Anyango-Kivuva, Leonora
(2006)
THE FORGOTTEN POOR: PROBLEMATIZING POLICIES OF CHILDREN'S WORK AND SCHOOLING IN KENYA.
Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
In this study, I problematize child labor policies in Kenya through narratives of children's work and schooling. I draw from the problematics implications for educational policy and practice. In December 2002, a new government was elected in Kenya. The National Rainbow Coalition Party (NARC) promised Free Primary Education to all Kenyan children if it were elected. It fulfilled its promise and FPE came into force in January 2003. I carried out this study after the introduction of Free Primary Education in Kenya (2005) among working children in coffee farms in Nyeri, Kenya. I looked at child labor through the lens of Free Primary Education during a time when children are generally considered to have the ability to go to school. The Children's Bill of 2002, aligned with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, prohibits the exploitation of children, including children being involved in work that will prevent them from schooling or be detrimental to their health. In this study, I look at the impact of policies on the lives of working children in Kenya. In the narratives of children's work and schooling, it is evident that there are tensions among different groups of people in the way they view child labor and schooling, and in the way they perceive children being served by the policy of Free Primary Education and/or the concerns of the Children's Bill. It is the interplay between policies and the reality expressed in narratives of children's work and schooling that give rise to the problematics. I take the child labor phenomenon as a challenge that invites the people involved (policy makers, teachers, and education officers) to look at the situations and work towards transforming them. Through giving the context of child labor internationally and nationally and presenting details of the experiences surrounding it, I show the disconnect that exists between child labor policies and the reality of working children in Kenya and other third world countries. I hope that readers will envision multiple perspectives to deal with the complexities of child labor, which will in turn lead them to new paths of action.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
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| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
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| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
28 September 2006 |
| Date Type: |
Completion |
| Defense Date: |
21 April 2006 |
| Approval Date: |
28 September 2006 |
| Submission Date: |
15 August 2006 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
School of Education > Administrative and Policy Studies |
| Degree: |
PhD - Doctor of Philosophy |
| Thesis Type: |
Doctoral Dissertation |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Children's Work; Kenya; Child Labor; Free Primary Education; Schooling |
| Other ID: |
http://etd.library.pitt.edu/ETD/available/etd-08152006-161704/, etd-08152006-161704 |
| Date Deposited: |
10 Nov 2011 19:59 |
| Last Modified: |
15 Nov 2016 13:49 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/9105 |
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