reported their proficiency as high had an edge over low-proficiency ones mainly because their management and monitoring of reading was guided more by the goals they have set themselves than by the tests and assignments they were supposed to write.

In the 21st century, the use of information technology in the classroom is advancing rapidly, especially in higher education. The Internet, through social networking, has made it possible for students to learn and teachers to teach outside the classroom walls. Facebook in particular has made it possible for students to interact and communicate with their teachers and among themselves about their progress and about the problems they encounter in learning. Yet, limited research exists on the use of Facebook in education in Sub‐Saharan Africa more especially in Botswana. This is in spite of the observation that Sub‐Saharan Africa is the fastest growing Internet population with a growth of more than 2500% between 2000 and 2011. This study therefore set out to examine (1) the students' interest in using Facebook to facilitate group work activities in the Advanced Oral Presentation Skills course; (2) whether the students interact and communicate using Facebook on matters relating to the Advanced Oral Presentations course; (3) whether the students benefitted from using Facebook for learning advanced oral presentation skills; and (4) what challenges the students encountered when using Facebook in the Advanced Oral Presentations course. In this trial study, students were allocated groups and assigned to conduct their group activities via Facebook. Although this was optional, more than 80% of the groups opted for Facebook and less than 20% chose to do their group work traditionally. A follow‐up evaluation of the experiment was done through a questionnaire and interviews. The findings suggest that Facebook could facilitate student communication and interaction about group assignments.

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to find out if colleges of education in Botswana were preparing teachers to meet the diverse needs of prospective students in primary schools, and what were the teachers’ attitudes toward teaching such students. Design/methodology/approach – This study used questionnaire and interview methods to collect information from the students of a college of education in Botswana, who were undertaking teaching practices in various primary schools at the time of their study. Findings – The findings of this study show that the pre-service teachers were aware of multiculturalism in schools, but were not prepared by their colleges of education to teach culturally diverse students. Research limitations/implications – The implication is that colleges of education should design programs that adequately prepare teachers to better meet the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students in formal education to achieve true democracy in education. Originality/value – This study is essential in Botswana because multiculturalism seems to be lacking in the Botswana education system. Mokgosi and Jotia (2013) are concerned that the Botswana curricular lacks diversity in approach and is geared toward addressing the needs of the mainstream in Botswana society. In the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the few (if any) studies that explores pre-service teachers’ preparedness for teaching multicultural students.

Employers in today's competitive and challenging global world prefer employees who possess "soft skills" in addition to "hard skills" because they make an impact and create a good impression in the workplace. This study examined employment readiness of the University of Botswana (UB) students who took the Advanced Communication Skills (GEC 213) course in 2013. It also explored their perceptions on the importance of these skills. A triangulation approach was used involving a survey and interview to explore issues pertinent to the study questions. Ninety (90) students enrolled for the GEC 213 course completed a questionnaire and six (6) were interviewed face to face. The study found that the students regarded the skills taught in GEC 213 as very important and that more students should be enrolled in this course. The study suggests the infusion of these skills in other courses in the University, and that workshops should be conducted for all the other teaching staff on how to infuse communication and other soft skills in their courses. The study therefore recommends more research to get the views of employers regarding the readiness of the UB graduates for employment and for using soft skills. It also recommends a study comparing the perceptions of the employees with those of the University of Botswana students with regard to the students' readiness for employment.