Effects of Parental Neglect on The Educational Development of The Girl Child in The Effutu Municipality in The Central Region of Ghana

Effects of Parental Neglect on the Educational Development of the Girl Child in the Effutu Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana

Vivian Adomah¹,Faustina Akosua Agyeiwaa Kwofie²,Florence Antwiwaah Aboh³

Don- Bosco Catholic ‘B’ Junior High School, Winneba, Ghana¹ 

University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana^2&3

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7012121

Received: 15 November 2023; Revised: 08 December 2023; Accepted: 12 December 2023; Published: 13 January 2024

ABSTRACT

Parental Neglect (PN) refers to a situation where a parent or care giver of a child refuses or is unable to provide for the needs of the child. PN is one of the major problems that contribute to the falling standards of education in most coastal towns in Ghana of which Winneba (Effutu Municipality) is no exception. Though a lot of research has been done about child abuse, child neglect and sexual abuse, there have not been enough studies on how parental neglect affects the educational development of the girl child. The main objective of this study was to analyse the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of the girl child in the Effutu municipality. Data used for the study were primary and secondary where the questionnaire was administered to 230 respondents. The study employed simple random and convenience sampling techniques. Data collected were screened, edited, coded, entered and cleared into SPSS version 20 to find frequencies, percentages, cross-tabulations, and summarising to draw inferences. The data analysis framework allotted to this study was correlational and the data analysis technique used was regression with the research design being descriptive statistics. It established that low knowledge levels of parents on girls’ education, poverty, single parenting and divorce have led to parental irresponsibility. The study concluded that PN include but is not limited to inadequate or no provision for basic needs which affect the educational development of the girl child. The study revealed that most parents in the municipality are not aware of how their negligence is negatively affecting their girl’s educational development. Therefore, the study recommends the establishment of counselling centres to create awareness through public education in communities in the municipality on the effects of parental neglect on the girl child’s educational attainment.

Keywords: Parental neglect, educational development, girl child, parents, caregivers

INTRODUCTION

The impacts of neglect, as with other forms of maltreatment, will vary between individual children. It is with this understanding that the evidence regarding impact should be considered. Evidence suggests that neglect is a particularly damaging form of maltreatment. Although it can be difficult to disentangle specific effects from those of other forms of maltreatment, there is evidence that for many children, neglect has significant implications for a range of developmental dimensions, including health, education, identity, emotional and behavioural development, family and social relationships, social presentation, and self-care skills (Allnock, 2016). Neglect cases may occur at any point of a child’s development but are often associated with early childhood, when they are more likely to be discovered by health professionals, educators, and child welfare workers. One form of child neglect is associated with nonorganic failure to thrive infants.

Differences in findings on the cognitive and intellectual consequences of childhood maltreatment may be related to the failure to control important variables such as socioeconomic status and the lack of statistical power of small sample sizes. Other possible explanations for the inconsistencies in this literature are the tendency of earlier studies to aggregate different types of maltreatment (which may mask different consequences associated with specific forms of child maltreatment) or the inclusion of children who had neurological dysfunction to begin with (which can dramatically influence cognitive and intellectual performance).

In addition, neglected infants who initially display secure attachment behaviours may increasingly develop insecure or disorganised attachment behaviours as they grow older. These findings suggest that the longer young children are exposed to neglect, the greater will be the harm (Brandon et al., 2014).

Neglect can lead to attachment issues, self-esteem problems, and difficulty in trusting others. The experience of neglect in childhood can have long-term impacts on child and adolescent development. For instance, children who have experienced neglect may experience increased vulnerability in adolescence compared to those who have been physically abused (Tanner& Turney, 2003), potentially increasing the vulnerability of some young people to other types of maltreatment and/or victimization, such as sexual exploitation (Hanson, 2016).

