Abstract:
The study assessed factors affecting girl-child participation in basic education in the Elmina Circuit of the KEEA Municipality. It specifically dealt with the socio-economic and socio-cultural factors that affected girl-child participation in basic schools in the Circuit. It also assessed school-related factors such as teacher factors, school boys’ factors, and school facility factors affecting girl-child participation in education. A descriptive research design was adopted for the study, and two sets of questionnaires were developed for the data collection. The population of the study comprised all the teachers and female students from both public and private primary 6 to JHS level in the Elmina Circuit. The study population was 882 girls from Primary 6 to JHS, and 92 teachers. A sample size of 322 made up of 70 teachers and 252 girl students was used in the study, and a descriptive analysis was adopted. The study found that the main factors negatively influencing girl-child education in the Circuit were parents engaging their daughters in trading to support them financially; parents allowing their daughters to do more household chores than boys; early marriages; and teenage pregnancies. It is recommended that relevant stakeholders must intensify education of parents on the importance of girl-child education, and also hardworking girls should be given the needed supports such as scholarships.
