Money, a Drain of Educational Opportunity: A Microregional Study of School Dropouts in Mpigi, Uganda

Abstract

This paper sheds light on the causes of school dropouts, a major challenge facing UPE attainment in public primary schools of Uganda. We offer microregional analysis of school dropout patterns in the Mpigi district, and show a number of distinct patterns of school dropouts in Mpigi that can be differentiated from studies based on national data. While the Universal Primary Education program covered tuition fees, additional costs for education, such as meals, school transport, and uniforms, function as hurdles for longer school years. This is an obstacle regardless of parental awareness about education’s importance and how wealthy the parents think they are. Such findings directly conflict with existing knowledge that higher household income results in longer school years. The previous understanding of girl dropouts in Sub-Saharan Africa and its patriarchal context offer little explanations on the dropout pattern of Mpigi, as it is more related to the economic cost of education and the high demand for male agricultural labor. For a multicultural society such as Uganda, we highlight the importance of microlevel regional study in educational research.

A Case Study to Examine the Feeding Practices of Pupils in Primary Schools in Kayunga District, Central Uganda. A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Survey Study.

“…Of importance is that this modality is considered illegal in rural schools by all national and district officials talked to, and getting information on practicing schools was no mean feat. However, the Education Act of 2008, article 15 (5), provides room for schools to engage parents in this regard as earlier indicated; therefore, the few practicing schools should be protected under this provision (Kim & Jun, 2022). The research findings indicate that the implementation of this school feeding option is enabled by in-kind food contributions by parents, cash contributions toward school meals, and food harvests from the school gardens.…”

Barriers Faced by Akha and Khmu Ethnic Minority Students in Rural Primary Schools in Lao PDR

“…However, numerous researchers have made the distinct finding that children whose parents migrate are more likely to remain out of school (Wassink & Viera, 2021;Dunusinghe, 2021;Marchetta & Sim, 2021). Furthermore, research by Thurston and Salmon (2022); Kim and Jun (2022); and Asante (2022) established that due to rising costs of schooling, children did not enrol in school. The intent of this research was to investigate the main barriers faced by Akha and ethnic minority children in accessing rural primary schooling in Samphan District, Phongsaly Province.…”