Malnourishment may impair brain development. A lack of adequate immunizations and medical problems could lead to a variety of health conditions. The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being discovered that 28 percent of children suffered from chronic health conditions three years after being removed from a neglectful situation. In some cases, extreme neglect can be potentially life threatening. The analysis of serious case reviews in England 2011-14 found that neglect was an underlying feature in 62 per cent of the children who suffered non-fatal harm, and in over 50 per cent of the children who died (it should be noted this number is small in relation to the total population of children). Six children aged between four months and just over seven years died over this period directly as a result of extreme neglect (three per cent of all fatal serious case reviews). These children died either as a result of cardiac arrest or multi-organ failure arising from malnutrition. All six were known to be children’s social care and two were on child protection plans. In all six cases, there was evidence that the family was isolated or that the mother was particularly vulnerable (Sidebotham et al., 2016).

Children who are neglected may struggle to develop healthy relationships and they may experience behaviour disorders or disinhibited social engagement disorder. Some studies suggest that certain signs of severe neglect (such as when a child experiences dehydration, diarrhoea, or malnutrition without receiving appropriate care) may lead to developmental delays, attention deficits, poorer social skills, and less emotional stability. How parental neglect is affecting the girl child in Effutu municipality is what this research seeks to find out.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

In 1990 the World Conference on Education for All (EFA) in Jomtien, Thailand, set targets for education for all children, youths, and adults, which went well beyond providing universal access to education to improving educational quality and distributing educational resources more equitably (UNESCO, 1990). However, there seemed to be educational inequalities in most sub-Saharan African countries. It appears that a combination of economic and social factors plays in connivance in preventing girls from gaining access to education at the same rate with boys. Evidence from around the world seems to suggest that poor countries and communities tend to have greater gender disparities in their educational systems while developed countries have virtually overcome the problem. (UNESCO, 2011).

PN is considered an important component of child maltreatment however, it has received little attention in literature and has been identified as the most frequently occurring form of maltreatment (Erickson & Egeland, 2002; Hornor, 2014; McSherry, 2007; Mennen et al., 2010; Nyarko et al., 2014; Slack et al., 2011). Child neglect has been defined by the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN; 2004) as “a failure to provide for a child’s basic needs in one of the following areas; physical, medical, educational and emotional”. This suggests that child neglect occurs whenever parents or caregivers of children do not adequately provide their basic needs of food, clothing, shelter; health care needs; educational needs; emotional attachments and care among others. It leads to actual or possible harm to the child’s health and educational development hence the need to analyse the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of the girl child in the Effutu Municipality.

PN is one of the major problems that contribute to the falling standards of education in most coastal towns in Ghana including Winneba in the Effutu Municipality. Though a lot of research has been done about child abuse, child neglect and sexual abuse, there have not been enough studies on how parental neglect affects the girl child’s educational development. Hence the need to analyse the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of the girl child in the Effutu municipality.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of the girl child and the relationship between parental neglect and the educational development of the girl child in Effutu Municipality.

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The objective of the study was to analyse the effects of parental neglect on the girl child’s educational development in the Municipality.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following questions were set as guide to the study.

1. What are the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of girl child in the Municipality?
2. What is the relationship between parental neglect and the educational development of girl child in the Municipality?

HYPOTHESIS

H₀₁       There is no significant relationship between parental neglect and the low educational development of the girl child in the Effutu Municipality.

H₁        There is a significant relationship between parental neglect and the low educational development of the girl child in the Effutu Municipality.

