street children’s trajectories: an exploration of their past, present and future identities in...
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Street Children’s Trajectories: An Exploration of their Past, Present and Future Identities in
Tanzania This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in Education, Gender and International Development.
Institute of Education, University College London
September 1st 2015
Word Count: 21,679
‘This report/dissertation may be made available to the general public for borrowing, photocopying or consultation without the prior consent of the
author’
Acknowledgements I would like to begin by thanking staff and children at Railway Children for their
support and friendship during the last year. For all of those who assisted me in
my fieldwork I am eternally grateful.
I would also like to thanks Dr Jenny Parkes, my dissertation supervisor, who
provided me with support, inspiration and guided me throughout this process
even when I was lost.
I must also mention my fellow EGID and EID students who have provided
endless support and encouraged me to finish this Masters. I will miss our time
together and wish you all the luck in you future endeavours.
I would also like to thank my mother Ferduse Sadiq as I would not have been in
this position had it not been for you support. You have helped me become the
man I am today and have helped me in achieving my dreams.
Finally, appreciation goes out to my fiancé, Julien Cote, who has had to deal with
me leaving the country and being stressed out over the last two years. I am
grateful for your patience and unwavering support.
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Abstract Street children have become one of the most researched subjects since the turn
of the twentieth century. Both academics and child rights organisations have
highlighted the magnitude of the phenomenon as well as its causes (Panter-‐
Brick 2002). However, limited research has been carried out on how street
children construct their identities and how this in turn shapes their view on
education.
This study addresses that gap by exploring how street children construct
identities of their past, present and future trajectories. Using interview’s with six
street children based in Mwanza Tanzania, this study found evidence that
children’s identities were influenced by multiple inequalities they faced in their
home, school and street environments. Working from an intersectionality
perspective, new evidence of discrimination against stepchildren and young
street boys was found. These new inequalities not only impacted children’s view
of education but also changed the way street children viewed traditional family
structures in Tanzania.
The findings from this study concludes that children migrate to the streets due
to a multitude of injustices experienced in their home and school life. These
injustices experienced have shaped children’s views and consequently have
guided children’s current and future identities.
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Acronyms BERA-‐ British Education Research Association EfA-‐ Education for All GMR-‐ Global Monitoring Report ILO-‐ International Labour Organisation MDG-‐ Millennium Development Goals MVC-‐ Most Vulnerable Children NGO-‐ Non-‐governmental organisation PEDP-‐ Primary Education Development Plan SCO-‐ Street Child Organisations SEDP-‐ Secondary Education Development Plan U.N-‐ United Nations UNICEF-‐ United Nations Children's Fund UPE-‐ Universal Primary Education
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Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ..................................................................................................................................... 5
CHAPTER 2: BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................... 7 DISCOVERING THE STREET CHILD IN TANZANIA ......................................................................................... 7 CONTEXT MWANZA ........................................................................................................................................... 7 DEFINING THE STREET CHILD ........................................................................................................................ 8 GENDERED DISPARITIES ............................................................................................................................... 12 EDUCATION: A WAY OUT FOR STREET CHILDREN? ................................................................................ 15 IS REUNIFICATION THE BEST SOLUTION? ................................................................................................. 19 SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................................................... 22
CHAPTER THREE: THEORETICAL FRAMING ....................................................................... 23 THE BEGINNING OF INTERSECTIONALITY .................................................................................................. 23 POSITIONING INTERSECTIONS WITH STREET CHILDREN ....................................................................... 23
CHAPTER FOUR: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................... 26 RESEARCH APPROACH ................................................................................................................................... 26 METHODS ......................................................................................................................................................... 27 BIAS ................................................................................................................................................................... 27 SETTING AND SAMPLING ............................................................................................................................... 28 DATA COLLECTION ......................................................................................................................................... 30 PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH ......................................................................................................................... 31 DATA ANALYSIS .............................................................................................................................................. 32 ETHICS .............................................................................................................................................................. 33
CHAPTER FIVE: DATA ANALYSIS ............................................................................................. 36 BACKGROUND OF CHILDREN ........................................................................................................................ 36 FROM SCHOOL TO THE STREETS .................................................................................................................. 37 MIGRATING PATTERNS .................................................................................................................................. 39 ENJOYING SCHOOL? ........................................................................................................................................ 46 LOVING TEACHERS ......................................................................................................................................... 46 PUNISHING TEACHERS ................................................................................................................................... 47 ARE SUBJECTS ENJOYABLE ............................................................................................................................ 50 RETURNING/STAYING IN SCHOOL ............................................................................................................... 51 LIFE ON THE STREETS ................................................................................................................................... 53 MIGRATING TO THE STREETS ....................................................................................................................... 54 STREET ACTIVITIES ........................................................................................................................................ 57 LOOKING FORWARD ....................................................................................................................................... 60
CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................. 64 INTERSECTIONAL RESEARCH APPROACH WITH STREET CHILDREN .................................................... 64 STREET CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES ................................................................................................... 65 THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOL ............................................................................................................................ 67 LOOKING FORWARD FROM THE STREET ..................................................................................................... 68
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................................. 70
APPENDIX ....................................................................................................................................... 77 APPENDIX 1-‐ CHILDREN’S BACKGROUNDS ................................................................................................ 77 APPENDIX 2-‐ RIVER OF LIFE ........................................................................................................................ 79 APPENDIX 3-‐ EXPLANATION OF RESEARCH TO STREET CHILDREN ..................................................... 81 APPENDIX 4-‐ INTERVIEW SCHEDULE ......................................................................................................... 83
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Chapter 1: Introduction In the face of increased urbanisation we have seen a surge in the number of
children present on the streets. Around the world, thousands of children are
continuing to migrate to more urban areas due to poverty, family breakdown,
abuse and other factors. Unicef (2005) estimates show that there are 100 million
children whose lives are controlled by the streets. Most of these children do not
have access to basic medical, educational or nutritional support and often these
children live day to day on what they can rummage. In response to this epidemic,
a number of local and International NGO’s have sprung up to meet their basic
needs. Whilst organisations have worked tirelessly trying to find the best
interventions; numbers of street children are continuing to increase (UNICEF
2005).
A number of reasons illustrate why children migrate to the streets; however,
scholars often focus on one dimension, such as poverty. From experience of
working with street children, I understand that several facets come into play and
all of these facets need to be considered when applying an intervention. One of
the most prominent interventions applied by street child organisations is the
provision of education. Organisations provide both formal and non-‐formal
education to street children in the hope of transitioning them from the street to
their homes. In this sense education is seen by many as a way out of poverty for
both the child and the societies they live in. This is supported by the vast amount
of evidence that articulates the benefits of education, not only in the rate of
return to the individual but also to society on the whole (Karabel 1977, Blaug
1976).
Nevertheless, there is limited research on street children’s education, especially
in the realms of how street children view education and how this view might be
created by the identities they construct. Scholars (Dybicz 2005, Amury & Komba
2010) and organisations (Street Child 2012, Consortium for Street Children
2013) researching street children tend to focus their research on the
experiences of children living on the streets and, as a result, limited research has
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been conducted on the creation of identities of street children, and how this in
turn shapes their views of education. This study seeks to fill that gap through the
interviewing of six street children in Mwanza Tanzania, who are affiliated with
the charity Railway Children.
The way children construct their views of education can be analysed through a
variety of approaches but in this study it will be analysed through the lens of
intersetionality. Adopting an intersectionality approach allows me to examine
multiple discriminations such as, class, race, gender, age, and other injustices
and observe how each of these demographics interact with one another to form
a social identity. As I am interested in understanding how education views
maybe influenced; I will examine how various forms of inequality form a street
child’s identity and how this in turn may shape their views of education.
The value of education in most societies is formed on the basis of the social and
economic benefits that it provides. Whilst there is an abundance of literature in
this area there is restricted literature using an intersectional approach. An
intersectionality approach offers a different angle to observe how the value of
education is created, and takes a bottom up approach by examining a multitude
of inequalities faced by an individual or group. These inequalities contribute in
the formation of ones identity and also the outlook that one has of life. In using
this approach, I am able to gain a deeper understanding of the, present and past,
histories of street children, especially in the realms of education. The adoption of
this approach was derived after reviewing the relevant literature, which found
that injustices related with gender, education, family and the street were all
viewed separately rather than holistically.
Research Questions
The framing of this study was established from my experiences of working for
Railway Children. From my discussions with children and exposure to
interventions provided by street child organisations (SCO’s), I found my main
interests of discovery were themes of gender, family, education, and the street
environment. The themes of gender and family grew from my observation of the
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services which SCO’s provided and who they targeted. I discovered that the
majority of these interventions were targeted towards young boys, who were
visible on the street, while only a few organisations offered services for young
street girls, who were less visible. This led me to think about the reasons why
there were more boys on the street and what impact this had on street girls. As a
result of this disparity I decided to analyse both girls and boys experiences to
understand the different factors which may cause them to migrate.
Additionally, the main focus of SCO services was to reunify children with their
families by providing them with education support, counselling and income
generating opportunities. This led me to question whether children in fact
wanted to return home or stay on the street. From my discussions, I found that
street children displayed different identities when speaking about their past
experiences and their current lives on the street. I began to question how
children constructed these identities and what influenced the formation of these
identities. consequently, I decided to explore these identities both in their
current and past trajectories. I used the themes of education, family, gender and
the street environment to help frame the following research questions:
• How do intersecting structural inequalities and social norms influence a
street child’s identity?
• How do street children construct identities to manage the intersecting
structural inequalities in their lives?
• What shapes street children’s view of education and their futures?
To address these questions, this study will apply both a theoretical and practical
approach. In chapter 1, I discuss the rationale and research questions adopted.
In chapter 2, I describe the context and review literature on themes such as
defining a street child, gender, education and family structures. In chapter 3, I
explore the theoretical framework of intersectionality. Chapter 4 demonstrates
my methodological approach to the study including ethical issues. Finally, in
chapters 5 and 6, I analyse my data using the theoretical framework and draw
conclusions from my findings.
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Chapter 2: Background and Literature Review
Discovering the Street Child in Tanzania
This chapter will examine the background literature concerning the historical
and present discourse of street children. It is split into five sections-‐ Mwanza
background, definition of a street child, gender disparities, education and family
reunification. It is structured in this way to provide a deeper understanding of
the issues, which affect street children.
Upon carrying out the review, I initially reviewed literature concerning street
children by observing the definitions appropriated on them. I drew on both
Panter-‐Brick (2002) and Aptekar’s (1988, 2014) work as a starting point to
identify the extent to which street children’s identities were represented. After, I
examined studies surrounding the experiences of street children, which revealed
that gender played an important role in a child’s migration. Studies (Ouma 2004,
Hansson 2003) revealed a high disproportion of boys on the streets compared
with girl’s as they were less visible. This prompted the exploration for this
imbalance and resulted in analysing family life and children’s educational
experiences. By exploring themes of family and education I was able to examine
various injustices, which are underpinned in Tanzanian societies.
