Teachers' perspectives on the implementation of teenage mothers' school re-entry policy in Eswatini Kingdom: Implication for educational evaluators

J Community Psychol. 2022 Mar;50(2):684-695. doi: 10.1002/jcop.22656. Epub 2021 Jul 8.

Abstract

Introduction: In the global context, there have been high records of teenage girls drop out in schools than teenage boys. This ugly occurrence is attributed to teenage pregnancy and little or no concerns have been given to the school re-entry policy for such category of students especially in the Eswatini Kingdom, Swaziland. Thus, this study explored the perceptions of teachers regarding the implementation of the teenage mothers' school re-entry policy in the Manzini region of Eswatini.

Method: A qualitative research approach was adopted for the study using a sample of 15 participants. Data collection instrument a semistructured interview guide. Qualitative data were thematically analyzed.

Results: The findings indicated a lack of awareness and understanding of both the policy and its guidelines among participants. The results further showed that the implementation of the re-entry policy is crucial if a teenage pregnant girl child's education is to be realized in Eswatini.

Conclusion: Without proper implementation of such a policy, the affected girls could end up, uneducated and poor. Thus, educational evaluators should come up with appropriate policy documents for girl child.

Keywords: Eswatini; policy implementation; pregnancy; school re-entry; schooling experiences; teenage mothers.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adolescent Mothers*
  • Educational Status
  • Eswatini
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Policy
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnancy in Adolescence
  • School Teachers
  • Schools*