THEORETICAL BASIS OF THE STUDY

It is evident that PN affects the educational development of the girl child in health, emotional as well as cognitive and intellectual areas of development hence the researchers employed Hettler’s theory of wellness to explain these effects (Hettler, 1980). According to Hettler, student affairs professionals recognise that dimensions of student development do not exist independently of each other. Identity development is intrinsically linked with psychosocial and intellectual development—it is difficult for a student to reflect on his or her cultural identity without also reflecting on the social dynamics of race relations or the social constructs of race and ethnicity. Hettler proposed that students cannot develop psychosocially and intellectually without wellness. Hettler defined wellness as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. He developed a holistic model of wellness that integrates six dimensions of a student’s life: physical, intellectual, social/emotional, spiritual, environmental, and occupational. Each dimension requires a deliberate personal commitment and time to reach an optimum level necessary for balance. A student must achieve between each of the six dimensions to fully experience learning and development that is positive, healthy, and complex. In the physical dimension, students must be well nourished and well rested and maintain a regular regimen of physical activity. The lack of the physical dimension where the student especially the girl child is neglected of food and her basic needs to enable her to be in school due to poverty would have a significant impact on her educational development. Again, the intellectual dimension involves students’ continuous active learning and the effort to acquire new knowledge and skills. It is said that ‘a sound mind lives in a sound body’ so what happens to a girl who does not have access to good health care due to the neglect of a parent? It is obvious such a girl cannot have a sound mind to learn according to Hettler’s definition of wellness.

 In the social dimension, healthy friendships, relationships, and social interactions help students make meaningful connections and find a sense of belonging. However, a neglected girl who feels incomplete (low self-esteem) is unable to mingle well with her peers in school and as such may not have a sense of belongingness. Students explore their value systems and philosophies as the focus of their spiritual dimension. The environmental dimension explores the students’ connections and interdependence with their physical and natural surroundings. The occupational dimension involves finding a fulfilling career or vocation as well as developing lifelong learning as an occupational value. This means that, ideally, every student or the girl child must be assisted to learn a skill that can help her to be gainfully employed even if she is not good academically but in broken homes where the girl is left to fend for herself through no fault of hers, she has to face the future with no such skill. Thus, resulting in the ‘cycle of poverty’.

 METHODOLOGY

Research Design

The study used a descriptive survey design. Although there are many research designs, descriptive survey research is the most used and the basic reason for carrying out descriptive survey research is to identify the cause of something that is happening (Shuttleworth, 2020). Shuttleworth (2020) asserted that a descriptive survey, by contrast, typically seeks to ascertain respondents’ perspectives or experiences on a specified subject in a predetermined structured manner. The essence of a descriptive survey can be explained as “questioning individuals on a topic or topics and then describing their responses” (Jackson, 2009). Hence, the descriptive survey design was considered appropriate because the purpose of the study was to explore the effects of parental neglect on the educational development of the girl child in Effutu Municipality thus the researchers collected data and reported the way things were from respondents statistically without manipulating any variables.

The Study Population

The target population for this study was all 4048 JHS pupils, their 243 teachers and heartaches from the 22 public Junior High Schools in Winneba and 6072 parents, totalling 10,365. The accessible population for this study was 30 selected teachers, 150 pupils from five public schools and 150 parents of the selected pupils in the Effutu Municipality, totalling 330. The researchers focused on the selected public school teachers in the basic schools and parents because they were within the researchers’ reach.

Sampling techniques

The researchers could not employ complete enumeration due to resource constraints and challenges in reaching all the 22 public basic schools in the municipality, hence simple random was used in the selection of the pupils whereas convenience sampling techniques were employed in the selection of the teachers, head teachers as well as their parents for the study. Giving equal chances to all the population under study.

Sample size determination

In this study, five schools representing 22.7% of the total number of schools were drawn by the simple random sampling technique out of the four (4) circuits in the Effutu Municipal Educational Directorate thus the East, West, Central circuits and the Rurals. The researchers considered each sampled circuit for a cluster of schools, adding up to four (4). The cluster of schools was a preferred choice due to high enrolment figures. The schools were numbered serially and their serial numbers were written on pieces of paper, rolled and put in a container. Four of the papers were drawn one after the other making the sample for the study more representative, the researchers added the school the problem was identified since that was not selected. With the five schools selected, thirty (30) pupils (girls) who have shown physical signs of PN, were selected from each school totalling one hundred and fifty (150). To select the girls without being biased, the researchers met the Girl Child Coordinators in each of the schools under study to discuss and identify girls with signs PN. Once identified, the girls are put together for selection. The girls were made to draw/pick from labelled papers in a bowl and any girl who picked ‘’yes’’ became part of the respondents. Five teachers were randomly selected from each of the schools. The head teachers of those five schools also formed part of the study making a total of thirty (30). One parent each of the selected girls were selected from each of the five schools totalling 150 to take part in the study but only 50 parents participated since the parents did not turn up as expected so the researchers administered the questionnaire to the parents who availed themselves for the study. In all, the sample size was two hundred and thirty (230).

