Perceptual barriers affecting the pursuit of education beyond high school by ethnic minority students from agrarian communities in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This research paper is an extract from my PhD thesis titled “Microsystem factors that hinder the pursuit of education beyond high school by ethnic minorities in peri-urban Harare of Zimbabwe.” In this paper I argue that while international and national calls for equal access to education beyond high school (EBHS) by all students regardless of their backgrounds generate hope, full realisation of this shared vision remains problematic. In the three Chewa Ethnic Communities that this study focused, pursuit of EBHS was constrained by both distal and proximal factors. This study explored the hindering microsystem factors from the perspective of their community leaders’ perceptions of EBHS. The study used in-depth interviews to generate primary data from 15 community leaders who were purposefully selected from the three research sites. Results revealed that together, historical legacy of exclusion, lack of information on EBHS pathways and transitioning processes, narrow view of the benefits of pursuing EBHS and preference for local farm employment compounded the pervasive EBHS inequality affecting students in the three research sites. Based on the key findings, the study recommended a range of programs aimed at helping Chewa communities in agrarian communities in Zimbabwe to embrace the pursuit of EBHS for its existential and instrumental benefits.