PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE OF ADOLESCENT MOTHERS ATTENDING HEALTH FACILITIES IN IBADAN SOUTH-EAST LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA TOWARDS THEIR RE-ENROLMENT INTO SCHOOLS

Abstract

In many developing countries, adolescent pregnancy has been one of the major hindrances to the education of girls. In Nigeria most girls who become pregnant in schools are expelled and fail to return to school after delivery. Others who are fortunate enough to continue schooling face numerous problems. Few studies have documented the perception and attitude of adolescent mothers towards re-enrolment into schools. This study therefore, examined perception and attitude of adolescent mothers towards re-enrolment into schools in Ibadan South-East local government area. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among randomly selected 298 consenting adolescent mothers attending health facilities in Ibadan south-east local government using a two-stage sampling technique. A pretested structured interviewer-administered questionnaire which contained 13-point perception and 5-point attitudinal scale was used for data collection .Scores between 0-7 was categorized as poor perception while scores >7 was categorized as good perception. Attitudinal scores of 0-2 and >2 were categorized as negative and positive attitude towards school re-enrolment respectively. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square at p<0.05 level of significance. Mean age of participants was 20.4 1.2 years and 73.5% were Christians. A large number (64.1%) of the respondents had good perception towards their re-enrolment into schools while 35.9% had negative perception towards school re-enrolment. Majority (82.2%) of the respondents agreed with the statement that they will return to school if their teachers are willing to support them as most of them believe that they might be abused by their teachers. Most of the respondents (88.9%) agreed that coming back to school will make them learn from their mistakes (getting pregnant). Majority (95%) of the respondents indicated that they would return to school if there are re-entry policies. Majority of the respondents (79.9%) had positive attitude to their re-enrolment into schools. A large number (79.2%) agreed that they can combine their academic work with caring for their baby. Most of the respondents (88.9%) said they prefer to re-enroll in another school if they are given the opportunity. More than half (51.0%) indicated that they are not afraid to meet their teachers. Perceived barriers affecting respondent’s re-entry into school were parent’s financial status (97.3%), Stigmatization (76.8%), school re-enrollment policy (65.1%), lack of husband’s support (66.4%), early marriage (56%) and lack of school support (43.6%). A significant association was found between the respondents’ age and their perception towards school re-enrollment, No significant association was found between the religion of respondents and their perception towards school re-enrollment. A significant association was found between the respondents’ marital status and their perception. There was no significant association between the respondents’ level of education and their perception about school re-enrollment. The perception and attitude of adolescent mothers towards school re-enrollment in the study area was good, but there exist several barriers to the actualization of this. Health promotion strategies such as advocacy and training would be useful in addressing this problem.