Parents' perceptions on female secondary school education in the republic of south Sudan: a case of central equatoria state

Abstract

The study examined parents' perceptions on female secondary education in the Republic of South Sudan. This study was based on three specific objectives which examined the parents' perceptions in sending their girls to school, investigated on Parents' attitudes towards female education and suggested ways of improving female education. The study used a cross-sectional survey research design where both quantitative and qualitative approaches were used. The study was based on 636 people as the total population and a sample size of 129 respondents was used in the study. The data collected was analyzed by use of frequency tables and percentages. The findings showed that eighty one percent agreed that parents still force their daughters into early marriages, findings also revealed that twenty three percent believed that parents see their daughters as a source of income. The study further found out that seventy eight percent of respondents agreed that ways like formation of GEM clubs, partnering with NGOs, providing career guidance were among the efforts to improve female education. The study made a conclusions that female enrollment into secondary education was poor because parents largely favored boys instead of considering their female children as well. The study made several recommendations. One of the recommendation was that; Parents should be sensitized to change their attitudes towards education of girls. Another recommendation was to encourage girls to enroll for education on the gender policies to support increased girl enrollment, build up more educational facilities so as to encourage more girl students, work closely with Non-Governmental organizations and Ministries. The study further recommends that parents should support girls by providing facilities such as transport to school, dividing the chores at home with the boys as an incentive to encourage more girls to opt for education .The study recommended further research to be carried out on similar areas.