Factors contributing to low participation of women in management of public primary schools in Mandera North District, Kenya

Abstract

Education is a major source of upward mobility in countries such as Kenya it is a principal instrument in fostering democracy, equality, and justice. The presence of women as teachers, administrators and professors in educational institutions, give them direct access to decision making and provide substantive role models for female students (Weiner, 2004). There is a extremely disturbing low participation oh female teachers in the administration of public primary schools in Mandera North District. This experience is a problem that has not been researched and documented. The primary purpose of this study was to find the factors that contribute to low participation of female teachers in the management of public primary schools in Mandera North District, (Kenya). The study adopted survey design which targeted all TSC teachers in the 28 public primary schools in Mandera North District. The researcher sampled 67 teachers in Mandera North District randomly selected from 20 schools. The schools were also randomly selected using simple random technique. The District Education Officer and the head teachers of the sampled schools were also part of the study, yielding a sample size of out of the targeted 183 teachers in the district. The researcher employed the use of questionnaires and interview schedule to collect data. Data collected were coded thematically and analyzed through manual technique using descriptive statistics such as percentages, frequencies and mean, to determine the teachers' responses on the factors contributing to low participation of female teachers in the management of public primary schools in Mandera North District.