Socio-Cultural Gender Norms and Economic Barriers in The Context of Rural High School Girls’ Dropout in Bangladesh: A Qualitative Study
Keywords:
socio-cultural, gender norms, economic barriers, school dropout, rural, Bangladesh
Abstract
While attending high schools, in Bangladesh, rural school girls face the pressure of socio-cultural gender norms and the barriers of economic deprivation. This paper aims to analyze the multifaceted connection between gender norms and economic deprivation of families in rural Bangladesh; and how the dynamics of the connection affect high school girls’ opportunities of further education. The paper identifies the major factors that lead girls to drop out of school. In-depth qualitative interview sessions were conducted with 5 rural high school dropout girls. The analysis incorporates both thematic and narrative analyses. The study finds that gender norms, socioeconomic realities, deprivation and poverty work as barriers; and affect girl’s future education by restricting girl’s opportunities and social mobility with the support of discriminatory gender norms and practices. Parents compromise on girls’ education by giving gender norms a priority. Instead of encouraging girls’ future education parents tend to ensure their daughter’s future in an early marriage. Among the financially challenged families, girls’ domestic duties are prioritized over their aspiration of getting education. Most parents are concerned about the sexual security/chastity of their girls, which also force girls to drop out of high schools. Few parents/guardians who encourage and support girls’ education usually take the initiative to bring changes by resisting social norms that obstruct and limit girls’ opportunities. The paper concludes that in the context of persistent socio-cultural gender norms, resistance against regressive gender ideologies and social norms are needed to bring positive changes in gender socialization.
Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
References
Aboud, F. E. (2007). Evaluation of an early childhood parenting programme in rural Bangladesh. Journal of health, population, and nutrition, 25(1), 3.
Aikman, S., & Rao, N. (2012). Gender equality and girls’ education: Investigating frameworks, disjunctures and meanings of quality education. Theory and Research in Education, 10(3), 211-228.
Alexander, J. C., Giesen, B., & Mast, J. L. (Eds.). (2006). Social performance: Symbolic action, cultural pragmatics, and ritual. Cambridge University Press. 29-74
Amin, S., Ahmed, J., Saha, J., Hossain, M., & Haque, E. (2016). Delaying child marriage through community-based skills-development programs for girls: Results from a randomized controlled study in rural Bangladesh. New York and Dhaka: Population Council.
Au, W. C., Nourin, S., & Ahmed, P. K. (2021). The unfolding process of womens entrepreneurship in a patriarchal society: an exploration of Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs experiences. In Women’s Entrepreneurship and Culture. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Bareq, A. (2018). The Role of World Bank as a Development Partner in Bangladesh: A case study of Education Sector (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka). http://repository.library.du.ac.bd:8080/bitstream/handle/123456789/1448/Abdul%20Bareq.pdf?
Bates, L. M., Maselko, J., & Schuler, S. R. (2007). Women's education and the timing of marriage and childbearing in the next generation: evidence from rural Bangladesh. Studies in Family Planning, 38(2), 101-112.
Baulch, B. (2011). The medium-term impact of the primary education stipend in rural Bangladesh. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 3(2), 243-262.
Bernard, H. R. (2017). Research methods in anthropology: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Rowman & Littlefield.
Bilkis, S. (2015). Girls’ education and empowerment: impact of secondary level schooling on rural women’s lives in Bangladesh (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka).
Chisamya, G., DeJaeghere, J., Kendall, N., & Khan, M. A. (2012). Gender and Education for All: Progress and problems in achieving gender equity. International journal of educational development, 32(6), 743-755.
Del Franco, N. (2010). Aspirations and self‐hood: exploring the meaning of higher secondary education for girl college students in rural Bangladesh. Compare, 40(2), 147-165.
Ferdousi, N. (2014). Child marriage in Bangladesh: Socio-legal analysis. International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 6(1), 1-7.
Field, E., & Ambrus, A. (2008). Early marriage, age of menarche, and female schooling attainment in Bangladesh. Journal of political Economy, 116(5), 881-930.