Context Mwanza
According to the 2012 National Census1, Mwanza region has a population of
2,772,509 with Nyamagana and Ilemela Districts, together making up Mwanza
town, hosting a population of 363,452 and 343,001 respectively. The region has
a three percent annual population growth rate, which is the eighth highest in the
country. Furthermore, Mwanza is the sixth most densely populated region with
293 people per square kilometre (Railway Children 2012).
Seventy percent of people in Mwanza live in unplanned settlements. These
settlements lack basic facilities like roads, schools and water. Some of them are
located on very steep rocky hills; reaching them and providing basic sanitation
1 United republic of Tanzania 2013
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systems becomes very difficult. According to a report on street life in urban
Tanzania2, urban growth has resulted in an increase in unsupervised children
either living alone or working on the street. Mwanza is no exception; the rate of
urban population growth has been rising resulting in an increasing number of
children and young people working and living on the streets.
In 2012, 17,776 Most Vulnerable Children (MVC) were identified within Mwanza
City Council communities (Railway Children 2012). This number does not
include street children as the City Council’s identification processes only
includes community based children who live at home. Railway Children who
have been operating in Mwanza for a number of years have annually carried out
a headcount with the most recent count revealing 1526 children living and
working on the street (Railway Children 2013).
The street child phenomena is not only constricted to Mwanza but has been
noted in other Tanzanian cities (Mcalpine et al 2010, Wagner et al 2012). Some
of the root causes of this phenomenon lie in the perpetuation of gender norms,
lack of education and changing family structures. These themes will be explored
further in the literature review below.
Defining the Street Child
The term street child has conjured up discussion over the years and the
discourse surrounding it has shifted in recent times. In the 1980’s, the inter-‐NGO
programme for street children agreed the definition of the street child and this
formed the basis for researchers and organisations alike (UNICEF 2001). The
definition stated:
‘any girl or boy who has not reached adulthood, for whom the street (in the
broadest sense of the word, including unoccupied dwellings, wasteland, etc.) has
become her or his habitual abode and/or sources of livelihood, and who is
inadequately protected, supervised or directed by responsible adults’ (Inter-‐
NGO, 1985, quoted in UNICEF 2001, p1). 2http://www.streetwise-africa.org/mss/pdf/mwanza.pdf
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As a result of the definition, researchers loosely used the term street child and
its connotations often informed the basis of their studies (Panter-‐Brick, 2002).
This explains why in the eighties research was largely focussed on the
characteristics of street children, their lifestyles, and their use of urban spaces
and institutions (Panter-‐Brick, 2002). Koler & Hutz (2001) argue that the
definition which researchers use will evidently affect the results of the study. As
studies often inform policies and interventions, the definition was also taken on
by organisations such as the U.N and UNICEF (UNICEF 2001). The term informed
the general outlook of street children as those detached from their homes and
families, and consequently interventions targeted at them were based on these
generalisations.
One of the main issues with the term is the negative subtexts that are attached to
it. Aptekar (1988) argues how overtones of the term have informed the way the
public think about street children. Public sentiments surrounding the term, such
as ‘pitiful’ or ‘innocent victims’ are contradicted with that of ‘distrustfulness’ and
‘deviant youths’ (Aptekar 1988, Evans 2006). The term also implies that the
street is a place for illegal and criminal activity and thus ‘contributes to an
exclusively negative sense of identity for the child without a family, home, or
school to attend’ (Wiencke, 2009, p3). Remarkably, the term was embraced by
organisations as a way of getting away from the harmful perceptions which
previously were invoked on them, such as vagrants and Arabs (Williams 1993,
Panter-‐ Brick, 2002). Whilst the intention of the term was to provide better
outcomes for children; researchers and organisations failed to consider how
children of the street defined themselves.
Today, the discourse surrounding street children has shifted to looking at
reasons such as why children migrate to the streets, the interventions targeted
towards them, and their resilience towards adversity. As the discourse evolved
so has the definition of the term street child. The term itself has been contested
by researchers (Young & Barrett 2001, Smeaton 2012, Panter-‐Brick 2002), who
claim the term is generic as it views all children on the street as homogeneous.
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Several studies have highlighted the heterogeneity of street children and
organisations, such as Save the Children, have altered their definitions in light of
these critiques (Panter-‐Brick 2002).
The terms ‘children on the street’ and ‘children of the street’ were coined, by
UNICEF, in order to differentiate between children who actually live on the
street to those who work on the streets (Agnelli, as cited in UNICEF 2001, 34).
The terms have become the working terms for researchers and organisations
alike so that they are able to differentiate between different street children. The
term ‘children of the streets’ is categorised as those who sleep on the street,
have severed family ties and do not attend school. On the other hand, ‘children
on the street’ are those who have a presence on the street but they will go home
at the end of the day (UNICEF 2001, Koler & Hutz 2001).
Despite the expansion of the term there is still debate about whether the new
UNICEF coined terms are sufficient enough to represent the diverse experiences
that street children have. Koler & Hutz (2001) have noted that the main feature
between the two concepts of ‘on the street’ and ‘of the street’ are the ties that the
children have with their families and the spaces they occupy. The terms fail to
highlight grey areas such as whether the family might have abandoned a child or
whether a child has abandoned their family (UNICEF 2001). Issues such as these
cannot be encapsulated in one term, although, researchers are trying to find an
appropriate definition (Sjøbø 2013). When defining street children it should be
noted that those definitions appropriated are not homogenous and do not apply
to all street children. Furthermore, the definition of street children should be in
consultation with children themselves. Research has shown that children
themselves disapprove of the general categorisations that the international
terminology has projected on them and they often adopt these terms so that
they can access services (Onta-‐Bhatta 1996). These services are mainly provided
by NGO’s and more often than not children access several different services at a
time (Aptekar & Stoecklin 2014).
To further understand the definition of the street child it is also important to
understand how one defines the age of a child. Age is of importance as it can
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determine which services and interventions are available to street involved
individuals. Generally, most countries and organisations follow the UN
definition, which According to Article 1 of the UN Convention on the Rights of
the Child states “a child means every human being below the age of eighteen
years” (UNCRC 1989). This definition is troublesome due to the limitations it
places on those street individuals who have transitioned into adulthood but may
still be living on the streets. This may leave governments unaccountable for
youths/adults who remain homeless on the street, as more often than not, there
is more pressure to provide services for children as evident in the MDG goals.
Furthermore, service providers, such as NGO’s, primarily target younger street
individuals rather than elders. Whilst this maybe an effective early intervention
for younger street children, it is also imperative that NGO’s target older
individuals to prevent the cycle continuing.
In addition, the age of a child itself is a social construct, which ‘cannot be
separated from other societal aspects such as ethnicity, rank, and gender’ and in
line with those constructs, social norms are attached with each of them
(Wiencke 2009, P1). Social norms attached to being a child affect street children
as they are often measured against these childhood norms and this can
determine whether it is socially acceptable to be on the street. It is often more
socially acceptable for older individuals to be on the street compared to
children. This idea stems from the social construct of a child age, which we as a
society, have determined to be appropriate.
In considering the above I have chosen to adopt the term ‘Street Child’ within
this study as an overarching term to describe participants. I believe that this is
the most universal term used and therefore I am able to add new evidence to
highlight street children’s various experiences.
Gendered Definitions Definitions of the street child are not only determined in accordance with
relations that a child has with its family or the place they occupy, but they are
also determined by gender. A study by Evans (2006) discovered that Tanzanian
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street girls were referred differently to boys. A focus group revealed that girls
were often referred to as ‘malaya and machangudoa’ meaning slang for
prostitute, ‘Vikaba’ meaning pickpocket and ‘kapurwa’ meaning street kid. On
the other hand, boys revealed they were referred to with less stigmatising terms
such as ‘kapurwa’, ‘watoto wa mitaani’ both meaning street children and ‘nyoka’
meaning snake. Another study by Beazley (2002) carried out in Yogyakarta,
Indonesia, highlighted how street boys asserted their dominance over street
girls by referring to them ‘Rendan’ which means ‘vagrants wearing make up’
(Beazley 2002,p1668). Street girls themselves find the term offensive and as
Beazley (2002) points out the term is a way for street boys to suppress street
girls to the bottom of the street sub-‐culture.
These gendered definitions of street children highlight the hegemonic norms
that society assigns street children based on their gender. They demonstrate the
increased marginalisation of street girls compared to boys and also the
acceptance of the presence of street boys but not street girls. To further analyse
the extent to which gender inequality plays a part in the street an analysis of
gender differences will be reviewed.
Gendered Disparities
Given the large number of street children in Tanzania poverty alone cannot be
the sole reason why youngsters leave home for the streets. There is increasing
concern that other dynamics are at play, including gender. Although, gender is
not given as much attention in street children literature as other factors, such as
class, race or poverty; discourse is shifting to highlight how gender plays an
integral part in the lives of street children (Hansson 2003). The street child
phenomenon echoes a lack of gender awareness as programmes and
interventions, especially in urban areas, are mainly targeted towards boys
(Ouma 2004). This is often due to street headcounts following strict
methodologies, which often mean a child is counted if they’re visible on the
street. Critics have questioned headcount methodologies as they often exclude
females who are often less visible than street boys (Hansson 2003). Numerous
studies (Hansson 2003, Henley et al 2010, Panter-‐Brick 2002, Abdelgalil et al
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2004) have shown that there are more boys on the street compared with girls.
Whilst this may be true, it is imperative that NGO’s also consider girls who are
street involved but may not be as visible.
The gender distribution of street children can be traced to gender roles that are
assigned in communities. In most cultures, including Tanzania, typical gender
roles are engrained within society and expectation of boys to go out and work
has resulted in most street children being males. On the other hand, females
have expectations of staying at home and taking on pastoral duties, which
results in more supervision and restrictions placed on girls (Lugalla &
Mbwambo 1999). Despite these restrictions girls are continuing to migrate
migrate to the streets defying cultural norms. These girls are often outcasts from
society and they are often stigmatised both on the street and in communities. As
a result of this stigmatisation they are often less visible on the street compared
to boys as they occupy dwellings such as guesthouses or private rooms (Evans
2006).
The perpetual stigmatisation of street girls can be traced to how society in
general appoints specific gender roles to both males and females. These cultural
norms of gender are reflected in Abdelgalil et al (2004,p 819) study in Brazil,
where parents of street children stated that ‘girls should be brought up at home
while boys could go free, and were strong and could do anything’. The study
also highlighted that parents encouraged boys from a young age to adapt to
street life so that they were familiarised with the environment and thus able to
supplement their family’s income (Abdelgalil et al 2004). These cultural gender
norms have significant impact on children as it is expected that girls should cope
with poverty by staying home; whilst boys are given opportunities to become
more independent and able to fend for themselves (Abdelgalil et al 2004). These
constructions are harmful to both boys and girls and help explain the high
prevalence of boys on the street.
