Socio-cultural Factors Affecting Academic Performance Of Girls In .
SOCIO-CULTURAL FACTORS AFFECTING ACADEMICPERFORMANCE OF GIRLS IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS INNZEGA DISTRICT, TANZANIAJOEL KATEGILE MGALULAA DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THEREQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF EDUCATION INADMINISTRATION, PLANNING AND POLICY STUDIES OF THEOPEN UNIVERSITY OF TANZANIA2017
iiCERTIFICATIONThe undersigned certifies that she has read and hereby recommends for acceptanceby the Open University of Tanzania a dissertation entitled: “Socio-cultural FactorsAffecting Academic Performance of Girls in Public Secondary Schools in NzegaDistrict, Tanzania” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree ofMaster of Education in Administration, Planning and Policy Studies of the OpenUniversity of Tanzania. Prof. Cornelia K. Muganda(Supervisor) . Date
iiiCOPYRIGHTNo part of this dissertation may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, ortransmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the author or the OpenUniversity of Tanzania in that behalf.
ivDECLARATIONI, Joel Kategile Mgalula, do hereby declare that this dissertation is my own originalwork and that it has not been presented and will not be presented to any otheruniversity for a similar or any other degree award. . Signature . Date
vDEDICATIONThis work is dedicated to my beloved wife Caritas Mathew and my children Jackline,Emmanuel and Joseph for their support and spiritual prayers during my entire studies.Also, my dedication goes to all people close to me, to whom I owe my success somuch.
viACKNOWLEDGEMENTI take this opportunity to thank God for his guidance and protection in the course ofcarrying out my research. Through His grace, he sent people who have beeninstrumental in honouring my skills and keeping me inspired to complete this task.My special gratitude goes to my supervisor Prof. Cornelia K. Muganda for hersupport; assistance and encouragement. I also express my appreciation to all staffs ofOpen University of Tanzania for their cooperation and assistance. Lastly but not least,I gratefully thank my wife Caritas Mathew for her support and encouragementthroughout the time of conducting this research.
viiABSTRACTThe purpose of the study was to establish socio-cultural factors affecting academicperformance of girls in public secondary schools in Nzega district. The studyemployed descriptive survey where Questionnaires were used to collect data fromteachers and students, and interview schedule was used as data collection instrumentfor heads of schools and parents who formed the sample group of the study. Theschools were sampled by using simple random sampling while teachers and studentswere selected by using stratified sampling followed by simple random sampling.Parents were purposively included in the study. Data collected was analyzed by usingSPSS. The findings indicated that the society agree that education is one of thefundamental human rights. Furthermore, too much work at homes, family preferenceto educate boys instead of girls, Female Genital Mutilation, the notion that femalesare less intelligent than males, early marriage, parental demoralization due to girls’pregnancies before completion of schools as well as the notions that women’srightful place is in the kitchen, low parental interest to educate girls due to belief thattheir daughters will marry and go away and parental failure to buy basic needs totheir daughters are socio-cultural factors which negatively affect girl’ academicperformance in public secondary schools. Challenges included corruption, politicalinterference to some school disciplinary decisions, ignorance of some parents,poverty of some families and lack of cooperation from parents. Measures suggestedincluded construction of dormitories in schools, educating parents on significance ofeducation to girls, establishment of permanent places for pastoralist’s families andestablishment of strong laws for anyone who will destroy the future of girlsacademically.