Glick, P. (2008). What policies will reduce gender schooling gaps in developing countries: Evidence and interpretation. World Development, 36(9), 1623-1646.
Guglielmi, S., Jones, N., Muz, J., Baird, S., Mitu, K., & Uddin, M. A. (2020). I Don’t Have Any Aspiration Because I Couldn’t Study”: Exploring the Educational Barriers Facing Adolescents in Cox’s Bazar. Policy Brief. London: Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence.
Halim, S. (2020). Women’s Ownership Rights and Access to Land in Bangladesh. In Women, Land & Power in Asia (pp. 87-102). Routledge India.
Heissler, K. (2011). ‘We are poor people so what is the use of education?’ Tensions and contradictions in girls’ and boys’ transitions from school to work in rural Bangladesh. The European Journal of Development Research, 23(5), 729-744.
Herz, B., Herz, B. K., & Sperling, G. B. (2004). What works in girls' education: Evidence and policies from the developing world. Council on foreign relations.
Hoang, L. A. (2011). Gender identity and agency in migration decision-making: Evidence from Vietnam. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 37(9), 1441-1457.
Hunt, F. (2008). Dropping Out from School: A Cross Country Review of the Literature. Create Pathways to Access. Research Monograph, No. 16. UK: University of Sussex
Islam, M. R., & Mia, A. (2007). The role of education for rural population transformation in Bangladesh. International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, 8(1), 1.
Jayachandran, S. (2021). Social norms as a barrier to women’s employment in developing countries. IMF Economic Review, 1-20.
John, N. A., Stoebenau, K., Ritter, S., Edmeades, J., Balvin, N., & Unicef. (2017). Gender socialization during adolescence in low-and middle-income countries: Conceptualization, influences and outcomes.
Kabeer, N. (2011). Between affiliation and autonomy: navigating pathways of women's empowerment and gender justice in rural Bangladesh. Development and change, 42(2), 499-528.
Keleher, H., & Franklin, L. (2008). Changing gendered norms about women and girls at the level of household and community: a review of the evidence. Global Public Health, 3(S1), 42-57.
Latif, A., Usman, A., Ali, S., & Amjad, A. (2020). Effects of area of residence, education level and wealth of reproductive-aged woman on child’s nutritional status: Evidence from Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2011. Rawal Medical Journal, 45(1), 176-178.
Lorber, J., & Martin, P. Y. (2012). The socially constructed body. Illuminating social life: Classical and contemporary theory revisited, 249.
Mackie, G., Moneti, F., Shakya, H., & Denny, E. (2015). What are social norms? How are they measured. University of California at San Diego-UNICEF Working Paper, San Diego. USA: New York.
Mahmud, S., & Amin, S. (2006). Girls’ schooling and marriage in rural Bangladesh. In Children's lives and schooling across societies. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Mahumda, M. (2019). Causes of girl’s pupil dropout at secondary school in Bangladesh: Review of literature and empirical analysis (Master's thesis, Universitetet i Agder; University of Agder).
Marcus, R., & Harper, C. (2014). Gender justice and social norms-processes of change for adolescent girls. London: Overseas Development Institute.
Mousumi, M. A., & Kusakabe, T. (2020). School education system in Bangladesh. Handbook of Education Systems in South Asia, 1-36.
Namuliira, P. (2020). Family planning adolesencents’ sexual behavior and female labor force participation in Uganda (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dar es Salaam).
Nations, U. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development. New York: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
Parveen, S. (2007). Gender awareness of rural women in Bangladesh. Journal of International Women's Studies, 9(1), 253-269.
Psaki, S. R. (2015). Addressing early marriage and adolescent pregnancy as a barrier to gender parity and equality in education. Background paper for the.
Ramsdal, G. H., Bergvik, S., & Wynn, R. (2018). Long-term dropout from school and work and mental health in young adults in Norway: A qualitative interview-based study. Cogent Psychology, 5(1), 1455365.
Ridgeway, C. L. (2009). Framed before we know it: How gender shapes social relations. Gender & society, 23(2), 145-160.