Construction of gender roles are not only re-‐enforced in homes and communities
but they transcend to the streets where girls often occupy lower positions
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compared to street boys. Street girls often experience harsher conditions
because in most societies the street environment is not considered an
appropriate place for females (Skelton 2000). Street girls are also shut out of
activities that males take part in and therefore forced to engage in work such as
bar work, domestic work, hotel work, and prostitution (Lugalla, & Mbwambo,
1999, Abdelgalil et al 2004, Raffaelli et al 2000, Brink 2001). This subjugation of
street girls affects their daily lives, as Rosemberg (1996) points out, they are less
likely to work and play and are more likely to beg compared to street boys. This
social hierarchy of the streets is not welcoming for girls and they often find
themselves at the bottom of the pack. This is supported by Evans (2006) study
which revealed that older street boys beat younger street boys, whilst street
girls reported being beaten by street boys, young and old. The study reiterated
the marginal position that girls find themselves in due to the lack of income
generating opportunities and increased discrimination.
The dominance that street boys have over girls is also highlighted in other
studies (Boakye-‐Boaten 2011, Beazley 2002, Brink 2001) revealing the lower
social status of girls and the abuse factors, which they are subjected to. A study
by Beazley (2002) examined how street girls in Indonesia experienced multiple
stigmatisations as they were rejected by society in general but also within the
street sub-‐culture. Beazley (2002) highlights how street boys, who are
ostracised and suppressed from society themselves, exert power and superiority
over street girls. One boy revealed how it was not ‘honourable’ for girls to be on
the street with another stating, ‘I would kill my father for allowing it to happen,
as she should not be allowed to be on the street’ (Beazley 2002, p1670). Both
Beazley’s (2002) and Evans (2006) studies highlight the increased
marginalization of girls on the street and how gendered power relations
transcend from the home to the street.
These examples provide evidence that recent policies, which advocate for
gender equality, are of high importance. As girls continue to be marginalized in
countries around the world there is a greater need for governments and
international organizations to pursue policies, which advocate for the rights of
15
girls. One of the ways in realizing these rights is through education. Education is
not only one of the ways in tackling gender injustices but it is also used as one of
the primary interventions for children of the street.
Education: A Way Out For Street Children?
Education in Tanzania Tanzania’s education system has made significant gains in the last 10 years
thanks to the Primary Education Development Plan (PEDP) and Secondary
Education Development Plan (SEDP). In the late seventies Tanzania was on track
to achieve Universal Primary Education (UPE) with almost 75% of 7-‐13 year
olds attending school, however, after severe economical constraints this number
dwindled (Woods 2009, Sabates et al 2012). A major step in achieving UPE was
taken in in 2001 when the country abolished school fees for all primary aged
children (GMR 2014). Whilst this may seem like a major achievement there were
still other costs, such as uniforms and textbooks, which made schooling
inaccessible for the poorest. These additional costs to schooling impacted the
poorest communities and as a result of already being economically deprived,
children from these families started to migrate to the streets (Woods 2009,
Henley et al 2010).
Several studies (Conticini & Hulme 2007, Young 2004, Boyden 2013) have shown
that one of the leading factors why children migrate to the streets is because of
poverty. In most cases children of the street come from the most vulnerable
families and Tanzania is no exception. Governments often value street children
as less of a priority compared with other children, as they are often assumed as
irritants with delinquent behaviour (Invernizzi 2001). This view is troublesome
as street children are often more vulnerable compared to other impoverished
children and have a reduced chance of gaining a formal education. In tackling
this problem a number of organisations have met the needs of street children by
providing formal and non-‐formal education opportunities.
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There is a general consensus among SCO’s that the best way out of poverty is
through provision of schooling. Most SCO’s (Railway Children, Mkombozie,
Undugu) often have education interventions supporting families who have
children at risk of migrating to the streets or by directly serving street children
through mobile schools or children centres. These interventions are geared
towards getting children out of vulnerable situations provide better outcomes.
The interventions are built on the premise that children will build social capital
and yield a rate of return. Organisations use UPE as a policy to justify the
interventions and more often than not interventions are aimed at access only
(Orodho 2014).
The delivery of UPE has been discussed widely especially surrounding rates of
return. A study by Dar (2000) showed that social rates of return in Tanzania
were much higher for primary students when compared to secondary. These
figures would align themselves well with the UPE policy and thus justification
for education interventions seems necessary. However, such explanations tend
to overlook the time the research was conducted. Wedgwood (2007) is critical of
the conclusions that Dar (2000) draws from his findings. She points out that
these findings were based on research conducted in the 1990’s and as primary
education was not universal at this time it is difficult to assume the benefits. This
is backed up in Appeltons (1996) study in Uganda which shows that with
increased access to primary education the rate of return decreases. Appeltons
study is of special concern as it highlights the link between agriculture and
education, which lends it self-‐well to the context of Tanzania where over 90% of
the population relies on agriculture business. Whilst Appeltons and Wedgwood
arguments are profound, there are numerous studies, which have shown the
private as well as social benefits of primary education (McMahon 2000,
Psacharopoulos 1985). While there is less investment of secondary education in
Tanzania, we cannot excuse the fact that there is still a long way to go before
Tanzania and other countries are able to provide quality UPE for all.
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SCO Education Analysis
SCO’s are one of the main providers of education for street children and their
programmes are essential in helping governments achieve UPE. A significant
amount of literature has been published regarding these programmes and
whether they are successful. A study by Ouma (2004) investigated whether non-‐
formal education programmes for street children in Kenya were successful. The
study found that despite accommodating 5,152 learners, the education
programme had little impact on the number of street children and
recommended that more collaborative efforts should be ensured with other
organisations. Interestingly, despite the little impact, children did register an
interest in receiving education with an overwhelming 85% wanting to take part
in school. Ouma’s (2004) study highlights the value that street children have for
education, despite the increased difficulties they face. This value for education
has also been reflected in other studies where it has been shown that being in
school increases hope and aspirations despite structural constraints. Postti-‐
Ahokas & Palojoki (2014) conducted a qualitative study with 100 girls enrolled
in lower secondary schools in Tanzania. The study focussed on the experiences
of girls within school and the value they place of post primary education. The
study revealed that despite knowledge of lack of opportunities upon completion
of school, the majority of girl’s still valued education as a key to a better future.
They cited wanting to help ones family and having social responsibility as
reasons why education is important.
Both Ouma’s (2004) and Postti-‐Ahokas & Palojoki (2014) studies highlight that
children from both the street and from communities place a value on education.
These values and aspirations act as a major factor in children staying in school
and research has shown that it can also act as a shelter to shield children from
the daily struggles of life (Nalkur 2009, Helgesson 2006). In considering these
factors it is assumed that education could also play a vital role in determining
whether a child returns home from the street. However, there is limited research
in this area as most research on street children literature focuses on the reasons
why children migrate to the streets.
18
There are many studies (Young & Barett, 2001, Abdelgalil et al 2004, Lusk,
1989), which look at the factors of migration to the streets; however, there is
limited literature that explores education and migration. A recent study in
Tanzania examined whether school attendance reduced the risk of migration
(Henley et al 2010). The study surveyed street children who were full-‐time, part-‐
time and also children who were not of the street. The findings revealed that
children are eight times less likely to become homeless if they attend school. It
also revealed that one of the main barriers to education is the additional cost of
buying uniforms and textbooks. The study is one of the first to address whether
education plays a role in children migrating to the streets and therefore well
placed to inform future policy for governments and organisations alike.
Nevertheless, It should be noted that the study is limited in several aspects. First,
the study fails to account for children’s experiences of school; Tanzanian schools
vary in quality and children have different experiences. Also, as the study
adopted a quantitative approach it failed to highlight the experiences children
had in schools and as a result it is difficult to determine whether attending
school does in fact play a role in children staying at home. Another limitation is
that the study suggests that there are fewer girls on the street, whilst this may
be true, the study fails to account for girls who may be vulnerable but are not
living on the street. As previously discussed, studies have shown that girls are
less visible on the street compared to boys due to a their increased
marginalisation. As this study only observed at children who were on the street
over a period of 48 hours it can be concluded that girls were under-‐represented.
All of the above studies highlight the importance and desire for street children to
take part in education, but they also reflect the lack of access to formal
education. These studies reveal the underlying problem that adopting policies at
macro level, such as EfA, will not change a country’s education system, unless
school infrastructure is expanded, school costs are eliminated and a change of
perception towards street children occurs. There is also a gap in street child
education research as most literature focuses on migration to the street and
19
there is no adequate data to determine the causes for a child to return to his
family.
Is Reunification the Best Solution?
One of the main interventions for street children is family reunification. Family
reunification first appeared in the late 1990’s after the advent of the UNCRC
(Feeny 2005). It was the primary intervention for street children and many
NGO’s decided to adopt this as a service. However, it was discovered that
children soon returned to the streets, often as early as a week (Feeny 2005).
This intervention is still popular today despite increasing research showing that
some children are better off on the streets (Aptekar 1989, Panter-‐Brick et al
1996, Richter and Van der Walt 2003).
The western construct of the family forms the basis of family reunification
where children are regarded as best suited with their parents. This intervention
doesn’t consider the local context and the different cultures, which are
assimilated around the world. Children in many countries take on roles, which
would be regarded, unsuitable by western standards. For example, It is often the
norm in certain cultures for girls to bear children before they reach adulthood or
for boys as young as seven, to earn a living. As NGO’s take on a western construct
of family, what they fail to see is that some street children have formed their
own families on the street.
Research shows that children build relationships on the street, which are
comparable to that of family life (Barker and Knaul, 2000). Some take on
parental roles guiding other young street children and making important
decisions for their group. A study by Hansson (2003) showed a group of street
children pooling together their money and deciding what to spend it on. The
process is a democratic one, but older members are given more of a say (Feeny
2005). This family model is often overlooked by NGO’s and governments and
may provide a reason as to why children who have been re-‐unified might take to
the streets again. On the street, a child is likely to have more control over their
20
own affairs and this may be an appealing factor as to why children may want to
stay on the streets.
In considering the above, in order for family reunification interventions to be
successful children must be taken through an intensive rehabilitation
programme, which includes both child and family (Feeny 2005, Kaewchinda
2008). A study by Kaewchinda 2008 revealed that intensive family work with
youth in America was successful in reintegrating youth with their families. It
particularly highlighted how family, individual, and group counselling
contributed significantly to a child returning home. The study also reinforced
that younger children are more likely to go home compared to older children.
Another aspect worth noting is that children who have had fewer counselling
sessions are also likely to return home. This is attributed to the fact that children
have less time to learn about street survival strategies and therefore more likely
to go home due to being homeless for a short period of time (Kaewchina 2008).
Whilst this study provides further insight into family reunification, the context is
based in a developed country where services are often more readily available. In
order to contextualise family reunification for this paper it is vital to understand
the context in a developing country.
Due to minimal literature on family reunification in developing countries it is
difficult ascertain whether the intervention is appropriate. The majority of
studies on street children focus on their characteristics rather than
interventions targeted at them, which makes it difficult to determine the best
solution for street involved children (Street Action 2010, Harris et al 2011). A
study carried out by Harris et al (2011) in Brazil and Peru is one of the few
studies, which examines family reunification in developing countries. The study
evaluated family reunification programmes, which were centred on a
rehabilitative approach in institutional settings. The programme consisted of
five stages (1) Orientation; (2) Pre-‐Community; (3) Community; (4) Family
Reinsertion; and (5) Follow up. The aim of the programmes was to enable street
children to become members of the local community and to help re-‐unify
children with their families. The re-‐unification process within these programmes
21
is structured so that intensive therapeutic family work can take place. The
results of the study proved that family reunification was a successful
intervention with around a 50 % success rate. One of the predicators of
successful reunification was education with the study revealing that
reunifications were more likely to be successful if an education component was
incorporated within the programme. Providing skills, such as reading and
writing, was found to be of importance as it equips children with the necessary
skills to integrate back in society.