viiiTABLE OF CONTENTSCERTIFICATION . iiCOPYRIGHT . iiiDECLARATION . ivDEDICATION . vACKNOWLEDGEMENT . viABSTRACT . viiLIST OF TABLES . xiiLIST OF FIGURES . xiiiLIST OF APPENDICES . xivLIST OF ABBREVIATIONS . xvCHAPTER ONE . 1INTRODUCTION . 11.1Introduction . 11.2Background to the Problem . 11.3Statement of the Problem . 41.4Objectives of the Study . 51.4.1General Objective. 51.4.2Specific Objectives. 51.5Research Questions . 61.6Significance of the Study . 61.7Delimitation of the Study . 71.8The Conceptual Framework of the Study . 8
ix1.9Definition of Key Terms . 101.10Organization of the study . 10CHAPTER TWO . 12LITERATURE REVIEW. 122.1Introduction . 122.2Overview of Socio-cultural Factors in Tanzania . 122.3Empirical Studies . 132.3.1Academic Performance of Girls . 132.3.2Socio-cultural Factors Affecting Academic Performance of Girls . 142.5Theoretical Framework . 172.6The Knowledge Gap which this Study Intended to Fill . 19CHAPTER THREE . 20RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY . 203.1Introduction . 203.2Research Design . 203.3Area of Study . 203.4Description of Population and Sample . 213.4.1Target Population . 213.4.2Sample and Sampling Procedures . 213.5Data Collection Instruments. 223.5.1Questionnaire . 233.5.2Interview Schedule . 233.6Validity. 233.8Data Analysis Procedures . 25
x3.9Ethical Consideration in Research . 25CHAPTER FOUR . 26DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION. 264.1Introduction . 264.2Demographic Profile of the Respondents . 264.2.1Demographic Profile of Teachers . 264.2.2Demographic Profile of Heads of Schools . 284.2.3Demographic Profile of Students . 294.2.4Demographic Profile of Parents . 304.3The Views on Girls’ Education in Nzega District . 324.3.1Views of Teachers on Girls’ Education . 324.3.2Views of Students’ on Girls’ Education . 344.4Socio – Cultural Factors Affecting Academic Performance of Girls . 364.5Challenges that Schools Face in their Struggle to Eliminate Socio-culturalFactors that Negatively Affect Academic Performance of Girls . 414.9Measures that Could be Taken to Overcome the Challenges Facing Schools inStruggle to Eliminate Socio-cultural Factors that Negatively Affect AcademicPerformance of Girls . 43CHAPTER FIVE . 46SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS . 465.1Introduction . 465.2Summary of the Study. 465.3Summary of the Main Findings . 475.5Recommendations . 49
xi5.5.1Recommendation for Action . 495.5.2Recommendation for Further Research . 50REFERENCES . 51APPENDICES . 55
xiiLIST OF TABLESTable 1.1: Percentage of Form IV Students’ Performance in National Examination . 3Table 1.2: Percentages of Form IV Students’ Performance in Nzega District . 4Table 3.1: Summary of Participants Included in the Study . 22Table 4.1: Demographic Profile of Teachers . 27Table 4.2: Demographic Profile of Heads of Schools . 28Table 4.3: Demographic Profile of Parents . 31Table 4.4: Views of Teachers towards Girls’ Education . 32Table 4.5: Views of Students’ towards Girls’ Education . 35Table 4.6: Teachers’ Responses on Socio-Cultural Factors Affecting AcademicPerformance of Girls in Public Secondary Schools . 37Table 4.7: Students’ Responses on Socio-Cultural Factors Affecting AcademicPerformance of Girls in Public Secondary Schools . 39Table 4.8: Challenges that Schools face in their Struggle to Eliminate Socio-culturalFactors that Negatively affect Academic Performnce of Girls . 41Table 4.9: Teachers and Students’ Suggestion on Socio-cultural Remedies Teachersand Students’ Suggestion on Socio-cultural Remedies. 44
xiiiLIST OF FIGURESFigure 1.1: Conceptual Framework of Input-Process Output Model (as cited inNyalusi 2013) . 8Figure 1.2: Conceptual Framework Showing the Effect of Socio – Cultural Factorson Academic Performance of Girls in Schools . 9Figure 4.1: Gender of Students Participated in the Study . 30
xivLIST OF APPENDICESAppendix 1: Teachers’ Questionnaire . 55Appendix 2: Students’ Questionnaire . 59Appendix 3: Interview Schedule for Heads of Schools . 63Appendix 4: Interview Schedule for Parents/ Dodoso kwa Wazazi . 65Appendix 5: Research Clearance Letter Open University . 68Appendix 6: Introductory Letter from Nzega District Director . 69
xvLIST OF ABBREVIATIONSDEDDistrict Executive DirectorDFIDDepartment For International DevelopmentSPSSStatistical Package for Social ScienceURTUnited Republic of Tanzania
1CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION1.1IntroductionThe study examined socio-cultural factors affecting academic performance of girls inpublic secondary schools in Nzega district. This chapter presents background to thestudy, statement of the problem and research objectives. It also presents thesignificance of the study, scope and delimitation of the study, operational definitionof key terms and organization of the report.1.2Background to the ProblemIt is stated in the United Republic of Tanzania (URT, 2000) that education serves asthe main means of providing individuals with the opportunity to achieve their fullpotential in terms of acquiring the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes needed forvarious social and economic roles, as well as for their all round personaldevelopment. As observed by Engin-Demir (cited in Dimbisso, 2009), education isnot a charity rather a fundamental human right for all people irrespective of their sex,race, economic status which is the key to sustainable development, peace andstability among countries.Tanzania has variety of tribes, each having its own values, beliefs and moralsrepresenting a sub culture, which has institutions and oral traditions for perpetuatingits culture. A social group that believes in righteous acts and decent interactions willdemand its individual members to teach the same to other people. Mbughuni (1974),the young were educated in the cultural values as well as the customs of their people.