Risman, B. J. (2018). Gender as a social structure. In Handbook of the Sociology of Gender (pp. 19-43). Springer, Cham.
Rudman, L. A., & Glick, P. (1999). Feminized management and backlash toward agentic women: the hidden costs to women of a kinder, gentler image of middle managers. Journal of personality and social psychology, 77(5), 1004.
Sarkar, R. K., Reza, M. M., & Hossain, M. E. (2014). Socio Cultural Barriers of Girls’ Educational Attainment Experiences From Rural Bangladesh. Cultural Anthropology, 10(2), 349-358.
Sarker, M. N. I., Wu, M., & Hossin, M. A. (2019). Economic effect of school dropout in Bangladesh. International Journal of Information and Education Technology, 9(2), 136-142.
Sarker, S. I., Karim, A. H. M., & Suffiun, S. M. A. (2017). Parental educational aspiration and gender inequality of rural children in Bangladesh: the role of parental attitudes of traditional gender role, gender biased capability, and gender. Journal of International Women's Studies, 18(2), 134-142.
Schuler, S. R. (2007). Rural Bangladesh: Sound policies, evolving gender norms, and family strategies. Exclusion, Gender and Education: Case Studies from the Developing World. Washington, DC: Center for Global Development, 179-204.
Schuler, S. R., Bates, L. M., & Islam, F. (2008). Women's rights, domestic violence, and recourse seeking in rural Bangladesh. Violence against women, 14(3), 326-345.
Schurmann, A. T. (2009). Review of the Bangladesh female secondary school stipend project using a social exclusion framework. Journal of health, population, and nutrition, 27(4), 505.
Shah, S., & Shah, U. (2012). Girl education in rural Pakistan. Revista Internacional de Sociología de la Educación, 1(2), 180-207.
Shahidul, S. M. (2012). Marriage market and an effect on girls’ school dropout in Bangladesh. Journal of Alternative Perspectives in the Social Sciences, 4(2), 552-564.
Svanemyr, J., Moland, K. M., Blystad, A., Zulu, J. M., & Sandøy, I. (2021). Norms and sexual relations among adolescents in the context of an intervention trial in rural Zambia. Global Public Health, 1-13. doi.org/10.1080/17441692.2021.1947343
Talukder, A., Hasan, M. M., Razu, S. R., & Hossain, Z. (2020). Early marriage in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study exploring the associated factors. Journal of international women's studies., 21(1), 68-78.
Varga, C. A. (2003). How gender roles influence sexual and reproductive health among South African adolescents. Studies in family planning, 34(3), 160-172.
Warrington, M., & Kiragu, S. (2012). “It makes more sense to educate a boy”: Girls ‘against the odds’ in Kajiado, Kenya. International journal of educational development, 32(2), 301-309.
West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender & society, 1(2), 125-151.
Aikman, S., & Rao, N. (2012). Gender equality and girls’ education: Investigating frameworks, disjunctures and meanings of quality education. Theory and Research in Education, 10(3), 211-228.
Alexander, J. C., Giesen, B., & Mast, J. L. (Eds.). (2006). Social performance: Symbolic action, cultural pragmatics, and ritual. Cambridge University Press. 29-74
Amin, S., Ahmed, J., Saha, J., Hossain, M., & Haque, E. (2016). Delaying child marriage through community-based skills-development programs for girls: Results from a randomized controlled study in rural Bangladesh. New York and Dhaka: Population Council.
Au, W. C., Nourin, S., & Ahmed, P. K. (2021). The unfolding process of womens entrepreneurship in a patriarchal society: an exploration of Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs experiences. In Women’s Entrepreneurship and Culture. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Bareq, A. (2018). The Role of World Bank as a Development Partner in Bangladesh: A case study of Education Sector (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka). http://repository.library.du.ac.bd:8080/bitstream/handle/123456789/1448/Abdul%20Bareq.pdf?