Instrument preparation

The main instruments used for the study were structured questionnaire and focus group discussion. In order to answer the research question, the study used the Pearson correlation analysis method to find out whether girl child’s education was linearly correlated with PN. Thus, the categorical data was transformed into quantitative forms. In view of this, extreme positive responses (i.e. strongly agree) were assigned the value of 4 and the extreme negative responses (i.e. Strongly Disagree) were assigned the value of 1. Composite scores were computed for the independent and the dependent variables for statements of the questionnaire dealing with the independent variable and the dependent variable. Consequently, the analysis entailed the verification of the null hypotheses at (0.05) level of significance. Table 1.1 demonstrates the results on the correlation between parental neglect and a girl child’s education.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

Effects of Parental Neglect on the Educational Development of the Girl Child

The research question sought to analyse the effect PN had on the educational development of the girl child. The 150 JHS pupils, 30 teachers and headmasters and 50 parents were asked to indicate their agreement or otherwise to a number of items on how parental neglect affects pupil’s educational development. The result is presented in Table 1.

Table 1 Effects of Parental Neglect on the Educational Development of the Girl Child

Source: (Field Survey, 2023)             N=230

Table 1 shows how parental neglect affects the educational development of the girl child. The majority of all three categories of respondents agreed to the fact that neglected children have higher rates of absenteeism. 94.0% of pupils, 98.7% of teachers as well as 84.7% of parents agreed to this. This result agrees with the findings of a study carried out in South Africa by Bakker (2009) on neglected children where it was also discovered that neglected children were significantly more often absent from school and also had a higher percentage of grade repeats than non -maltreated children. Also, Ziegler (2012) found that neglected children record higher rates of school absenteeism.

Also, a greater percentage of the respondents agreed with the assertion that neglected children attend school late. 90% of the pupils, 96.7% of the teachers and 79.3% of parents alluded to this. This finding was confirmed by Cawson (2002) who found out that neglected children attend school late and do not have much interest in attending school at all.

Again, 95.3% of pupils and 96.7 % of teachers agreed that neglected children do not pay attention in class, however, only a lower percentage of parents, 58.0% agreed to this whereas 42% of the parents disagreed to the assertion that neglected children do not pay attention in class. This may be because the parents are not directly involved in classroom activities. Mennen, et al. (2010) also opined that school children with issues of neglect have serious concentration defects. They are mostly absent-minded during teaching and learning activities in or outside the classroom.

In addition, 90.7% of the students, 98.0% of teachers, and 72.7% of parent respondents agreed with the assertion that neglected children do not perform well in examinations. However, 27% of the parents dispelled this notion. This result corroborates with Newman (2008) who observed that when neglected children enter school they may suffer from both intellectual and social disadvantages that cause them to become frustrated and fall behind. Newman’s (2008) study also found that individuals at 28 years of age who suffered from childhood neglect scored lower on Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and reading ability than people who were not neglected as children. Also, Cawson (2002) opined that school-aged children with histories of neglect have serious learning deficits. They score significantly lower on measures of school performance than physically abused or non-maltreated children, particularly in the areas of reading and mathematics.

Surprisingly, all respondents disagreed with the notion that neglected children are not intelligent. 75% of the students said so while 70% and 80% of the teachers and parents, respectively, also discarded that assertion. This result is supported by literature, for instance, Dubovitz (2009), Fabes, et al. (2010), Helfer and Kempe (2008), Newman (2008), and Cawson (2002), all are with the view that neglected children do not perform well because they do not get the needed support to do so, however, they will outperform if they are given the required basic needs every child requires in life, hence, they are also intelligent like any normal child.

