a) Socio-economic Factors:
Socio economic factors influence gender relationships. Unequal access to schooling has been a major contributor to gender disparities within the education system in Kenya. The socio economic statuses of families have a major impact on the education of female students. The high rate of inflation in Kenya has affected girls more negatively than it has boys. More girls have to stop schooling either by dropping out of the school system due to lack of fees, early marriages (to help their families through the dowry paid) or taking up jobs as house helps (again as a way of supporting their families). Poverty is one of the major hurdles that undermine girls' right to education. School fees and expenses relating to transport, clothing and books widen the gender gap. Since most families cannot afford to educate all their children, girl are the ones who are made to remain home to help with household chores.
b)Textbook Content:
Textbooks have a positive impact on students' achievement. This is mainly because books are image-forming and sources of information . on social norms. They shape attitudes and the content of teaching: Most of the recommended textbooks used in schools are written by officers employed by the Ministry of Education or by commissioned authors. In most regions of Kenya, books are scarce and the textbook is often the first book a child handles. It is highly prized and has a lot of influence on the reader. In some areas, textbooks are the sole property of the teacher who transmits and .interprets their content to the learner. The content of a textbook is indirectly transmitted to learners, thereby influencing them in some way. Textbooks are prominent sources of information. They have relative durability as a pedagogical resource. Some last for several years before they are revised or replaced. Textbooks are therefore one of the many factors of socializing children. Principally, textbooks present models of people. They present behaviours and thought patterns which are implied as worth imitating. As a social institution, the school is authoritative. The textbooks used therein carry authoritative messages on role models. The school and the textbook preach social conformity in behaviour and ideology. The school attending children are captive audiences who are exposed to a common national curriculum. Therefore, they are exposed to a common culture, ideology and set of" values or norms. In Kenya, however, complaints have been raised about some set books such as "Kitumbua Kimeingia Mchanga" in which women are portrayed as immoral and as objects to be used. It has been alleged that the language used in the textbook has sexual connotations.
A study conducted in Kenya by Obura (1991) found that women are nearly invisible in textbooks, even in agriculture where they are very productive and to which they contribute much of the labour. Another study by Jacklin etl (1972) - based on stories sampled from the first three grades of readers by four major publishers - found out that boys displayed aggression, physical exertion and problem-solving behaviour while girls were engaged in fantasy, following orders or making state-merits (positive or negative)about themselves.
Outside the Kenyan context, Kalia (1980) analyzed the images of men and women in Indian textbooks. The study revealed that males were the leading actors in 75% of the lessons with women taking precedence in only 7% of the lessons. In most cases, females were described for their beauty, obedience and self-sacrifice. On the other hand, men were described for their bravery, intelligence and achievement. A total of 463 occupations were counted in the text books. Of these, 84% were filled by males and 16% by females. Instead of fostering the basic equality between men and women, the messages given to school children in text books sanction the dominance of males. Instead of freeing individuals from conformity to sex roles, the textbooks fortify a sex- division of labour. misrepresenting the real world, these texts promote the perceived wisdom that women are not competent, active citizens. They deprive school girls of positive role models. This perpetuates stereotyping and an erroneous view that women's contribution to the economy is marginal. From the above, it is evident that textbooks hardly depict the images of women and girls in roles/areas of leadership. Weak characters are usually portrayed as women; strong characters are men. Thus, girls are socialized, right within the learning environment, to regard themselves as weak. It is therefore important that textbooks present both genders fairly. This is' because the image that both boys and girls receive in school shapes their self-perceptions and influences what they grow up to be.
c) School Organization:
Various' studies indicate that girls in single-sex schools tend to perform better in national examinations than those in co-educational schools, particularly in science, mathematics and technology, In co-ed schools, girls endure a hostile learning environment filled with harassment, teasing and ridicule if a girl is either intelligent or not too bright. A study carried out in Nairobi, Kenya indicated that girls in single-sex schools had more positive experiences with science and were better placed to study and pursue science-basel-1 careers. Girls in co-educational schools were passive in science and mathematics classes. During practical and laboratory sessions, girls took writing while hoys; carried out the experiments.
It can be concluded that the educational attainment of girls is associated with the type of educational institution they attend.
In most co-educational schools, girls are usually a minority. There is a strong gender bias in subject choices available to girls. They are often streamed out of science and mathematics fields into the traditional female subjects. According to Lafrance (1991), there are three main reasons why male students always dominate in co-educational classes. First, he argues that there is cultural proclivity for seeing any talk by women as too much talk. Second, social pressure requires that females should be good listeners and their verbal participation is seen as less important than their ability to be attentive to others. Third, women are discouraged from talking by such verbal and non- verbal means, as gaze aversion, delayed feedback, interruptions and withholding of active listening responses like nods.
d) Gender Stereotyped Subject Selection:
Within schools, the subject areas in which qualifications are gained still reflect- gender stereotypes. Most learners still choose sex stereo-typed subjects. This pattern has a considerable effect on the type of employment individuals are qualified for. There are clear gender differences in the proportion of females and males studying particular subjects at the form four level in Kenya, Sciences are dominated by male students except for Biological Sciences, whereas female students dominate al! the Arts.