Bates, L. M., Maselko, J., & Schuler, S. R. (2007). Women's education and the timing of marriage and childbearing in the next generation: evidence from rural Bangladesh. Studies in Family Planning, 38(2), 101-112.
Baulch, B. (2011). The medium-term impact of the primary education stipend in rural Bangladesh. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 3(2), 243-262.
Bernard, H. R. (2017). Research methods in anthropology: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Rowman & Littlefield.
Bilkis, S. (2015). Girls’ education and empowerment: impact of secondary level schooling on rural women’s lives in Bangladesh (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka).
Chisamya, G., DeJaeghere, J., Kendall, N., & Khan, M. A. (2012). Gender and Education for All: Progress and problems in achieving gender equity. International journal of educational development, 32(6), 743-755.
Del Franco, N. (2010). Aspirations and self‐hood: exploring the meaning of higher secondary education for girl college students in rural Bangladesh. Compare, 40(2), 147-165.
Ferdousi, N. (2014). Child marriage in Bangladesh: Socio-legal analysis. International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 6(1), 1-7.
Field, E., & Ambrus, A. (2008). Early marriage, age of menarche, and female schooling attainment in Bangladesh. Journal of political Economy, 116(5), 881-930.
Glick, P. (2008). What policies will reduce gender schooling gaps in developing countries: Evidence and interpretation. World Development, 36(9), 1623-1646.
Guglielmi, S., Jones, N., Muz, J., Baird, S., Mitu, K., & Uddin, M. A. (2020). I Don’t Have Any Aspiration Because I Couldn’t Study”: Exploring the Educational Barriers Facing Adolescents in Cox’s Bazar. Policy Brief. London: Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence.
Halim, S. (2020). Women’s Ownership Rights and Access to Land in Bangladesh. In Women, Land & Power in Asia (pp. 87-102). Routledge India.
Heissler, K. (2011). ‘We are poor people so what is the use of education?’ Tensions and contradictions in girls’ and boys’ transitions from school to work in rural Bangladesh. The European Journal of Development Research, 23(5), 729-744.
Herz, B., Herz, B. K., & Sperling, G. B. (2004). What works in girls' education: Evidence and policies from the developing world. Council on foreign relations.
Hoang, L. A. (2011). Gender identity and agency in migration decision-making: Evidence from Vietnam. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 37(9), 1441-1457.
Hunt, F. (2008). Dropping Out from School: A Cross Country Review of the Literature. Create Pathways to Access. Research Monograph, No. 16. UK: University of Sussex
Islam, M. R., & Mia, A. (2007). The role of education for rural population transformation in Bangladesh. International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, 8(1), 1.
Jayachandran, S. (2021). Social norms as a barrier to women’s employment in developing countries. IMF Economic Review, 1-20.
John, N. A., Stoebenau, K., Ritter, S., Edmeades, J., Balvin, N., & Unicef. (2017). Gender socialization during adolescence in low-and middle-income countries: Conceptualization, influences and outcomes.
Kabeer, N. (2011). Between affiliation and autonomy: navigating pathways of women's empowerment and gender justice in rural Bangladesh. Development and change, 42(2), 499-528.
Keleher, H., & Franklin, L. (2008). Changing gendered norms about women and girls at the level of household and community: a review of the evidence. Global Public Health, 3(S1), 42-57.
Latif, A., Usman, A., Ali, S., & Amjad, A. (2020). Effects of area of residence, education level and wealth of reproductive-aged woman on child’s nutritional status: Evidence from Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2011. Rawal Medical Journal, 45(1), 176-178.
Lorber, J., & Martin, P. Y. (2012). The socially constructed body. Illuminating social life: Classical and contemporary theory revisited, 249.
Mackie, G., Moneti, F., Shakya, H., & Denny, E. (2015). What are social norms? How are they measured. University of California at San Diego-UNICEF Working Paper, San Diego. USA: New York.
Mahmud, S., & Amin, S. (2006). Girls’ schooling and marriage in rural Bangladesh. In Children's lives and schooling across societies. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Mahumda, M. (2019). Causes of girl’s pupil dropout at secondary school in Bangladesh: Review of literature and empirical analysis (Master's thesis, Universitetet i Agder; University of Agder).
