Examining inclusive primary education and the girls’ right to education in Masinya sub-county, Busia district

Abstract

This study was set to examine inclusive primary education and the right to education of the girl child in Masinya Sub County and why gender inequalities in primary education completion persist. The study was guided by three objectives that included: to establish the different societal perceptions on the right to education of the girl child and how they affect the right to education of girls in Masinya Sub County; to examine challenges that lead to the abuse of the right to girl child education in Masinya Sub County and establish how schools, communities and the government have responded to these challenges; and to assess the impact of Girl Up Initiative Uganda (GUIU) in its efforts to provide an environment where the right to education of the girl child has been promoted. The study employed an explanatory research design with a qualitative research approach. The study used a sample of 141 participants who were selected using random, snowball and purposive sampling techniques. The study employed Key Informant Interviews, In-Depth Interviews and Focus Group Discussions backed up by Documentary review to collect data. Collected data was analysed thematically. Key findings revealed that the social-cultural norms including patriarchal systems, bride wealth, early marriages, perceived girl‘s duties, and the perceived obligation of government to be the sole provider of education negatively affected the education of girls. The study also established other challenges surrounding the girls‘ right to education to include poverty, sexual maturation and adolescence, teenage pregnancies, gender-based violence, lack of adequately contextualized government support and the gender-biased Uganda primary education curriculum. Some of the responses to the challenges include increasing the number of female teachers, institutionalizing the positions of Senior Woman Teachers (SWTs), enactment of sexual and gender-based violence by-law, the establishment of Parents Teachers Associations (PTAs) and institutionalizing guidance and counselling in schools. The study recommends that the government and the line agency create a gender-sensitive educational context curriculum that will integrate the topics of sexual and reproductive health, family planning and menstrual health early, equipping and facilitating the office of SWT to function effectively, recruiting more female teachers to teach upper primary, improvement in the enforcement of laws and policies, and sensitizing the communities about the dangers of some cultural practices. Further research should focus on a comparative study to establish if these findings represent the private primary schools, school environment practices and how they affect the right to education and girl education policies in Uganda and to what extent have they caused change.