2Troike (1978) explained that learning of culture, like the learning of language, beginswith a child's first experiences with the family into which he is born, the communityto which he belongs, and the environment in which he lives. By the time childrenbegin their formal education, they have already internalized many of the basic valuesand beliefs of their native culture.In ensuring that men and women in our societies have equal opportunities toeducation, the government of Tanzania has emphasized equality and human rights inits constitution. Article XI of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzaniaprovides equality in education and technical training (Meena, 1996). Also, thegovernment signed and ratified several national and international gender declarationsand conventions aimed to eliminate all forms of discrimination and to promotegender equality particularly in education. Among of these conventions anddeclarations is the Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination AgainstWomen (1979) which gives women equal rights as men in the education field.Despite the commitment of government to promote gender equality in education andstruggle to remove all obstacles that prevent the access to education, performancerate of girls in secondary school is lower than that of boys for many years now.However, the greatest challenge still remains in bridging the gap between boys andgirls in term of academic performance in their final examinations.URT (2011) states that girls’ poor academic performance is one of the majorproblems in Tanzania and the world in general. In many countries, concerns aboutgender disparities in education have focused on student performance, particularly in
3terms of under-achievement of girls (Davies as cited in Simwata, 2014). Mgossi(2011) emphasized that in secondary schools, girls enroll almost at par with boys butwhen you look at statistics of performance, girls generally perform worse than boys.Table 1.1 summarizes the percentage of students’ performance in form four nationalexamination from 2011 – 2015.Table 1.1: Percentage of Form IV Students’ Performance in NationalExamination from 2011-2015DIVISION201120122013Boys Girls Boys Girls Boys GirlsI-III12.247.116.602.9513.37 7.72IV-087.7692.89 93.40 97.05 86.63 92.2820142015BoysGirls Boys Girls19.0711.65 29.99 19.680.9388.35 70.01 80.4Source: Various NECTA Announcements from 2011-2016The data indicated in Table 1.1 shows that, the academic performance of boys ishigher than that of girls in form four national examinations for the consecutive fiveyears. Although there was a slight improvement of number of girls scoring divisionI-III in 2014 and 2015, but their performance generally was still lower than that ofboys. Achoka, Nafula and Oyoo (2013) indicated that cultural challenges persist andact against academic excellence of girls particularly at the secondary school level inthe developing nations including TanzaniaFurthermore, the girls in Nzega district have experienced a poor academicperformance compared to boys in form four national examinations. The analysis ofform four national examination results from 2011-2015 in Nzega district shows thedominance of boys. Table 1.2 summarizes the proportions of students’ academicperformance in form IV national examination in Nzega district from 2011 – 2015.