Marcus, R., & Harper, C. (2014). Gender justice and social norms-processes of change for adolescent girls. London: Overseas Development Institute.
Mousumi, M. A., & Kusakabe, T. (2020). School education system in Bangladesh. Handbook of Education Systems in South Asia, 1-36.
Namuliira, P. (2020). Family planning adolesencents’ sexual behavior and female labor force participation in Uganda (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dar es Salaam).
Nations, U. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development. New York: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
Parveen, S. (2007). Gender awareness of rural women in Bangladesh. Journal of International Women's Studies, 9(1), 253-269.
Psaki, S. R. (2015). Addressing early marriage and adolescent pregnancy as a barrier to gender parity and equality in education. Background paper for the.
Ramsdal, G. H., Bergvik, S., & Wynn, R. (2018). Long-term dropout from school and work and mental health in young adults in Norway: A qualitative interview-based study. Cogent Psychology, 5(1), 1455365.
Ridgeway, C. L. (2009). Framed before we know it: How gender shapes social relations. Gender & society, 23(2), 145-160.
Risman, B. J. (2018). Gender as a social structure. In Handbook of the Sociology of Gender (pp. 19-43). Springer, Cham.
Rudman, L. A., & Glick, P. (1999). Feminized management and backlash toward agentic women: the hidden costs to women of a kinder, gentler image of middle managers. Journal of personality and social psychology, 77(5), 1004.
Sarkar, R. K., Reza, M. M., & Hossain, M. E. (2014). Socio Cultural Barriers of Girls’ Educational Attainment Experiences From Rural Bangladesh. Cultural Anthropology, 10(2), 349-358.
Sarker, M. N. I., Wu, M., & Hossin, M. A. (2019). Economic effect of school dropout in Bangladesh. International Journal of Information and Education Technology, 9(2), 136-142.
Sarker, S. I., Karim, A. H. M., & Suffiun, S. M. A. (2017). Parental educational aspiration and gender inequality of rural children in Bangladesh: the role of parental attitudes of traditional gender role, gender biased capability, and gender. Journal of International Women's Studies, 18(2), 134-142.
Schuler, S. R. (2007). Rural Bangladesh: Sound policies, evolving gender norms, and family strategies. Exclusion, Gender and Education: Case Studies from the Developing World. Washington, DC: Center for Global Development, 179-204.
Schuler, S. R., Bates, L. M., & Islam, F. (2008). Women's rights, domestic violence, and recourse seeking in rural Bangladesh. Violence against women, 14(3), 326-345.
Schurmann, A. T. (2009). Review of the Bangladesh female secondary school stipend project using a social exclusion framework. Journal of health, population, and nutrition, 27(4), 505.
Shah, S., & Shah, U. (2012). Girl education in rural Pakistan. Revista Internacional de Sociología de la Educación, 1(2), 180-207.
Shahidul, S. M. (2012). Marriage market and an effect on girls’ school dropout in Bangladesh. Journal of Alternative Perspectives in the Social Sciences, 4(2), 552-564.
Svanemyr, J., Moland, K. M., Blystad, A., Zulu, J. M., & Sandøy, I. (2021). Norms and sexual relations among adolescents in the context of an intervention trial in rural Zambia. Global Public Health, 1-13. doi.org/10.1080/17441692.2021.1947343
Talukder, A., Hasan, M. M., Razu, S. R., & Hossain, Z. (2020). Early marriage in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study exploring the associated factors. Journal of international women's studies., 21(1), 68-78.
Varga, C. A. (2003). How gender roles influence sexual and reproductive health among South African adolescents. Studies in family planning, 34(3), 160-172.
Warrington, M., & Kiragu, S. (2012). “It makes more sense to educate a boy”: Girls ‘against the odds’ in Kajiado, Kenya. International journal of educational development, 32(2), 301-309.
West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender & society, 1(2), 125-151.