Intensive family therapy is supported by researchers (Feeny 2005, Lugalla, J. L.,
& Mbwambo, J. K. 1999) who claim that the only way to successfully reunify a
child is by working closely with both the family and child. It has been reported
that this process of rehabilitation is particularly difficult for boys as ‘behaviours
that allowed them to survive on the street are no longer effective and could be
punished in the new setting in which rules and structure govern the child’s daily
life’ (Nalkur, 2009, p1014). This model also presents other challenges such as
working with abusive parents or parents not accepting their children. Despite
these challenges, therapeutic family work has been hailed as the only way of
achieving lasting success and some NGO’s have reported success rates of 80-‐
90% (Feeny 2005).
Finally, concerns are also presented with family reunification, especially in
urban areas, due to the changing nature of family structures. This change is due
to the increased industrialisation and globalisation of cities that are leaning
more towards the western construct of the nuclear family (Armstrong 2013). In
South Africa, Ziehl (2001) found that nuclear couples were more commonly
found in black urban communities compared with black rural communities. This
study reinforces Good’s (1982) theory, which suggests that with increased
industrialisation communities start moving towards the nuclear family patterns.
Whilst little research has been conducted in Tanzania, this could be
22
Problematic for NGO’s who are reunifying children. Children may regard the
nuclear families as the correct family structure and may start to identify with
this new western-‐centric structure.
Summary
The literature review raised four important issues with regards to the themes
mentioned in the chapter. First, the way researchers construct the identities of
street children cannot be limited to the terms ‘children of the street’ and
‘children on the street’, as they fail to encapsulate the diverse histories of
children. Instead, this research will aim to provide opportunities for children to
explain their own trajectories and to demonstrate any grey areas. The second
issue raised was to understand the extent to which experiences of both boys and
girls on the street are determined by social norms. I will aim to add new
evidence of whether experiences of street girls discussed by Beazley (2002) and
Evans (2006) exist in the Mwanza context. The third point is that schools play an
important part in shaping positive views of education. This study will determine
whether street children’s previous experiences influenced a positive or negative
view of education. Lastly, family reunification was observed to be a successful
intervention in returning street children home. I will endeavour to discover the
problems that SCO’s might have in returning a child home by looking at their
past experiences.
Additionally, from the literature it is evident that gender, education, and family
structures were researched within their own academic fields. Whilst some of the
studies touched upon other themes, a universal view of the different injustices
was not captured. This raised the question of whether the inequalities
experienced by children were viewed singularly rather than holistically. As a
result, I adopted the theoretical framework of intersectionality to understand
how injustices operated together to affect a child. As the use of intersectionality
within street children literature is almost non-‐existent this made it more
important to carry out this study.
23
Chapter Three: Theoretical Framing This chapter explores the theoretical framework, which will be used to analyse
and discuss the findings. As previously mentioned, there is a lack of literature
using an intersectional approach to deconstruct street children’s experiences.
This study hopes to fill that gap by positioning children within the framework
and allowing them to construct their own realities.
The Beginning of Intersectionality
Intersectionality theory is a theoretical framework which analyses constructed
categories such as race, gender, class and sexuality by viewing their interaction
and placement within society. It suggests that discrimination has ‘varying
degrees of intensity’ and that these often interact with one another and assist in
forming ones identity (Morley 2010, p 537). The theory challenges socially
assigned categories by highlighting ‘the fact that a wide range of different
experiences, identities, and social locations fail to fit neatly into any single
master category’ (McCall 2005, p1777). Nevertheless, societies continue to use
these categories even though the realities of individuals and groups are vastly
different.
The intersectionality approach emerged from a critique of traditional feminist
theories, which viewed all women as equal. In the late 80’s African-‐American
women couldn’t identify with traditional theories and suggested that other
forces also contributed to shape women’s experiences (Naples 2008). Since then
intersectionality has been applied in various ways and has transcended from a
feminist theory to a ‘tool for analysing the ways in which gender, race, class and
all other forms of identity and distinction, in different contexts, produce
situations in which women and men become vulnerable to abuse and
discrimination’ (George 2007, p 1).
Positioning Intersections with Street Children
For this paper, the intersectionailty approach allows us to see the injustices,
which may occur to an individual or a subordinate group, such as street children.
24
Street girls, for example, fall into two disadvantaged categories both gender and
the street child phenomena. Both of these categories are disadvantaged in
various ways and they cannot be separated when trying to understand the lives
of these individuals. Exploring these multi-‐discriminations simultaneously
allows us to reflect on the reality of street children’s lives and to corroborate
that ‘there is no single identity category that satisfactorily describes how we
respond to our social environment or are responded to by others’ (Sheilds 2008,
p304).
Deconstructing normative socially assigned categories allows for the
examination of what creates individual identities. To do this it is important to
tap into identity processes and this can only be achieved through qualitative
methods, such as in depth interviews. It is common for some researchers
(Covarrubias 2011, Bowleg 2012) to employ quantitative methods to analyse
intersectionalities. However, this is contested by other researchers who state
that ‘it is not feasible to collect data on discrimination in relation to gender and
in relation to class and add them together to achieve a meaningful
understanding of the inequality experienced’ (Lumby 2011, p7). This is partly
due to the degree of inequality experienced and partly because of the lack of
complexity, which these categories ensue.
Furthermore, within intersectionality there are three different methods
employed by researchers. These methods articulate the approach taken towards
employing categories and how a researcher uses these categories to unpack
their research topic. The first approach called anticategorical complexity, is
based on viewing categories as harmful due to their failure of capturing the
complexity of realities in individual lives. It points out that by adopting
categories we are in essence creating difference and in turn producing and
perpetuating inequalities. The second approach Intercategorical complexity,
similar to the first, utilizes the use of categories in order to expose and explore
the flows underlying inequalities. This approach examines the interactions of
inequality amongst groups and how they are always changing. The final
approach intracategorical complexity accepts categorizations, however, tries to
25
explain the shortcoming of categories and how these may need to be expanded
in order to accommodate different realities. The approach also explores the
fluidity of movement from one category to another in order to look at the
complexity of interactions.
For this paper, I have chosen the intracateogrical complexity approach, as it is a
middle ground between the anticatogrical complexity and intercateogrical
complexity. Adopting this approach allows me to unravel universally accepted
categories and understand how these categories have an impact on a child’s
identity. The aim of my research is not to contest categories but instead
understand the intersections of street children and how this in turn forms their
identity. Furthermore, Intracateogrical complexity is fitting as street children are
often mobile, moving from one place to another, and this will evidently affect
their identity. This fluidity allows me to examine street children’s trajectories
and understand how their identity formation may change depending on the
people they interact with and the environment they occupy.
As children construct their identities in complex and varying ways; an
intersectionality lens helps identify how these identities are formed and the
influence they have on perspectives about education. This influence is
constructed, through their histories, family histories, their experiences, their
future imaginings and their relationship with a particular intervention.
Numerous studies highlight street children’s make up of identity, however, these
studies only offer a superficial glimpse on how this impacts their value of
education. This paper will aim to fill that gap through the interviewing of street
children in Mwanza, Tanzania.
26
Chapter Four: Methodology This chapter describes the methodology used and details the research approach
I have taken. It specifies the methods used to collect data, the sample size and
deal with any biases I may come with. The final sections discuss the analysis of
the data and also any ethical issues, which may arise. The methodology was
largely informed from the literature review as I discovered studies (Beazley
2002, Evans 2006) that adopted qualitative methods often provided more
information about their subjects, as opposed to quantitative methods.
Additionally, the use of participatory visual methods in Young & Barrett’s (2001)
study, which encouraged child participation, encouraged the adoption of the
River of Life.
Research Approach
Bryman (2012, p6) states that social research is often a ‘debated topic’ which
requires reflection on the way you’re going to approach the social world. As I am
concerned with understanding street children’s value of education and how this
is influenced by the identities they create, I adopted an interpretive perspective.
Adopting an interpretive position, allowed me to understand the individual
experience of each street child, whilst acknowledging that the reality of these
children cannot be separated from their experiences (Summer and Tribe 2008).
These experiences are different for all individuals, as Lee (1991,p347)
summarises, ‘human action can have different meanings for different human
subjects, as well as the observing social scientist.’
As a researcher, i acknowledge that I must not interpret the participant’s reality
on how I see it, but must ‘interpret this empirical reality in terms of what it
means to the observed people’ (Lee 1991, p347). One of the ways in achieving
this was by including children in the research process so that they are able to
define themselves ‘ rather than to be defined solely by adult interests, biases and
agendas’ (Grover 2004, p83). This is of utmost importance as the construction
and reconstruction of street children’s realities relies solely on how social
scientists represent their participant’s experiences. This process also helps in
27
understanding whether the categories, which are assigned to street children, are
indeed a reflection of themselves. If not, then this study will help in
understanding how street children see themselves and also how they see the
categories, which are appropriated on them.
Methods
In order to understand the realities of the participants I have chosen to adopt
qualitative methods. Qualitative methods has allowed children to be able to
define themselves and also represent their realities, which is something that
cannot be ‘derived from quantitative data’ (Grover 2004, p86). The different
data collection tools adopted in this study such as participatory research and
semi-‐structured interviews will complement and assist in collecting qualitative
data. These tools will also help in gaining a deeper understanding of my research
topic and give children a voice, which may not otherwise be heard. Additionaly,
as I am interested in understanding the different complexities of intersections
that children experience; only a qualitative approach will help me achieve this.
To gain an understanding of how different inequalities have affected a child’s
identity it is imperative that I adopt a biographical approach during interviews.
This longitudinal approach allows for a full history of how street children’s
identity and views of education may have changed overtime. As street children
often occupy various locations over their lives, this approach will allow children
to show which experiences had a profound impact on their lives and on their
identity. Adopting an autobiographical approach ‘reveals more about children’s
actual experiences of the street and the movements between homeless and non-‐
homeless places’ (Blerk 2005, p6).
Bias
Another component of the methodology to consider is how my position as a
researcher has affected the outcome of my results. As an Asian middle class
British national, I acknowledge that I come with certain views and opinions and
thus need to be mindful to avert any ethnocentric judgements. I also recognize
that when carrying out my research, participants may treat me differently due to
28
my foreign nature and also because I am associated with the organisation, which
is currently or has previously provided support to the participants. By
acknowledging my position as an outsider I can understand the limitations that
my study may have and can alleviate these through various strategies so that the
findings are more accurate and representative of the realities of my subjects.
One of the strategies used was through the adoption of qualitative methods, as
this allowed me to ‘involve sustained interaction with the people being studied
in their own language, and on their own turf’ (Kirk and Miller 1988 p12). Also,
having familiar Tanzanians present made the children more comfortable and
open in responding to questions.
