Perceived effects of gender role stereotyping on academic aspirations of primary school pupils

For many years, academic performance among learners in primary schools has been inclined towards gender orientation. Boys have performed impressively in mathematics and sciences while their female counterparts have done quite well in languages. This study sought to investigate the effects of gender role stereotyping on academic aspirations of primary school pupils. The study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The study population comprised of the 62 primary schools in Butula district of Western province in Kenya. Purposive sampling was used to select 20 of the 62 primary schools. A sample size of 236 class eight pupils who participated in the study, were selected using simple random sampling technique. In addition, a total of 20 teachers and 1 education officer were selected purposively to give information concerning the effects of gender role stereotyping on academic aspirations of primary school pupils. Data from the teachers and pupils was collected through administering the questionnaire while an interview schedule was used to collect data from the education officer. Both qualitative and quantative methods were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that male pupils had high aspirations for mathematics and science subjects whereas female pupils had high inclination for languages. The results indicated that gender role stereotyping created masculine and feminine perception among learners towards certain subjects. The study also revealed that teachers did little to guide pupils against aspiration for academic on the basis of gender role stereotyping.