Saving teenage mother learners through adaptation of civic engagement strategies in Zambian secondary schools: Challenges and possible solutions

Abstract

Managing teenage mother learners in a school environment can be a challenging task. Their school attendance and active involvement in Civic Engagement (CE) activities is often associated with numerous disruptions because of their dual responsibilities of schooling and motherhood. Therefore, this article investigated the challenges faced by the policy makers, administrators, subject teachers, guidance and counselling teachers, and parents in employing CE strategies with the teen mother learners and suggested possible solutions to these challenges, in selected secondary schools of Chongwe District, Zambia. The article employed a qualitative exploratory research design with 18 participants purposively sampled from two schools of Chongwe District of Zambia. Some findings included compromised levels of concentration on the part of the teenage mother learners; failure to obey teachers by teenage mother learners; stigma and discrimination from the communities and school environment; inferiority complex and disassociation and non-involvement in extra classroom activities. Some possible solutions suggested include academic engagement of teen mothers during maternal leave; sensitization of teen mothers on the importance of education; full support of the re-entry policy and provision of decent boarding facilities for the learners. The article concludes that the challenges faced by the policy makers, administrators, subject teachers, guidance and counselling teachers, and parents in executing CE pedagogies had great potential of impeding the full comprehension of CE knowledge by the teen mother learners. Despite this potential likelihood, the re-entry policy provides the teen mother learners with an opportunity of education. It was recommended that the policy makers, administrators, subject teachers, guidance and counselling teachers, and parents should provide sexual reproductive health education; provide out of school teen mothers with educational opportunities and the policy makers, administrators, subject teachers, guidance and counseling teachers, and parents should receive occasional trainings on how to handle teen mother learners.