Additional consideration was also accounted for on how my gender may have
affected how respondents answer my questions. Studies have shown that a
researchers gender can influence the responses that subjects may provide. This
was evident in Padfields (1996) study, which highlighted how women were
more inclined to provide further information about abortion to a female
researcher in comparison to the male researcher. Added to this, Lands et al
(1973) study highlighted that females are more likely to give a feminist response
to a female interviewer. As a result of these studies, I decided to acknowledge
that my gender may affect a female respondent more than a male respondent. In
order to ensure accuracy and openness of female respondents I have chosen a
female translator and a female social worker to be present when interviewing
the female respondents. This will hopefully minimize any gender influence my
gender may have on the respondents and provide a comfortable environment
for street girls.
Setting and Sampling
One of the most difficult aspects of this research study is determining who to
study and also how many participants to observe. For my case study, I interview
six street children, who were based in Mwanza, Tanzania, and are associated
with the charity Railway Children. Railway Children has been working in
Mwanza, Tanzania since 2008 and has been re-‐unifying children with their
families for a number of years. The charity is currently operating an integrated
29
response programme, funded by DFID, where Railway Children and local
partners work to reduce the number of street children. I will be undertaking
research with Railway Children as I am an employee of the organisation and this
research will help provide further insight into their intervention of education
support. I understand that working for an organisation and conducting research
may sometimes put me in a comparable position. As a researcher I intend to be
as subjective as possible and as an employee I will be transparent and disclose
all findings from the research to Railway Children.
When deciding the participants I used purposive sampling, as this allowed me to
pick children according to a number of criterions, which I set out below. I
adopted a sequential approach where I selected initial participants and then
added more participants depending on research questions which need
answering and how comfortable participants were in answering my questions.
The reason I adopted this approach is because street children can sometimes be
unpredictable and may not want to take part. This occurred during the initial
research process where two boys who were younger were emotionally
overwhelmed by the questions. Once I noticed this I stopped the interview
process and asked a member of staff to provide them with assistance.
During data collection I interviewed a total six street children (3 boys and 3
girls). The reason for studying six children is that I was able to gain a deeper
understanding of children’s complexities and understand the different
formations of their identity. Including more participants would limit my time
and would not allow me to delve into deeper topics. When selecting my
participants I ensured that all participants were currently street involved for
two months or over. I chose this time frame as identities are constructed over
time, and for street life to have had a clear impact on ones identity, a sufficient
amount of time should’ve past. Additionally, I limited the age of children and
only interviewed children aged 11-‐18. This ensured that I kept keeping to
international adopted guidelines of a child’s age, as well as taking into account
that younger children are not as capable of recalling autobiographical
information. This was demonstrated when I initially interviewed younger
30
candidates who could not delve into deeper responses or who felt
uncomfortable with the questions. Lastly, I also selected, participants who had
experience with formal education. This assisted in tracing how their views and
experiences of the education system has changed over time.
Data Collection
As the position of this study is interpretive the findings construct a social reality,
which is representative of a small sample. Due to this, I understand that the
findings will not be generalizable but they will have validity in the context,
which I am studying. Gibbert et al (2008, p1466) states that ‘construct validity
refers to the extent to which a study investigates what it claims to investigate,
that is, to the extent to which a procedure leads to an accurate observation of
reality.’ For this study to be valid it is imperative to adopt different methods so
that readers are able to establish a sequence of how the ‘researcher went from
the initial research question to the final conclusions’ (Gibbert er al, 2008, 1468).
More often than not researchers employ one research technique, which they feel
comfortable with (Berg 2001). This limits the study as specific methods only
highlight one perspective of reality. By incorporating different methods to
realities a researcher is able to cross check findings giving a greater picture of
reality. In this study I adopted two research instruments-‐ participatory research
and in-‐depth semi-‐structured interviews. Adopting these methods helped me
look at themes from different angles and provided further knowledge in the
findings. By having different methods to use, some of them playful, and some of
them participatory I am able to tap into some those sensitive areas and deepen
the information that I receive.
The data collection was conducted over a two-‐month period and some
difficulties arose in finding participants. All children were contacted through
local outreach workers from Railway Children. It was easier to gain access to
male candidates as Railway Children ran a non-‐formal education class, which
mainly street boys attended. The girls, on the other hand, proved more difficult
as the only girls that Railway Children works with were either too young or too
31
old. This was resolved by one of the outreach workers, previously a street child
himself, knowing street girls in Mwanza.
Making arrangements with these girls proved difficult as they had no mobile
phones and were often working. Several interviews were scheduled with the
girls, but at times the girls did not turn up due to their unpredictability and them
finding odd jobs. This meant that data collection for the girls did not happen all
at once like the boys but in fact was staggered over two months.
Participatory Research
Participatory research is the ideal tool to see how children describe and explore
their own experiences. Children themselves are in the best position to provide
insight into their lives and by involving them within the research process the
data has more validity. Another advantage of using participatory research is that
a researcher is able to observe the participant. Participant observation can
enhance the quality and interpretation of data, as sometimes it is difficult for
participants to express what they mean with words or drawings (Dewalt and
Dewalt 2010). In this study participatory research was used to help analyse
children’s experiences of education and demonstrate how various
intersectionalities might have contributed to how their views on education are
shaped.
The participatory tool adopted has been adapted from the International Institute
for Environment and Development (Moussa 2009). The tool named ‘River of
Life’ involves children drawing a river on a paper, which represents their life up
until that point. The children then drew images or symbols, which represented
the positive and difficult stages of their life. The process encouraged children to
reflect on their experiences of school, families and friends. This tool was
administered prior to the semi-‐structured interviews and revealed substantial
information, which was then used to delve into further during the interviews.
32
In-‐Depth Semi-‐Structured Interviews Following from the participatory research, I conducted in-‐depth semi-‐structured
interviews. The interviews were based upon the previous instruments findings
and helped guide the interview process. This method also assisted in seeing how
children constructed their own realities and in understanding the meanings
behind the river of life.
As there were language barriers in place I worked with both a male and a female
translator to act as an interpreter. Initially, I was to only work with a female
translator but the boys who I interviewed didn’t respond as well with her and
therefore I made the decision to have a male translator, which elicited more
responses. As two translators were involved it was essential that the training on
the interview guide was conducted to ensure that both researchers where
asking the questions the way I intended. I created an interview guide (appendix
4) that consisted of various questions. I asked the interviewers to translate the
question into Swahili and then back to English so that I could determine the
accuracy of the questions asked. The questions asked ranged from issues such as
importance of education, determining factors of migrating to the streets,
whether they adhere to social norms, typical gender roles and any topics, which
may have, arose from the previous data collected.
Data Analysis
One of the main issues with qualitative methods is that it raises a lot of
information, which proved difficult when analysing data. As I have adopted two
instruments I cross-‐examined data to highlight which themes are reoccurring.
In order to refine the findings and make it clear for readers, I integrated the
participatory research and the semi-‐structured interviews to establish themes
and categories that arose. For the semi-‐structured interviews I used a software
called NVIVO to code my data which made it easier when analysing the results.
Once themes arose, I organised them into categories in NVIVO and decided what
is important with regards to my research question. It is common to set the
33
themes before the research is conducted however, for this paper I adopted a
bottom up approach so that the themes arrived from the data. By adopting a
bottom up approach I minimised any ethnocentric views I may have brought to
the research. The main categories which emerged from my data included
gendered occupations, violence and abuse, inspiring and negative teachers and
causes of migration.
Ethics
For this study I adhered to the British Education Research Association
guidelines (BERA 2011) as well as Railway Children’s own guideline for ethical
consideration. As my research involved children I made sure I had informed
consent from children. Due to the impossibility of obtaining consent from the
parents, it was imperative to explain the reason of conducting the research to
children and also what it will be used for. The participants were informed of
their role in the research project and what was required of them, this allowed
for a fully informed decision and was demonstrated by some of the participants
not agreeing to take part.
As my participant’s ages will range from 11-‐18, I considered that some children
might likely need more knowledge and explanation about the research.
Consequently, I explained all the information through a local translator and
answered the questions, which arose about the research. I also explained how
the data will be used for the research project and how other individuals may see
this data. Explaining this gave me a chance to gain knowledge of any risks that I
might not have considered.
Risks posed to children participating in research need to be considered both in
the present and in the future. To alleviate risk of physical and psychological
harm I provided a safe environment where the interview was conducted, and
only the translator, the social worker and myself were present. Both the
translator and social worker signed a form stating that any information will not
be passed on to any third parties and this was communicated to each child. Also,
I informed children that all participants were to be anonymous and be provided
34
with pseudonyms in the research. To further limit disclosure of information, I
kept all records and documents in a secure locked draw, which only I had access
to. Electronic data was saved to a password-‐protected computer, which only I
could access. I communicated this to participants to reassure that their identity
will not be revealed.
To prevent any psychological harm I asked both the translator and the social
worker to look over the questions and let me know of they’re too intrusive or
inappropriate. Added to this, I also explained to each participant that at the start
of the interview they could withdraw from the process at any stage. As children
are less likely to withdraw I asked them to lift their right hand if they don’t want
to answer the question, and both their hands if they want to end the interview.
Added to this, I explained that there will be no adverse consequences for
withdrawing from the research. Adopting this process allowed the respondent
to not say anything and provided them with more agency without them feeling
uncomfortable. This approach proved successful as some of the respondents
raised their hands when they didn’t want to answer a question which
demonstrated that they were comfortable with saying no.
When carrying out data collection it was also important to consider the language
used for questions. Children may not understand certain questions and might
feel ashamed or embarrassed for not knowing the answer. This will either lead
to the child providing incorrect information or leaving the interview. To address
this I was alert about the child’s non-‐verbal language and tried to make the child
feel comfortable when a change in behaviour occurred. I also asked the social
worker and translator to notify me of any change, as they have more experience
of the local context and are better suited to pick up on culturally sensitive topics.
As I adopted a biographical approach, sensitive information arose which might
have distressed the children and bring up unwanted memories. If a child did
become distressed during the interview I stopped it immediately and asked the
social worker to assist the child. As the social worker had experience with these
children I asked whether to continue the interview or abandon it. This occurred
35
with the two younger male children initially and as a result I abandoned the
interviews and changed the age limit. The social worker continued supporting
the children as part of her caseload.
36
Chapter Five: Data Analysis This chapter discusses the key findings from the participatory river of life
exercise and the semi-‐structured interviews. By considering how street children
present themselves, this analysis explores how children’s identities are
constructed through their interactions with families, streets, schooling and
education. The discourses presented here highlight how different
intersectionalities interact with one another to shape a child’s view of education.
This analysis first provides background information on the current state of each
child. I then trace children’s trajectories from the school to the streets and their
experiences with their families. Finally their current street life will be analysed
and their hopes for the future.
Background of Children
A total of six children took part in this study with the youngest being thirteen
and the oldest fifteen. Arnold (13), Jennifer (13), John (13), Saidi (14), Jane (14)
and Sue (15) were all either living on the streets or had previously lived on the
streets at the time the study took place. Sue, the oldest participant to be
interviewed, had spent the longest time on the street at just over three years,
whilst the least time spent on the streets was John, who had only been on the
street for two to three months.
