ABSTRACT
The aim of this research was to find out the impact of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) on education of girls with hearing impairment in Gucha County which is in Kenya. FGM is the partial or total removal of the female external genitalia (WHO, 1995). It results in immediate Physical Problems, for example, intense pain and/or hemorrhage that can lead to shock during and after the procedure, hemorrhage can also lead to anemia, wound infection, including tetanus, damage to adjoining organs from the use of blunt instruments by unskilled operators and urine retention from swelling and/or blockage of the urethra (Koso-Thomas, 1987). According to Rushwan, H. (1996) it also leads to long term complications like Painful or blocked menses, recurrent urinary tract infections, dermoid cysts, and keloid scars(hardening of the scars), infertility and increases the risk of HIV infection. It is against this background that the researcher set to find out the impact of FGM on education for girls with hearing impairments. According to Adoyo P.O (2002) children with hearing impairment have continued to lag behind their hearing counterparts in all academic achievements. This has resulted from the broad regular curriculum which is extensive and demanding and is not adapted to meet the special needs of these children. The effects of FGM outlined above equally affect hearing impaired girls who undergo the process. The objectives of the research were to find out the impact of FGM on: Class attendance, discipline, academic performance, transition to the next level of education after FGM in girls with hearing impairment, and if there are administrative or educational arrangements to assist the students after undergoing FGM to advance their studies. The study used survey design to collect data by using questionnaires on literate girls and teachers and interview schedules on illiterate girls and the headteachers who preferred the method because of administrative commitments of lacking time to fill the questionnaires. Thus, the survey design emphasizes frequency or number of answers to the same question by different people (Orodho, 2005). The target population included all girls with hearing impairment and their teachers who were 40 in number in all the following 5 units: Nduru, Nyakembene, Bombaba, Magena and Nyaigesa in Gucha county. The sample size constituted of 23 girls and 7 teachers, making a total of 30 respondents. The research used simple random sampling which is a procedure in which all individuals in the defined population have an equal independent chance of being selected as a member of the sample (Orodho, 2005). The researcher used purposive sampling method for selecting all girls from upper classes(4-8) only. To achieve the objectives outlined above a T –test was conducted out to determine the significance of the predictor variables. This choice was taken because the sample size was small. A coefficient of the predictor variable was considered significant if it had a value greater or equal to
2.58 at 95% significant level. The impact was found to be significant as 67% of the predictor variables had values above 2.58. The research recommended that Alternative Rite of Passage should be used instead of the procedure as a means of eradicating FGM. Also low reinforces should apprehend and prosecute any parent or guardian who practices FGM.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
FGM occurs throughout the world. WHO estimates that between 100 million and 140 million girls and women alive today have experienced some form of the practice. It is further estimated that up to 3 million girls in sub-Saharan Africa, Egypt and Sudan are at risk of genital mutilation annually in Kenya FGM is practised only among certain ethnic groups and prevalence rates are intermediate . FGM prevalence countrywide is nearly universal among women of the Somali (97per cent), Kisii (96 per cent) and Masai (93 per cent ) groups, and significantly lower among Kikuyu (34per cent) and Kamba (27 per cent). (UNICEF, 2005).
According to the Global Women project (2007), many girls in the Tharaka region, Kenya quit school as soon as they undergo FGM which is still widely practiced in that region and other parts of Africa. In this region, the practice involves a ceremony to perform the cutting, followed by a month long seclusion for the wounds to heal during which the girls are often beaten and then a big family and community celebration after the seclusion ends where abusive songs are often sung. Because of the harmful physical and psychological effects FGM prevents most girls who undergo it from finishing their education
Education for the hearing impaired remains a big challenge in Kenya. Integration programmes instituted by the Government of Kenya to enable such children learn like other children without disabilities have not met the expectations (Adoyo, 2004). There are difficulties including lack of proper policy structures/guidelines, poor
implementation, inadequate itinerant teachers for peripatetic services and above all negative attitudes towards the programme by the stakeholders. In a further attempt to bring pupils with special needs on board and at par with their hearing counterparts, the Kenyan education policy is currently advocating for inclusive approach. There are few learning institutions for the hearing impaired in the country. Kenya has 29 schools for the hearing impaired, five of which are secondary schools. These Special institutions in Kenya follow the regular curriculum, which is extensive and demanding, centrally designed and rigid, leaving little flexibility for adaptations for teachers to try out new approaches. The timing for the completion of the curriculum is also unrealistic for the deaf students as the teaching and learning processes are slowed down due to the processes involved. According to UNESCO (2005) inclusive method is the way forward for the hearing impaired. This is the inclusion of deaf children in mainstream schools. The basic problems faced when deaf and hearing students are educated together according to Antia and Stinson (1999) are lack of mutual access to communication.
The hearing impaired face great challenges in their strive to attain the academic goals. FGM compounds the problems further as it does not discriminate against them where it is practised. This study will focus on the impact of FGM on the education of girls with hearing impairment. The impact will be measured in terms of Class attendance, discipline, academic performance, transition to the next level of education and if there are administrative arrangements to assist girls continue with their studies.
Statement of the Problem
Studies conducted by Family Planning Association of Kenya (FPAK, 1996), Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO, 1998), Oloyinka (1997), and Toibia (1995), indicate that the cultural practice of FGM is a process of transition for an individual from childhood to adulthood. They also observe that FGM aims to curb masturbation, insanity, epilepsy and bestows honour to the initiate. However, there are negative effects such as indiscipline, poor academic performance, repetition of classes and school drop outs (Global Women Project, 2007) that are associated with FGM in school age going girls.
In Africa, WHO estimates that 91.5 million women and girls above 9 years old are currently living with the consequences of FGM, and that 32 percent of all women aged 15-49 in Kenya have undergone the practice. This proportion includes the hearing impaired.
There has been no specific study on the impact of FGM on education for girls with hearing impairments. It is against this background that this research was conducted to determine whether there is any relationship between FGM and the education of the hearing impaired.
The Purpose of the Study
The purpose of the study was to find out the impact of Female Genital Mutilation on education of girls with hearing impairment in Gucha County.
Objectives of the Study
The study objectives were:
- To find out the school attendance of girls with hearing impairments after FGM
- To establish the types of indiscipline in girls with hearing impairments after FGM.
- To analyze the academic performance of girls with hearing impairments after FGM.
- To find out the transition rates of girls with hearing impairments’ to the next level of classes.
- To find out if there are administrative or educational arrangements to assist the students after undergoing FGM to advance their studies.