Gender stereotyping is also prevalent at degree level. Men are over-represented in Engineering and Technology whereas women are over-represented in Education and the Humanities. Postgraduate studies are also heavily gender stereotyped. Females are far more likely to study subjects allied to Education, Medicine, the Social Sciences or Creative Arts whereas males are more likely to study Mathematical Sciences, Agriculture, Engineering or Technology. Youth training and modern apprenticeships also display gender stereotyping of occupations. Women are likely to take up tailoring while men pick on welding. Due to their predominance of the arts, humanities and social sciences, and of the domestic and hospitality oriented courses, women still find themselves in what has traditionally been described as 'women's work'.
e) Sexual Violence and Hostile Environments:
Sexual violence and harassment is a critical issue that needs to be addressed in order to level the playing field for females in schools. Sexual harassment has been linked to poor performance by female students in Kenya. In most coeducational institutions, boys are very aggressive towards girls. Sometimes, they use physical force and threats to silence girls in class. The level of bullying experienced and reported by female students raises concern about teachers' responses to such incidents, especially when they involve boys. Where pupils judge teachers' responses . as unfair or not sufficiently protective, this may contribute to poor academic performance or school dropout. In some schools, male teachers have been known to prey on their female students, threatening to fail them in examinations. Female students who "cooperate" are rewarded with high marks. All these are indicators of the hostile .learning environment that girls and young women face.
Pregnancy and abortion are also matters of concern to girls' education. As girls become adolescent, pregnancy becomes a major factor in school drop-out. Pregnant girls are expelled from school despite a ministerial statement that they should be absorbed back into the system after delivery (M.O.E, 1994).
A study by Kombo (2004) on abortion in Kenya, specifically on its causes and implications on females in secondary schools and colleges, found out that most students in secondary schools and colleges were involved in premarital sex.
679 (97%) of the respondents indicated having been involved in premarital sex. Despite this sexual activity, female students did not take measures to prevent pregnancies. When pregnant, some sought abortions in order to continue schooling. 280 (40%) of the respondents indicated that abortion had a negative effect on education as it contributed to dropout cases and poor academic performance. Students who had carried out abortions developed notions of self- rejection and felt they were social misfits. It was pointed out that complications arising from abortion had forced some female students to absent themselves from school to seek medical care. This absenteeism culminated in poor performance, repetition and the likelihood of these students dropping out of school. More often than not, pregnancy marks the end of a Girls schooling. Students have also misused sex as a bargaining chip for marks and as a source of economic support.
f) Teachers' Attitude and Teaching Styles:
The behaviour of teachers and their teaching practices are significant implications on female student's persistence, academic achievement and attainment. Most teachers have different (and biased) expectations of students' responses in activities like teacher-led class discussions. Boys are spoken to more frequently and .are asked higher order questions:
Such attitudes towards students are a reflection of the broader societal biases about the role of women in society and the academic capacity of girls. Most male and female teachers believe that boys are academically superior to girls. Classroom observations in Kenya indicate that teachers pay more attention to boys than girls or completely ignore the girls. At times, boys have received more attention in the distribution of textbooks and other learning materials. Often, teachers help reinforce the belief that girls are un-mathematical and lack spatial and analytical thinking. This is internalized and conclusively accepted, thus justifying the self-fulfilling prophesy that certain subjects are not for girls. The quality of student-teacher interaction is noted as negative towards girls and tends to discourage their participation in class. Some whole-class discussions, particularly in sciences, are dominated by males, yet it has been argued that discussions that segregate female students are especially detrimental in science (Tobin and Garnett, 1987). Lemke (1990) found that science teachers took a student's argument on a position more seriously when it was assumed to have come from a male. Most teachers, even females, favoured boys during lessons. Girls are sometimes ridiculed for failing to answer what a teacher believes is a simple question. Boys generally serve as leaders in practical science lessons. Under all forms of instruction, girls have less access to science equipment, hands-on activities and computers than boys (Sutton, 1991). It has been suggested that certain teaching styles tend to favour boys. Boys show greater adaptability to traditional approaches which require . memorizing abstract and unambiguous facts which have to be acquired quickly. They are more willing to sacrifice deep understanding for correct answers achieved speedily. Boys do better on multiple choice papers, whatever the subject. They have been found to benefit from more structured and 'rule bound' classes, whereas girls prefer to learn through discussion and collaboration. Research on learning differences between girls and boys indicates that gender blindness (treating all pupils alike) may no longer be helpful in schools (Arnot and Gubb, 2001). Investigating the similarities and differences in learning styles of boys and girls is likely to be more fruitful for identifying appropriate teaching strategies.
It is therefore clear that in most instances, teacher-student interactions are biased in favour of boys as early as elementary school. In the face of failure, boys are encouraged to" try again while girls are allowed to give up. When they fail, girls internalize their failure, attributing it to themselves. This poor self- concept leads them to take fewer mathematics and science courses.
Schools have been implicated in promoting the non-participation of girls in education. School related factors affect both the supply and demand for female education. Among these factors include the quality of instruction, lack of role models, teachers' attitudes, types of instructional materials used and the nature of the curriculum offered as well as the timetable arrangement for the subjects. Gender stereotyping occurs in the school curriculum, teaching materials and organization of subject choices. It is general practice in the educational system to shepherd female students into subjects considered 'female' such as home economics and away from subjects considered 'tough' such as mathematics and sciences. Female students are therefore placed at a disadvantage in the, job market.
Gender equity in education will be impossible to attain unless teachers and school administrators are sensitive to the differential treatment offered to boys and girls and which are reinforced by past gendered experiences.
g) Cultural Practices:
Cultural practices like circumcision and early marriages are a contributory factor to high rates of dropouts among female students. Many parents still believe that educating a boy has higher returns than educating a girl since the latter will end up assisting the family she is married in. When calamity strikes, society expects a girl child - not her brother -to drop out of school and take care of the family. In most homes, the girl is the first to wake up to prepare her siblings for school and the last to retire to bed, having made'sure that all are fed and the dishes are clean. With HIV/Aids killing more parents each year, society has placed the burden of looking after the orphans on the girl child.
School attendance is therefore affected. It is difficult for women to enrol in parallel degree programmes in the evenings or Saturdays because they are expected to take care of domestic matters.
francis1897 answered the question on August 22, 2022 at 11:31