Causes of the Dropout in Secondary School in Tanzania: The Case Study of Mbeya, Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro Regions

Kalinga, Tuyagaje Solo (2013) Causes of the Dropout in Secondary School in Tanzania: The Case Study of Mbeya, Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro Regions. Masters thesis, The Open University of Tanzania.

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Abstract

This study uncovered what factors lead to students to drop out from school in Tanzania. The study was carried out in Mbeya, Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro regions. Four research tasks were used in the study. The first task was to determine socio-economic factors which contribute secondary school students to drop out. The second one was to determine the political factors lead to student in secondary school dropout and the third task was to analyze the Government contribution to student dropout. The fourth task was parents’ views and attitudes towards education of boys and girls. The study adopted a qualitative approach using a study sample which included twenty heads of schools, twenty academic masters, twenty class teachers, two hundred students and eighty parents. Semi-structured interviews, observations and observational schedules were used as the instruments of data collection. Quantitative data were manually analyzed while qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis. Findings disclosed that the factors leading to students dropout from school were many and included lack of awareness on education matters and lack of education in the families. Parents’ low income, cultural aspects such as early marriages, divorce, polygamy, lack of family planning and negative attitudes towards education especially for girls and Parents deaths were also found to be the problems leading to school dropout. Improper application of Education Acts and regulations was also found to be among the factors for student to drop out of school. The factors also included pressure from Peer groups. The study recommends, among other things, that the government should make sure that there is mass mobilization and sensitization on education to make member of a society be aware of the a importance of secondary education.

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