Furthermore, 85.3% of pupils, 94.7% of teachers, and 54.7% of parents agreed with the assertion that neglected children do not perform well in class exercises and class texts. However, 45.3% of parents disagreed with this assertion. Similarly, 88.7%, 95.3%, and 56.0% of pupils, teachers, and parents respectively, agreed with the statement which indicated that neglected children do not perform well in class assignments. However, 44.0% of parents disagreed with this statement.  These findings confirm Slade and Wissow’s (2007) studies on neglected children who found that child neglect resulted in poor academic performance. They also found out that more intense childhood neglect was associated with a greater probability of a child having a low-grade point average and problems completing homework assignments. Also, this finding corroborates a study by Ziegler (2012) in Scotland, which revealed that of the nearly 5,000,000 reported cases of parental neglect, 47% of the children developed debilitating effects such as feeling less secure in their readiness to learn and this resulted in underachievement in schools such as low GPA. Moreso, the finding is supported by that of Okpechi (2005) who carried out a research in Nigeria and found out that child neglect is responsible for most children not performing well in school.

Similarly, 80.7% of pupils and 61.3% parents agreed that neglected girls lack basic school materials while an overwhelming 96.7% of teachers agreed to this. The result is confirmed by that of Asika (2006) who opined that neglected children lack basic needs in life such as inadequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment), protecting a child from physical harm or danger; ensuring adequate supervision or ensuring access to appropriate medical care or treatment, unresponsiveness to a child’s basic emotional needs. and provision of basic school materials.

Finally, all the three categories of respondents greatly agreed with the assertion that neglected girls get pregnant at teen age. Statistically, 90.0% of pupils, 85.3% of teachers and 80.7% of parents agreed with this assertion. Additionally, all the respondents, 89.3% of pupils, 98.0% of teachers as well as 64.7% of parents agreed that there is a high rate of dropout among neglected girls whilst 35.3% of parents dispelled the assertion. The responses of the pupils and the teachers were confirmed by that of the parents. The study corroborates that of Cawson (2002) who opined that because school-aged children with histories of neglect have serious learning deficits and score significantly lower on measures of school performance, they are more likely to drop out of school. Also, Kwofie and Owusu-Yeboah (2019) who studied the underlying reasons for the prevalence of teenage pregnancy: a shared experience of senior high school dropouts at the Birim Central Municipality, in Ghana found out that most neglected children are sexually abused, get pregnant, and drop out of school.

Relationship between Parental Neglect and Educational Development the Girl Child

Hypothesis 1 of this research sought to examine the significant relationship between parental neglect and the educational development of the girl child as perceived by students themselves, their teachers, and parents. In order to answer research question 2 and hypothesis 1, the study used a Pearson Correlation Analysis method to find how educational development of the girl child correlated with parental neglect, and Regression Analysis to determine the effects of parental neglect as a variable on the educational development of the girl child. Thus, the categorical data was transformed into quantitative forms. In view of this, extreme positive responses (i.e. strongly agree) were assigned the value of 4 and the extreme negative responses (i.e. Strongly Disagree) were assigned the value of 1. Composite scores were computed for the independent and the dependent variables for statements of the questionnaire dealing with the independent variable and the dependent variable. Consequently, the analysis entailed the verification of the null hypotheses at (0.05) level of significance. Table 1.1 demonstrates the results on the correlation between parental neglect and the educational development of the girl child.

Table 2: Correlation between Parental Neglect and Educational Development of the Girl Child

Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).

Source: (Field Survey, 2023)

The hypothesis was tested using the Pearson product-moment correlation index to find out whether there is a relationship between the two variables. The result of the finding is presented in Table 2, showing a negative linear relationship between parental neglect and girl child’s education as given by the negative value of the computed correlation index (-.687). The p-value (.019) being less than the level of significance alpha 0.05 implies that the results were statistically significant. This suggests that parental neglect negatively relates to the educational development of the girl child. Thus, as parents continue to neglect their girl child, their girls’ educational development dwindles. This finding corroborates that of Allnock (2016) who concluded that child neglect has significant negative implications for a range of developmental dimensions, including health, identity, emotional, behavioural, and educational development. In addition, the finding confirms with Brandon et al. (2014) whose findings suggested that the longer young children are exposed to neglect, the greater will be the harm to their educational deployment. Moreso, Tanner and Turney (2003) supported by Hanson (2016) posited that child neglect is negatively related to child educational development.

