Cultural Beliefs and Practices Influencing in Girls’ Transition from Lower to Upper Primary in Balambala Sub-County, Garissa County, Kenya

Abstract

Despite the vital importance of girls' education to sustainable and inclusive development, significant number of primary school girls rarely advance to the next level of education, Transition challenges have been linked to a number of factors, with cultural values featuring prominently. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess effect of cultural beliefs and practices on transition of girls from lower to upper primary in Balambala Sub- County, Garissa County, Kenya. The study was anchored on the liberal feminism theory. It employed positivist research paradigm and adopted correlational research design. The study targeted 223 school management boards, teachers and parent teacher association chairpersons of schools in Balambala Subcounty-. A sample size of 30% was chosen, translating to 67 respondents. Data was collected using both questionnaire and the interview guide. The study utilized the quantitative techniques mainly Pearson correlation coefficient to tests significance of relationships between variables. The study revealed a significant positive relationship between culture and transition (r = .654, p = .000; β = 0.234, p = 0.011). The study concludes that cultural beliefs and practices have strong significant positive on transition of girls from lower to upper primary in Balambala Sub- County, Garissa County, Kenya. The study recommends that Government and education should implement context specific interventions, such as adult literacy initiatives to help improve awareness on the importance of girls’ education.  Engagements should target traditional leaders, religious figures, and male community members to challenge retrogressive practices like early marriage and gendered domestic roles. The findings highlight education policies that challenge harmful cultural norms, promote gender-responsive school practices, provide economic incentives, and implement child protection laws, while scaling up gender equality through education, community mobilization, and positive female role models. Strengthening girls' transition to upper primary education requires education policies that engage communities to combat harmful cultural norms, support schools in adopting gender-sensitive practices, and provide monetary incentives to reduce economic barriers. Reliable, gender-disaggregated data systems are necessary for targeted interventions. In encouraging gender equity, the enforcement of early marriage laws, empowering girls through education, and showcasing successful female models can have a great impact on societal attitudes and encourage girls to continue with their education.