4Table 1.2: Percentages o f Form IV Students’ Performance in NationalExamination from 2011 – 2015 in Nzega 95.6998.0592.7196.5985.9394.3580.8290.90Source: NECTAAs indicated in Table 1.2, the proportions of girls scored division I, II and IIIcontinued to decline yearly while those scoring division IV and zero was increasing.In comparison to boys, the girls were left far in term of performance.1.3Statement of the ProblemDespite the Tanzania government commitment to provide equal opportunity toeducation for both sexes, the review of form four academic performances in Nzegadistrict has shown that the performance of girls is lower than that of boys for fiveconsecutive years. The percentage of girls who scored division four and zero in formnational examination in 2011 was 94.89%, 98.05% in 2012, 96.59% in 2013, 94.35%in 2014 and 90.90% in 2015 which is disastrous and strong measures are required torescue this situation. To Engin-Demir as (cited in Dimbisso .2009), learning is notonly an outcome of formal schooling but also families, communities and peers.Social and cultural forces affect learning and thus academic achievement.Meaningful and sustainable development of any state depends on investment ineducation to its citizens. Investing education to women benefits them, their familiesand the society in which they are living. Without providing equal opportunity to bothsexes and eliminate all obstacles which cause poor academic performance of girlscompared to boys, diversified and semi-industrialized economy stipulated in 2025
5development vision will not be achieved. Kiteto as cited by Kimondo (2013) notedthat gender inequalities and bigotry in education play a significant role in the leastdeveloped nations.Some studies have examined socio-cultural factors and academic performance ofgirls. Malmberg and Sumra (2014) investigated how Tanzanian primary schoolstudents' experience, varied according to school performance in subjects and severalsocio-cultural factors. The study of Duba (2014) investigated the influence of sociocultural and economic factors on girls‟ access and participation in primary educationwhile that of Katabaro and Mbelle (2003) examined education services delivery inTanzania, with particular attention to enrolment, access and performance of girls.However, none of the reviewed studies was designed to establish socio-culturalfactors affecting academic performance of girls in public secondary schoolsparticularly in Nzega district. Therefore, this study intended to establish sociocultural factors affecting academic performance of girls in public secondary schoolsin Nzega district.1.4Objectives of the Study1.4.1General ObjectiveThe main objective of this study is to establish socio - cultural factors affectingacademic performance of girls in public secondary schools in Nzega district.1.4.2Specific ObjectivesThe specific objectives of the research were(i)To identify the views of people in Nzega district about education of girls
6(ii)To identify socio – cultural factors affecting academic performance of girls inpublic secondary schools in Nzega district(iii) To examine the challenges facing schools in their struggle to eliminate socio –cultural factors that negatively affect academic performance of girls in publicsecondary schools in Nzega district.(iv) To determine the measures which could be taken to eliminate socio – culturalfactors that negatively affect academic performance of girls in publicsecondary schools in Nzega district.1.5Research Questions(i)What are the views of people towards girls’ education in Nzega district?(ii)What are the socio-cultural factors affecting girls’ academic performance inpublic secondary schools in Nzega district?(iii) What challenges do schools face in their struggle to eliminate socio-culturalfactors that negatively affect academic performance of girls in Nzega district?(iv) What measures should be taken to eliminate socio-cultural factors thatnegatively affect academic performance of girls in public secondary schools inNzega district?1.6Significance of the StudyThe findings of the study will be beneficial to school administrators and other policymakers to know the actual socio-cultural factors hindering the academic success ofgirls in public secondary schools present in Nzega district. This will help them toformulate policies, which will emphasize gender equality as the strategy to improvegirls’ performance and making them knowledgeable and skilful as boys in schools.
7The findings of the study will help parents, religious bodies, non-governmentorganizations and gender activists to raise their voice strongly on socio-culturalfactors, which affect education of girls negatively. This may help the governmentand other stakeholders to intervene quickly to stop the practice of those norms in theparticular society.The findings of the study will create interests among scholars in the field ofeducation leading to more research on socio-cultural factors and academicperformance of girls and other disadvantageous groups in schools. Therefore, it willbe used as a databank for further researches.1.7Delimitation of the StudyThere are several factors that affect girls’ academic performance in schools but thisstudy focused only on socio – cultural factors. The study covered only publicsecondary schools because they tend to perform worse than private schools(Mkumbo, 2013).The study was conducted in Nzega district only because it is one of the poorest areas,which is prone to severe droughts from 9 to 11 months of the year, with manyparents faced with the decision of sending their child to get water to survive, or toschool to get an education (AiDucatius Foundation, 2014). In this kind ofenvironments, the girls/women are the ones who are forced into the former decisionbecause fetching water is regarded as girls’/women’s role in most of Africansocieties.
