School Enrolment Patterns in Rural Ghana: a comparative study of the impact of location, gender, age and health on children's access to basic schooling
A. Fentiman et al., School Enrolment Patterns in Rural Ghana: a comparative study of the impact of location, gender, age and health on children's access to basic schooling, COMP EDUC, 35(3), 1999, pp. 331-349
The aim of this article is to discuss the results fi om three censuses cond
ucted on school age children in rural Ghana which reveal contemporary patte
rns in enrolment. The data provide a profile of the school age population i
n basic education and contribute novel quantitative data on children out of
school. The article eh-amines the age at first enrolment, the gender dispa
rities between classes, the classes where children drop out, and the propor
tion of children who never enrol in school. The stark contrast in enrolment
between the disadvantaged north and the south of the country is also confi
rmed Qualitative data from focus group discussions with parents, teachers a
nd children highlight the major obstacles confronting education-these inclu
de a diversity of factors such as child labour, health, location and gender
. Suggestions of policy options needed to increase access and attainment to
schooling include reducing the over-age entry, increasing female access an
d participation, adapting culturally sensitive strategies, collecting bette
r statistical data, improving the health of school age children and lesseni
ng the gap between the north and south of the country.