Educating the girl child
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There is a well known African saying, attributed to the Ghanaian scholar Dr. James Emmanuel Kwegyir-Aggrey (1875-1927), one of this century’s greatest educators: “If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a family nation.” It is felt that it was derived by him in order to better convince African parents, who were more than happy to send their sons to missionary schools at the time, to do the same for their daughters, which was not such a common practice.There is a general consensus that most often, the primary caregiver in the life of a child, is a woman. In addition, a child is most likely to spend more time with women within the first three years of life, than with men. Be it in the form of a mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, nanny or distant relative. Therefore, it seems obvious that the initial development of a child is hugely influenced by the knowledge and even level of education of these women.
According to writer John Kwami Esseboe Nyamidie, “From the womb through its early formative years the baby has more direct contact with women. It is during this time that the words, unspoken messages and expectations of the caregiving woman affect and determine the child’s future destiny most. A physically abused and psychologically hurt child at this time is likely to project his or her anger on society in later life. On the other hand, a child that is surrounded by the warm embrace of loving women caregivers will most likely spread that love in his or her future dealings with others as the child grows up.”
We are all often aware, even on a subliminal level, that it is right – morally and legally – to educate girls in addition to educating boys. However, there is something…special…about educating women and girls. According to Julia Gillard and Cate Blanchett, two leading Australian women, “…Educating girls and women is especially effective because when we educate them, the benefits are felt throughout the whole community. It’s a magic multiplier in the development equation…An educated woman is better able to educate her own children who, in turn, will be more likely to receive school education themselves. The family will likely be healthier, with a lower prospect of infant mortality and better maternal nutrition, including while pregnant and nursing.”
It all seems terribly obvious, but nevertheless, according to UNICEF, the statistics remain rather dismal: “Despite progress in recent years, girls continue to suffer severe disadvantage and exclusion in education systems throughout their lives. An estimated 31 million girls of primary school age and 32 million girls of lower secondary school age were out of school in 2013. Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest proportion of countries with gender parity: only two out of 35 countries. And South and West Asia has the widest gender gap in its out-of-school population – 80 per cent of its out-of-school girls are unlikely to ever start school compared to 16 per cent of its out-of-school boys.”.
So what then is the solution? Is it to educate the uneducated about the benefits of education, particularly in relation to the Girl Child? Is it to try and make the words of Julia Gillard and Cate Blanchett loud and clear and heard from all corners? That “An educated woman’s household is more likely to prosper as a result of a higher overall income. Just one extra year of secondary education can increase a woman’s income as much as 25% a year. By participating in the labour market, an educated woman helps boost economic productivity, leading to greater wealth for her community as well.” Their message – and in fact that of many other powerful men and women before them – is clear: “Invest in women and girls, and the benefits flow not only to them but everyone around them, too. Sadly, the reverse is also true. Deny girls and women education and the whole community suffers, not just them as individuals.”.
Reporting closer to home, Salam Yusuf, states in Foreign Policy News, “Sri Lanka introduced free education for all children from primary to university level in 1945. It has been argued that in the case of Sri Lanka, women have been benefiters of this policy. The law made it compulsory for child to gain a school education in Sri Lanka and went one step further to cast a duty on all parents of a child not less than five years old and not more than fourteen years old to enable such a child to receive an education.” She continues that “Undoubtedly, one of the social groups that have benefited most from the revolutionary educational reforms implemented is women. The figures tell the story: in 1946, when overall literacy rate for the country was 57.8 per cent, only 43.8 percent of the female population was literate as opposed to 70.1 percent of the male population. By 2001, however, the percentage of literate women had gone up to 90 percent of the female population in comparison with the 93 percent of the male population.”
Personally, born and raised in Sri Lanka, I was fortunate to be raised in a family where the education of children was prized, whether the child be male or female. My paternal grandmother, Cicy Jayasinghe, was born in the year 1909, and had a University Degree. This set an unspoken precedent amongst our women folk that that was, if at all possible, a minimum educational requirement. This example shaped my way of thinking from a very young age. Therefore, perhaps it is logical to assume that in a society which is steadfast about free education and bestows high respect upon the educated, leading by example, is a simple way of encouraging the female population through the hallowed gates of any educational institution. Sri Lanka has certainly been exemplary in that.
As Salam Yusuf concludes, “As long as education is not free, parents with limited resources must make a choice regarding whom to educate and how much. Given the deep-rooted gender norms in Sri Lankan society, it would seem logical for parents to expend their limited resources on educating their sons. This is the economic rationale that has been addressed when it comes to educating women in Sri Lanka…The cultural rationale still persists but in a lesser degree progressively, in Sri Lankan society. For long years, ‘education’ was seen as ‘spoiling’ women for marriage and hence less desirable, hence parents prefer to save funds for dowry than invest in education of their daughters.” A mentality that has been severely curbed as a result of the status quo.
Surely then, the only way forward towards educating a generation and not simply an individual – in any society – is to actively encourage and where possible support, Educating the Girl Child in particular, and bringing about a more wholesome, prosperous and positive culture and community, which in turn, can only benefit the world at large.
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