Since the relationship between parental neglect and the educational development of the girl child was assessed, there was the need to determine the effects of parental neglect as a variable on the educational development of the girl child. Table 3 depicts the regression analysis results of the two variables.

Table 3:  Regression Analysis of Effects of the Parental Neglect as a Variable on the Educational Development of the Girl Child.

Source: Field Survey, 2023

Considering all the factors constant at zero, it can be deduced from the data in Table 3 that girl child educational development would be 1.232 using the goodness-of-fit measures results in the table. On the other hand, in case all other quantities (variables) are fixed, the addition of a unit in the parental neglect will give a 0.561 decrease in the educational development of the girl child which is very bad. A lot of studies such as Tanner & Turney (2003), Allnock (2016), Ziegler (2012), and Slade and Wissow (2007) support the above result that an increase in neglect causes a decrease in the educational development of a child.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

1. The study brought to light that neglected girls lack basic school materials, frequently absent themselves from school, report late to school, do not pay attention in class and as a result do not perform well in class exercises, assignments, and examinations.
2. The study also revealed that there is a high rate of teenage pregnancy and dropout among neglected girls.
3. It was also clear from the discussion that PN relates negatively to educational development of the girl child.
4. It was further found out that the higher more girls are neglected, the higher their chances of performing low or developing low academically.

CONCLUSION

PN highly affects the girl-child’s psychological health, cognitive state, physiological state, social relationship, etc. The majority of parents are not aware of how their negligence is negatively affecting the educational development of their girl children and has a long-lasting impact both in the short term and long term throughout a person’s life.

With the findings of this study, it is observed that the effect of PN highly affects the girl child’s education negatively. This implies that the more girls are neglected the higher the chances of absenting themselves from school, performing low academically, getting pregnant and hence dropping out of school, a situation that highly puts girls at a marginalised position since they become dependent and vulnerable.

Evidently, it could be deduced from this study that, strengthening household financial security, creating awareness of the effects of large family sizes, and identifying and counselling parents who were victims of neglect could be ways through which child neglect could be mitigated.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the findings and conclusion of this study the researchers recommend that:

1. Stakeholders of Education (Ghana Education Service (GES)-Girls Education Unit (GEU) desk, Teachers, Parents and Guardians, the society, etc) should collaborate and seek sponsorship for all girls who lack basic needs but not only brilliant but needy girls.
2. The Ministry of Education (MOE), GES-GEU desk, religious leaders, and NGOs in advocacy programs on child rights should include the long- and short-term consequences of parental neglect in their advocacy programs for parents to learn the importance of girl child education and not only that but try to help these neglected children get social lives.
3. School systems should introduce and sustain counselling units right from the basic level to deal with girls who have been neglected by their parents so that they can have sound mind to learn and ensure their social well-being in order to raise the falling standard of education in the Effutu Municipality.
4. Again, stakeholders in education must alert parents on the need to cooperate with school administration through close supervision of their children’s academic progress and balancing of domestic chores with studies at home. This will improve their performance.
5. The study recommends that the Effutu Municipal Assembly through its gender desk should organise skill training sessions such as liquid and cake soap preparation, apprenticeship, batik tie and dye making for adults who do not have any source of income to enable them to cater for their basic needs as well as that of their children.
6. The Social Welfare Office should enforce the legal action and measures taken against parents who neglect their responsibilities toward their children.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY

The study suggests that future research must be conducted on:

1. PN and its impacts on the behaviour, attitudes and conduct of the victims in Ghana.
2. The effects of PN on the boy child and its impact on his education and the society at large.

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