Supporting induction to the teaching profession for women in Malawi

Abstract

Gender parity in primary and secondary education has yet to be achieved in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Malawi. The presence of female teachers is recognised as positively impacting on girls’ enrolment and learning success, but in many rural areas in Malawi, there are few qualifi ed female teachers working in primary or secondary schools. This paper contributes to the current debates on how to address this gap in qualifi ed female teacher recruitment and retention in rural areas. One suggested solution to breaking the cycle of low female achievement in rural areas is the use of distance education to prepare local women to become teachers in their own communities. In the programme reported on in this paper, aspiring female teachers are supported to take on the role of “learning assistants” in their local community primary schools while studying to achieve the qualifi cations necessary for application to a formal primary teacher training course. Using applications, interviews and workshop data from the early stages of the programme, the backgrounds and motivations of applicants to the programme are explored. The paper also discusses the implications for the design of this distance learning programme, emerging constraints on the achievement of programme intentions and areas for further study.