Two of the boys, Arnold and Saidi were both sleeping in Kirumba Market, a place
where street boys usually congregate to either collect bottles or carry out menial
work. The last boy John was living at home with his grandmother and would
come to the streets during the day to make an income and engage in other
activities.
The girls, Jennifer and Sue were sleeping in a rented room in Capri Point, an area
that is synonymous for its wealthy residents, which makes this area lucrative for
girls looking for work. Finally, Jane was sleeping on the streets in the centre of
town near the traffic lights. There are only one set of traffic lights in Mwanza and
street children tend to congregate around them as they are able to ask cars for
37
money when they stop. Jane’s situation is uncommon as girls often sleep in
rooms or in hidden areas whereas the traffic lights are known to be a place
where street boys reside. These varied sleeping locations allowed for a more in-‐
depth analysis of the different experiences that street children go through.
A brief history and status of each child is provided in appendix 1 for further
reference.
From School to the streets
In this section I will trace the trajectories in the children’s lives in the move from
being in school to dropping out. I will demonstrate how children’s past
experiences both in school and within their home eventually led to the their
status as a street child. By examining children’s trajectories of their past I will
be able to understand how children construct the identities of the individuals
they love or loathe. This will help demonstrate what the children regarded as
important in their lives as well as the obstacles they faced. Additionally, it is here
where I can begin to understand the intersecting inequalities, which children
face and how these inequalities ultimately led to the children being on the
streets today.
Children’s history of schooling
To understand a child’s history I first examined a child’s attendance record to
discover when they dropped out of school and their achievement level. By
examining a child’s attendance record I can observe the amount of experience
they have had with education and how this in turn may influence their views.
Whilst attendance alone does not contribute to a child valuing formal education,
it does show whether children selected to stay in school on their own accord or
whether their agency was taken away and they were not allowed to attend. It is
here that we are able to begin to examine whether a child’s identity is affiliated
with school or with other actors.
To analyse the participant’s attendance record I first explored a child’s history of
education by examining the time spent at school as well as their completion
38
rates. All six children had previously attended school and the table below shows
the participants schooling history.
The information above was gathered through both the River of Life exercise and
semi-‐structured interviews. Through these methods I found that most children
were able to recollect their attendance at school with participants stating:
‘I started school in 2007 and I was at school for 7 years. From kindergarten to standard 6’ (Jane)
‘I started school in 2011 and dropped out of school in January 2015’ (Saidi)
These statements highlight the specific times children were at school and their
ability to remember exact dates. What is apparent is that the some children had
attended school recently and therefore were able to recall exact dates. The same
cannot be said for Arnold and Jennifer, who could not recall the amount of time
spent in school. For Jennifer this is mainly due to being out of school for an
extended period of time, whereas Arnold had spent most of his time in and out
of school, which may have affected his ability to remember exact dates.
‘ I have already forgotten, I went to school at all times, I think it was like six years’ (Arnold)
Child Time Spent at School Completion
Arnold On and off for six years Standard Five
Jane Seven Years Standard Six
Jennifer Primary Dropout None
John Four Years None
Saidi Four Years Standard Four
Sue Six Years Standard Five
39
‘I do not even remember how long but what I cared for was just attending school’ (Jennifer)
These statements show a stark contrast in the way both Arnold and Jennifer
position their identities with regards to schooling. Jenifer is portraying herself as
wanting to have attended school, and by using the word ‘cared’ we can
understand her desire to attend school as well as her disappointment of not
being able to attend. On the other hand, Arnold is positioned by distancing
himself from school by forgetting the dates and then guessing the amount of
time spent in school. It is clear that Arnold’s identity is not aligned with the
school and that Arnold has gone through a socialization process in which he
identifies more with his street life. This will be explored further in the next
section where we are able to examine their reasons for dropping out of school
and their eventual migration to the streets.
Migrating Patterns
There were clear gendered differences in the reasons why participants dropped
out of school. This section will explore the fluid trajectories of the how children
dropped out of school and how this eventually contributed them to migrate to
the streets. This analysis will be split to focus on each genders experience as it
was found that there were differences for each gender.
Girls Female respondents reported gendered expectations as their main reason for
dropping out of school. The following statements highlight how all of the girls
were denied an education by their family due to gendered expectations placed
on them.
‘There were times I missed school because I was told by my stepmother to stay home with the children. Life was tough as I dropped out of school. It got to a time when I was not allowed to go to school. I stayed home for a whole month whilst everyone at school did their exams. That is the reason why I dropped school’
(Jane)
40
‘There are times I missed going to school. I was living with my stepmother’s sister and so she was mistreating me a lot. I had to
cook and clean so I didn’t have a chance to attend school’ (Jennifer)
‘When I was at school I couldn’t concentrate as my thoughts were only being mistreated after I arrive home from school. I
dropped out because I had to babysit my aunt's child. I wanted to go to school badly but when I told her my thoughts she said she would beat me to death if she ever heard that again because she didn’t want her child to be left at home alone so she had to force
me to stay home babysitting the child of hers’ (Sue)
These narratives show how girls were stripped of their agency and their right to
attend school. All three girls showed their desire of wanting to attend school by
using the words ‘missed’, ‘chance’ and ‘wanted’. However, it was clear that the
girls had to adhere to cultural norms where they were expected to conduct
household chores and provide maternal care. Similar gendered roles have also
been explored in Brazil where girls have stated ‘girls are busy working at home,
they do not have time to think about other things, but boys feel that the house is
like a jail so they go to the street to play with their friends’ (Abdelgalil et al 2004,
P817). These experiences show how girls carry out certain roles in order to
create a stabilised identity, which is often regulated by hegemonic norms (Evans
2006). If girls do not carry out their respective roles then they are likely to be
punished, which is the case for Sue and Jennifer as they describe their
oppressors as ‘mistreating me a lot’ and ‘my thoughts were only being
mistreated after I arrive home’. By carrying out their ascribed roles girls pay the
price of not being able to obtain an education and if they reject them then they
are most likely be punished.
The main obstacles for girls attending school were their families with a
particular emphasis paid to female family members prohibiting them from
attending school. In both Jenifer and Jane’s situations it was the stepmother who
had prohibited them from attending school, while in Sue’s case it was her aunt.
The girl’s specific use of words to describe their mistreatment and loss of agency
41
help demonstrate how they construct the identities of their oppressors. Words
such as ‘force’ ‘had to’ and ‘not allowed’ reveal how the girls have positioned
themselves as helpless victims of the power structures at play. These words
represent the girls distancing themselves from the identities of their families
and representing themselves as ‘badly’ wanting an education, while they present
the actions of their families in a negative light. This highlights how the girl’s
identities are not aligned with the typical roles, which have been forced upon
them and may explain why the girls migrated to the streets.
The power struggle within the families could be attributed to the fact that none
of the girls are living with their biological mothers and therefore may not be
treated the same as other children in their families. This oppression of children
by their stepparents has been discussed by Lugalla & Mbwambo (1999) whose
study on Tanzanian street children revealed that cruelty from stepparents was
one of the reasons children migrated to the streets. The girl’s struggle at home
suggests there is a wider problem with gender norms in Tanzanian society
where girl’s roles can be substituted with a mother’s role at any time. While this
is a huge cost to a girl’s education, families see it as the correct decision as girls
will often marry out of their family and therefore the family will not see any
returns to a girl’s education (Al-‐Samarrai & Peasgood 1998).
Additionally, age can also be a barrier for a girl attending school as the eldest
girls in the family, such as Sue and Jane, have increased responsibility of having
to look after their younger siblings. The combination of being a stepchild, a girl,
and being the eldest all intersect with one another to produce multiple verities
of inequality. These multiple inequalities reveal how ‘markers of identity do not
act independently of each other’ but in fact work together to homogenize
individuals (Morley 2010,p537). These intersecting inequalities clearly have an
impact on the girl’s education and it is apparent that the girls also understand
this. For example, In Jane’s case, she understands the impact of not being able to
take her exams and her disappointment of this is exemplified in the subtle tone
of her voice as she states ‘that is the reason why I dropped out of school.’ (Jane).
42
Whilst all three girls expressed their interest in wanting to attend school,
Jennifer, in particular, was less expressive of her experiences of school, which
could be explained by her early dropout. In comparison, both Jane and Sue were
able to describe further incidences of their schooling experience such as being
hungry at school and missing exams. Jennifer’s limited experience of the school
environment is demonstrated in her testimony, as she was unable to delve into
deeper issues concerning education.
Boys There is a clear dichotomy between the female and male respondents on how
they left school. As previously mentioned, all three girls were forced to leave
school while the three boys, as will be explained in this section, had more of an
active choice in their decision to leave. The following statements highlight how
each of the boy’s responded when asked why they left school.
I left because the teachers were so rude. Sometimes if you are late you get beaten. If you are late for number registration at school then you are in trouble. They ordered us to bring water but there was lack of water at home. I dodged the classes. Most of the time I would go to school without required textbooks or no school fees. You get caned and sometimes you’re chased off school to get your
parent. So that’s why I left’ (John)
‘I refused school. I was in standard 4 and I felt that the teachers didn't like me. I asked my mum to transfer me from that school but she didn't take any action so I decided to leave the school. I missed school for 3 days. The reason for missing was the sickness of my young sister. My mum asked me to stay with her. On the third day I returned to school but I totally forgot that the school fees was needed as I hadn't paid yet and I totally forgot to tell my mum about it. I got caned and told to remind my mum tomorrow.
Since that day I haven't returned to school again’ (Saidi)
‘Here is where I dropped out of school by sneaking out, I went to the lake to swim, go wander on the streets and when it reached afternoon I would return home. I had friends and we sneaked out together. I could not go back to school because I could earn
money on the streets’ (Arnold)
43
The statements above demonstrate the boy’s decision to leave the difficult
situations they faced at home and in school. The main reasons for the boys
leaving school were due to the school environment, poverty and the attraction of
earning money on the streets. In both John’s and Saidi’s testimonies it is clear
that school and poverty played an important role in them dropping out. They
mention several issues such as untrusting teachers, school materials, school fees
and corporal punishment as why they decided to leave school. This combination
of factors suggests that the school environment has left a negative image in the
minds of both Saidi and John and they use words such as ‘ordered’, ‘trouble’, and
‘caned’ to emphasise their distaste of the school environment.
The school is not the only factor that has affected John and Saidi to leave;
poverty has also played a role for all three respondents. Both John and Saidi
reported school fees and lack of school materials as being some of the reasons
why they experienced hardship in school. This suggests that both John and Saidi
came from vulnerable families where they were unable to provide for
themselves. John particularly highlights poverty at home by stating ‘they
ordered us to bring water but there was lack of water at home’. The way John
emphasises this statement shows how he is positioning the school as not
understanding his vulnerable position and that there is a need for schools to
take this on board when requesting for certain materials. While both John and
Saidi had similar experiences of leaving school, Arnold, on the other hand
reported different experiences.
