Girls and Secondary Education in Rural Tanzania

For many years in Tanzania girls have been under-represented in secondary schools,
despite notable efforts by the government through established educational programmes
and reforms. Reports indicate that there are many girls who are not enrolled in
secondary schools, and some who manage to enrol but fail to complete their studies,
while the majority of those who manage to stay to the end perform poorly in
examinations compared to boys. Using the perspectives of people living in a rural
community, this study explores the possible reasons for girls' low enrolments, high
dropout rates and poor performance in community secondary schools in rural Tanzania.
The qualitative research approach using the ethnographic research design was employed
to capture the lived experiences of girls and women in one rural village in Tanzania. A
total of 28 participants were included in the study, including in-school girls and boys,
out-of-school girls, teachers, a headmaster, parents, religious leaders, a Village
Executive Officer (VEO) and a District Educational Officer (DEO). The information
was collected using observations, interviews, field notes, photographs and document
review. African feminisms and Indigenous Standpoint Theory (IST) were used to guide
the conduct of the study and the interpretation of the data.