8The respondents of the study were heads of schools, teachers, students and parentsonly. These respondents were expected to furnish the genuine information on thesocio-cultural factors affecting education of girls in schools.1.8The Conceptual Framework of the StudyOgula (2002) stated that a conceptual framework refers to relationships amongvarious variables and is normally presented diagrammatically. It shows how the basicconcepts and constructs in the study interact to provide expected meaning. This studyadapted and modified the Input-Process-Output model presented in Nyalusi (2013)which connected all aspects of empirical inquiry linking to the problem definition,purpose, literature review, methodology, data collection and analysis in three aspectssuch as input, process and output.INPUTS.matron and femaleteachers as role model.physical facilities(sanitary and hostelfacilities).social practices.school time tablePROCESSOUTPUTForm two and.Teaching And LearningProcess E.g.Books,Chemicals)four nationalexaminationresults.Teaching and LearningFacilities (Classrooms andlibraries)GIRLS’ ACADEMICPERFORMANCEFigure 1. 1: Input-Process-Output Model (cited in Nyalusi, 2013)
9The researcher of this study adapted and modified the Input-Process-Output modelused in Nyalusi(2013) to fit to this study. Figure 1.2 shows the effect of sociocultural factors as inputs on academic performance of girls in schools as output.INPUTSViews of people Socio -culturalpracticeChallengesfaced by girls PROCESSOUTPUTElimination of sociocultural practicesthat undermine girls’educationOvercoming ofchallenges faced bygirls in seekingeducationForm FourNationalExamination ResultsAcademic Performanceof Girls in SchoolsFigure 1.2: Adapted Input-Process-Output Model Showing the Effect of Socio –Cultural Factors on Academic Performance of Girls in SchoolsAs indicated in Figure 1.1, the views of people on girls’ education, socio-culturalpractices and challenges faced by girls on their struggle to get education were used asinputs in this study. Nyalusi (2013) stated that if these factors (inputs) are improved,they are likely to improve girls’ academic performance in secondary schools.Elimination of all forms of socio-cultural practices and views of people whichundermine girls in education will improve the scores of girls in form four nationalexaminations (outputs). The initiatives also must be put in place to assist girls toovercome the challenges they are facing when they struggle to get education.
10Form four national examination results of girls in this study are used as outputs andthey are used as indicators of academic performance. The quality of academicperformance is a result of inputs and process. If one of the two or both will provideroom for gender inequalities, the scores of girls will be less than that of boys.1.9Definition of Key TermsSocio-cultural factors: Refers to large scale forces and practices within the culturesand societies that offer more learning opportunities to boys than girl. They weredetermined on basis of scores of thoughts, feelings and attitudes of respondents.Public secondary school:Refers to all government central and governmentcommunity secondary schools which provide form one to form four secondaryeducation.Academic performance: Refers to scores girls obtained in form four nationalexamination from 2011 -2015. Division I, II and III or Distinction, Merit and Creditwere categorized as “pass” and division IV and Zero or Pass and Fail as “failure”.Girl: Refers to the female who is at school for learning and sits for form fournational examinations administered by National Examination Council of Tanzania.1.10Organization of the studyThis dissertation is organized and presented into five chapters. The first chapter isintroduction which covers the background to the problem, statement of the problem,objectives of the study, research questions, significance of the study, scope and
11delimitation of the study and operational definition of key terms. Chapter twopresents detailed literature review relevant to the study and chapter three coversresearch methodology which include research design, area of the study, descriptionof population and sample, d
teachers and students, and interview schedule was used as data collection instrument . Table 4.7: Students' Responses on Socio-Cultural Factors Affecting Academic Performance of Girls in Public Secondary Schools . 39 Table 4.8: Challenges that Schools face in their Struggle to Eliminate Socio-cultural .
Since the socio-cultural approach to creativity emerged only recently, more research dealing with socio-cultural factors and creativity is needed. In 1996, the impact of socio-cultural factors on creativity was the least developed area in creativity research "by any measure—volume of research publications, number of investigators engaged in
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eradicate unemployment. However, researches have also identified that academic performance of students in tertiary education has been deteriorating. Therefore it is deemed to be important to identify the factors that influence academic performance. Factors influencing academic performance include academic and non- academic factors.
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