Arnold’s testimony was unique as he was influenced to leave school because of
his friends and the prospect for earning money. Arnold demonstrates his
socialization to the street and pays particular emphasis on the activities he
engages in whilst on the streets. He describes his enjoyment of ‘swimming in the
lake’ and ‘wandering the streets’ as his preferred pastime. This socialisation to
the streets has meant that Arnold has moved away from the norms and rules of
what is expected of him in society, both by his family and his school, and has
learnt new attitudes, norms and values in which he feels more represented. This
socialization process has been discussed by Charon (1986) who has noted that
44
individuals who make social interactions in social groups are prone to having
expectations placed upon them. In Arnold’s case we can see that he was juggling
multiple social interactions with his friends, family and teachers, which meant
he was also juggling multiple views and values. These multiple interactions must
have placed a great deal of expectation on Arnold and may have influenced his
decision to migrate to the street where his friends set more enjoyable
expectations.
Another factor, which may have influenced the boys to leave school is the fact
that none of the boys were living with their biological fathers. Both Arnold and
Saidi were living with their stepfathers whereas John was an orphan living with
his grandma. The loss of a father figure has been discussed by Aptekar and
Stoecklin 2014, who claim that boys struggle with coming to terms with their
position in the household when their father is gone and this conflicts with their
already established identity. This can be seen in John’s case where his
grandmother is trying to look after him, but as the only male, he feels compelled
to become the main breadwinner in the household. John is aware that he is the
only male in the household and feels the need to fulfil this role. John can be seen
struggling with his identity of being a child and the identity of providing for his
grandmother. The pressure placed on John means that while he may have
wanted to remain in education he felt that he was more compelled to migrate to
the streets and earn money instead. This is also re-‐affirmed by the fact that John
was not sleeping on the streets but was returning to his grandmothers in the
evenings, which suggest that he wanted to ensure the wellbeing of his
grandmother.
For Arnold and Saidi their situation is more complex as they have stepfathers at
home. Stepfathers can often make male children feel uncomfortable due to the
patriarchal nature of Tanzania’s society. Relations at home may be strained, as
the boys might be uncomfortable of having a non-‐related males having authority
over them. This was evident in Saidi’s case where he stated ‘I would have
continued school but the problem is my step father’. Saidi here demonstrates
that the relationship with his stepfather is constrained and that the only way he
45
could continue school is if his stepfather was not present. Interestingly, Saidi
also revealed that his elder brother refused to live at home due to problems with
his stepfather. Saidi’s testimony highlights how his identity is created through
the relationships he makes and the people he interacts with. Saidi refuses to
have a non-‐related male have control over him, which suggests that he is
uncomfortable with the patriarchal nature of Tanzanian society.
Additionally, Saidi also explained about being abused by his stepfather ‘I didn't
want to stay at home and be beaten. I remember being beaten once where it got
to the point my stepdad cut my leg with a machete’. Saidi’s testimony
demonstrates similarities to the girl’s testimonies and highlights the prevalence
of abuse from stepparents. This non-‐acceptance of step parents has also been
discussed by Wiencke (2009) whose research in Mwanza Tanzania
demonstrated similar experiences with on child stating ‘so when my stepfather
was drinking, when he came back he used to abuse me that I am not his child
and he hit me’ (Wiencke 2009, P7). It is evident that some step parent’s
contribute to another intersecting inequality which children already face.
Both the boys and girls testimonies have shown that the home environment is
critical in ensuring whether children stay in school. An unsettling home life can
impact on a child’s behaviour and contribute to problems within school. The
relationships built at home will undoubtedly have an effect on the way children
construct their identity. Some children will bear the oppression and abuse,
which they face, but others, such as the respondents in this study, demonstrate
their agency to leave situations and construct different identities to survive.
Throughout the testimonies it clear that intersecting inequities play a role in
determining whether a child stays in school. What is apparent from the
children’s testimonies is that other disparities such as poverty, family relations
and abuse were acting together which forced the children to act upon their
agency and leave their disturbing home environments.
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Enjoying school?
The previous section discussed the reasons why children dropped out of school.
Whilst, there were several factors which forced them to leave school it is also
important to examine whether the school it self played a role in the decision to
leave. By investigating topics such as school subjects, corporal punishment and
teacher perceptions, we are able to understand whether there were multiple
forces which lead to a child migrating to the streets.
Loving Teachers
Children reported a wide variety of opinions on their experiences of teachers;
this included both positive and negative experiences. The positive image of
teachers was reflected in all of the children’s accounts with most reporting they
had teachers who they either admired or looked up to. Statements such as
‘because she was polite and taught us well’ and ‘teachers are funny’ demonstrate
how teachers made a positive impact in the lives of their students. While most of
the testimonies highlight a positive character trait of the teachers; Sue’s
testimony shows how her teacher played a pivotal role of taking on parental
duties.
I didn’t really have any friends at school. I had one of my favourite teachers who really took good care of me even when my step-‐mother refused to give me food, I would visit my teacher's home and she would provide me food. When things went really bad at home I even moved in to my teacher's house. (Sue)
Here Sue describes her school experiences of identifying with her teacher rather
than her peers. Sues lack of friends could be attributed to the fact that she had
severe troubles at home and therefore didn’t want to tell other children of her
problems. Instead Sue confided in a teacher who could relate to her problems
and who acted like a mother figure. Sue clearly defines the teacher’s role as a
mother figure as she states:
47
She took good care of me. She encouraged me when I was in hardships as she was like a mother to me. She also moved me away from that village in order to help me getting away with
sufferings. (Sue)
This relationship between the Sue and her teacher has been explored previously
by Barrett (2008) who states that there are several different types of teachers in
Tanzanian primary schools-‐ relaters, self-‐improvers, story-‐tellers and gazers.
Barrett’s (2008) research found that most of the teachers she interviewed were
under the category of relaters. The relator category referred to teachers who
paid emphasis on their relationship between pupils and ‘stressed the
importance of love for pupils, being close to pupils, conservative use of
punishment and understanding pupils problems’ (Barrett p 501).
It is clear that Sue’s teacher fitted within the relational category of teachers as
she assisted Sue far beyond of what was expected of her. This positive
relationship, which the teacher pursued with Sue, has left a lasting impression
on the way that Sue’s views of education are shaped. Interestingly, Barrett’s
study also highlighted that whilst some teachers fitted within other categories
the eight who exclusively fell into the relater’s category were all females. The
relational characteristics of female teachers were also raised by Jane and
Jennifer, who stated their favourite teacher was female. On the other hand, all of
the boys reported the favourite teacher as being male. The respondent’s
selection of teachers demonstrates how gender plays a key role in how children
observe the identity of their teachers.
Punishing Teachers
In contrast to evidence, which presents teachers in a positive light, children also
reported adverse experiences of their teachers. Facets such as corporal
punishment, teacher attitudes and teaching quality have all played a role in
influencing a negative response from children. Corporal punishment was one of
the biggest antipathies children stated with their experience of teachers. All
participants stated they had experienced some sort of corporal punishment from
48
teachers and stated it as one of their worst experiences at school. Students
stated the following as reason for being caned:
If you are not done writing the work on the board then you get punished (Arnold)
I would accept because they are the teacher. There were lots of reasons for being caned such as if you refuse to bring something
or if you are late (Jennifer)
From the statements we can observe that corporal punishment is a norm in
Tanzanian schools and students can expect to be punished for a variety of
demeanours. Some of these punishments are a result of things, which are
beyond a child’s control, such as school fees. Saidi’s earlier testimony highlights
that although primary school fees were abolished in Tanzania, some schools still
ask students for fees. This has also been noted in Hasan’s (2013) study on street
children in which a child declares ‘when you get to school, you get punished,
because you have not paid school fees’ (Hassan 2013, p22). The punishment of
not being able to pay school fees adds another intersecting inequality for which
the child is being punished. In considering the unstable home environments
from which these children come from and the levels of poverty in their
household an added punishment can push a child to tipping point which may
result in them leaving school. This is demonstrated in Saidi’s case where he left
school after being punished for forgetting his school fees.
Although children have stated their dislike of corporal punishment some of the
children stated that they agree with corporal punishment still existing within
school. Arnold, Jane and Jennifer reported that corporal punishment should
either continue to be practised or should be reduced. Arnold, stated ‘if you get
caned then you get clever’. This positive view of being punished has been
previously explored by by Gershoff’s (2002) whose research explains that the
effect of corporal punishment has direct results such as compliance by the child,
which can be viewed immediately. The longer-‐term results of corporal
49
punishment cannot be se seen and therefore it is understandable why children
may think that the practise should continue to exist, as they are able to see
immediate results. This could explain why most of the participants wanted the
practice to continue in their schools.
Another issue children reported was the teacher’s attitude towards both
education and the students. Both John and Saidi recollected times when teachers
were ‘rude’ and didn’t care about education. In John’s case he specifically
reported how teachers were absent for two weeks and then they expected the
children to remember what they had previously learnt. The absenteeism and
unrealistic expectation of teachers had a clear impact on the way John viewed
those subjects. He stated:
I didn’t like to study them because I hated learning them and also the teachers didn’t attend to the lessons (John)
John’s statement clearly highlights how teacher absenteeism and attitudes can
devalue a child’s appreciation of a subject. This de-‐appreciation has also been
explored by Hallinan (2008) who found that teachers play an important role in
creating a students attachment in school and shaping their feelings about
education. Hallinan (2008) explored how teacher’s relationships with students
are built on trust and fairness. She found that students judged the teacher on the
way they implemented school rules and policies. This judgement of fairness can
be observed in John’s testimony where he believes that the teachers were not
abiding to the rules of the school and that they created one rule for themselves
and another for children. John demonstrates his frustration of this hypocrisy by
stating:
Science and geography were the worst subjects; the teachers walked in whenever and caned us. Then they didn’t even teach us
properly. (John)
50
It is evident from these testimonies that teachers clearly play an influential role
in shaping the way students view and value education. While all children had a
teacher who provided a positive experience some students had a negative
experience which could shape their view of formal education forever and this
may results in them never returning to school.
Are subjects enjoyable
In order to ascertain what children’s interests are in school a closer inspection of
their favourite and least favourite subjects is examined. Children’s interest in
subjects is highly dependent on a number of issues such as the vernacular
language that the subjects are taught, teacher attendance, teaching aides and the
family history of education. Participants reported a wide variety of subjects
which they enjoyed and this varied across all six participants. Subjects such as
Maths, English and Swahili were regarded as the most important subjects to
learn whilst the least important subjects were found to be ICT and Science.
The participants gave a several reasons why they picked Maths, English and
Swahili as their most important subjects. This included ‘because it helps on how
to read’, ‘if you have the money, you'll know how to count it’ and ‘English is
important because I will be able to speak to different people’. From these
statements we can observe that the children clearly understand the use of these
subjects and how it can help them in their daily and future lives.
