Gender stereotyping and girl child performance in primary schools in Masvingo Province, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Zimbabwe is assisted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. This study sought to interrogate how gender stereotypes contribute to the development and perpetuation of gender stereotyping as well as how the academic performance of the girl child is affected in primary schools in Zimbabwe. The study is informed by feminist theory, mainly from a radical feminist perspective, Bourdieu’s theory of social capital and Bandura's social learning theory. Embedded in the qualitative research approach, a single descriptive case study explored how gender stereotypes contributed and perpetuated girl child performance in primary schools in Zaka District in Masvingo Province. Fourteen participants were purposefully sampled from two schools in Zaka District in Masvingo Province. Semi-structured, focus group interviews and non-participant observation were used to collect data. The results show that gender stereotyping of girl children is still rampant in schools despite efforts to integrate girls into the education system. The study made a number of recommendations to various stakeholders in the Ministry of Education, teachers and parents.