As mentioned in the previous section, teachers also played a big part in how the
children viewed their subjects and the importance placed upon them. In John’s
case we observed how he didn’t value both Science and Geography due to
teacher absenteeism and teaching style. On the other hand, he also gave positive
responses on some of his favourite subjects such as English and History in which
he stated:
51
English helps me to make communication easy especially when you travel abroad. History helps to remind us about our past such as our ancestors. It is such as History subject that taught us to help our parents with work, any kind of work even with some
business. (John)
John’s and the other participants knowledge of how subjects can be useful
suggests that the participants know the value that education has provided in
both their own as well as their families’ lives. John particularly pays attention to
history and recalls how he learnt that helping his parents in their line of work
was an important trait. This demonstrates that children are taught about the
need to assist their families in bringing in an income. If these sorts of values are
taught in school then they may play a part in influencing a child to migrate to the
streets, especially when their family is already impoverished.
Returning/Staying in School
In considering all of the above experiences of education I asked participants
whether they wanted to stay in school if circumstances were better and also
whether they would like to return to school. By asking respondents these
questions we can determine whether the children still identify with wanting a
formal education or whether their past experiences have left a negative image
where they cannot identify with formal schooling.
Arnold’s position here is unique in that Arnold is the only participant
interviewed who did not want to return to school. He understood that education
was not for him and also understood that his friends had a significant influence
on him. This non-‐conformity shows how Arnold is aware that he does not enjoy
the schooling experience. He states:
‘I don't think I can study anymore. I am used to earning money’ (Arnold)
Arnold presents himself as an individual who is not capable of attending school,
52
however, he was one of the only participants who had completed standard 5 and
this was evident in his good English speaking skills. It seems that Arnold is
presenting himself in a way that is describing his enjoyment of street life as the
ultimate reason he migrated to the streets, however, a number of factors suggest
there were several facets at play such as poverty and family problems. Arnold is
clearly aligning his identity with his new street life and would like people to
believe that other problems at home didn’t play a part in him moving to the
streets. Nevertheless, Arnold later on states that he would have stayed/returned
in school if he didn’t have to live at home and if schooling conditions were better.
This is also echoed by the other respondents who all stated that if their home
and school environment were better then they would have returned/stayed in
school. In contrast to Arnold, all other children reflected of wanting to stay in
school but reported difficulties in them returning whilst they were still on the
street.
‘People might degrade me because I am from the streets’ (Jane)
‘If I get a sponsor then I will return but if not then I can't’ (Jennifer)
‘To return to school now requires transfer documents to another school’ (John)
‘I hate being caned. So even when I hear stories from other kids that they have just been beaten at school, it makes me worried to
return to school’ (Saidi)
These statements highlight the knowledge, which the children possess in the
difficulties of returning to school. All of the difficulties, which the children
highlight, suggest the structural as well as cultural inequalities, which prevent
these children from attending school. These inequalities have also been noted by
other authors (Wedgwood 2007, Hassan 2013, Nalkur 2009) who state that
costs of schooling and punishment by teachers can play an integral part in
determining whether a child returns to school.
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Whilst there is an abundance of literature on school fees and corporal
punishment, little can be found on the stigmatisation of returning to school as a
street child. Jane’s testimony highlights how the experience of her being a street
child will cause her problems if she decides to return to school. The status of
being an ex or current street child adds a new injustice to a child’s identity and
will contribute to the discriminations already in place such as poverty, corporal
punishment and the requiring of documents to attend school. All of these
injustices intersect with one another to prevent a child from attending school.
This analysis into children’s past trajectories has demonstrated how children’s
experiences of education, family and school all differ from one another.
Children’s experiences of leaving school has shown that family problems such as
poverty and abuse have played a major role in them migrating to the streets. All
of the children have experienced intersecting inequalities both in the school and
at home which suggests that any intervention targeted towards street children
needs to consider all of these intersecting forces.
Life on the Streets
In this section I will explore children’s experiences whilst on the street by
examining the different activities in which they engage in and also the people
whom they interact with. By exploring the children’s street trajectories I can
observe the fluidity of their identity and how this may have changed from their
experiences whilst at home. Additionally, I will also explore the different
survival tools these children have learnt as this will help examine how children
shape their views of non-‐formal education. This value for non-‐formal education
can then be contrasted with their views on formal education, which were
explored in the previous section. First, I will track the trajectories of children
migrating to the streets, I will then analyse children’s survival strategies and
whom they interact with and finally I will examine their future aspirations
moving forward.
54
Migrating to the streets
The eventual migration to the street was different for each participant. As
explored in the previous section, there were different points when children
dropped out of school, for some it was sudden whilst for others it was a gradual
process. The same can be seen when children migrated to the streets, although,
for most children there was a pinnacle moment when they eventually moved to
the streets. The following statements reveal the pinnacle moments when
children journeyed to the streets:
No Just one day my mom called for the police to discipline me and then I decided to leave home fore good (Arnold)
I stayed at home and later on my dad passed away so my stepmother sent me to the village to stay with my grandma. My life at grandma's was really tough so I decided to come to
Mwanza to find some work to do. I got a job as a housekeeper but my boss mistreated me and that's what made me run to the
streets. (Jane)
Because I escaped from home. On that day, I didn’t attend the class that’s why I escaped. They found me and captured me and took me back home. I was afraid that if I go home then I would be beaten to badly. So that is the reason why I decided to get into the
streets. (John)
This teacher of mine took me to a friend of hers. After some time my favourite teacher passed away. After her death, the friend of hers chased me away from her house. I lived a really tough life
then and started living in the streets. (Sue)
These testimonies highlight how children had differing experiences of migrating
to the streets. Their experiences reinforce Epstein’s (1996) sentiment who
states that ‘Poverty, domestic abuse, modernization trends including
rural/urban migration patterns, civil disturbance… and changing family
structures have all been listed as explanatory causes for the existence of street
children’ (Epstein 1996, p295).
55
In both Arnold’s and John’s testimonies we can observe how abuse or the fear of
abuse played major role in them migrating to the streets. In Arnold’s testimony
we can observe how the constrained relationship he had with his mother caused
her to call the police and discipline him. In response to this action Arnold left
home which was not a goal for him but a protest. This protest has been
discussed by Feeny (2005) who states that children migrating to the streets are
not looking for new experiences but they’re in fact testing family reactions.
Feeny (2005) also suggests that the child is testing their identity both in the
family unit and on the streets. As Arnold had been on the streets, on and off, for
a number of months it is clear that his identity was aligned to the streets. Arnold
may have needed one final tipping point, which would have pushed him to
pursue street life full time and his mother provided this.
In Jane and Sue’s testimonies the loss of an important figure meant an eventual
demise to the streets. The girl’s migration was gradual with a series of events
taking place before they left for the streets. In Jane’s case her father’s death
ultimately started her journey with her stepmother and grandmother
contributing to this. This is similar to Sue’s testimony, where the death of her
teacher, who was her maternal mother figure, led her to migrate to the streets.
The death of an important figure shows the impact it can have on a child,
especially when the child does not have a support system. It is clear that the
deceased individuals contributed greatly in the lives of the girls by providing
them with safety and comfort.
When observing a child’s migration to the street we cannot simply look at the
movement as sudden but as a series of events which had led to that moment. By
combining the trajectories from the children’s school life and their migration to
the streets we are able to understand that a series of unfortunate events led to
children being on the streets. For example, in Sue’s case we can see that she was
mistreated by her stepmother and then was eventually taken in by her teacher
who then died and as a result she was evicted from the house and forced to
migrate to the streets. Here we can see that the movement from dropping out of
school to the streets isn’t as immediate as we would like to think but involves
56
several steps. These steps have been conceptualised by the ILO (2002) who have
suggested that a number of different stressors often contribute to a child
migrating to the streets. The ILO (2002) have divided these stressors into three
categories:
Immediate causes are the most visible and obvious: they act directly at the level
of the child and the family. Household-‐income poverty (income not meeting cash
needs for subsistence) and cash-‐flow crises caused by shocks to the household
economy are key.
Underlying causes refer to values and situations that may predispose a family
or community to accept or even encourage child labour for boys and/or girls.
Perceptions of poverty come into play at this level; for example, “consumerism”
may drive children and parents alike to seek to learn more money to buy the
consumer goods that are becoming increasingly available.
Structural or root causes act at the level of the larger economy and
society, influencing the enabling environment in which child labour can
either flourish or be controlled.
The ILO’s three suppressors are similar to intersectionality theory as it explores
a multitude of inequalities as to why a child may migrate to the streets. However,
intersectionality goes further and suggests that a number of inequalities work
with one another to suppress and marginalise an individual. Additionally, the
ILO suppressors fail to consider a child’s relationship with their family and as
shown in this study family relationship have played a pivotal role in children
eventually migrating to the streets. It is also important to consider that a large
number of children have experienced the characteristics which the ILO have
outlined in their suppressors, yet the number of street children are not nearly as
high as would be expected. Hence, it is important to understand a range of
factors and reasons why children migrate to the streets and not only look at the
structural and poverty dimensions but also age, gender, family make up and
relationships.
57
Street Activities
This section will highlight activities and work, which children partake in whilst
on the street and the dangers involved in engaging in those activities. The
activities which street children engage in range from income generating
activities to playing with their friends. Children engaged in enjoyable activities
such as going to ‘video bandas’ (local cinema halls) to more difficult activities of
washing up dishes and engaging in sex work. The activities that participants are
involved in are explained below:
I got the job as a housekeeper but my boss mistreated me and that's what made me run to the streets. (Jane)
I get money from selling scrap metal. When I am on the streets it is really hard to find food. (Arnold)
I started to engage in prostitution when I moved to the streets (Sue)
The accounts above demonstrate how each child was able to take part in some
sort of income generating activity. Both the girls and boys income-‐generating
activities differed and were in line with gendered street identities that have been
researched in other contexts (Evans 2006, Beazley 2002). All three boys
reported in their testimonies that their main income generating activity was
either collecting scrap metals or plastic bottles. The boys would collect things
like iron and then sell it to junkyards for under a $1. The girls, on the other hand,
engaged in prostitution and domestic chores. Their earning potential was a lot
higher when they were engaged in prostitution, however, this also made the
girls more vulnerable to danger. The gendered difference in the occupations and
spaces that these children occupy has been greatly discussed (Beazley 2002,
Evans 2006, Raffaelli et al 2000) and conclusions have been drawn that street
girls are seen as out of place on the streets and therefore not able to engage in
similar activities as boys.
58
Girls are seen out of place on the street due to the patriarchal nature of societies
they live in and this is also perpetuated in the street environment where girls
are seen as at the bottom of the hierarchy in the street environment. This status
means that girls have more limits on what they can engage in whilst on the
street and as a result they are more likely to earn money from prostitution or
domestic work. These jobs leave girls extremely vulnerable to being abused and
this was demonstrated in both Jane’ s and Sue’s testimonies in which they
stated:
She was abusing us. If we didn't contribute money for food she didn't give us any food and gave us a lot of domestic work to do. You might not get some food, you might sleep somewhere dirty.
(Jane)
I have been raped by three guys. I was taken by a man at night once and left alone near the Airport. I have been in a lot of
negative incidents. (Sue)
In both Jane and Sue’s case we can observe that their income generating
activities have proven to be dangerous and life threatening. These are not
isolated incidents and research has shown (Evans 2006, Beazley 2002) that rape
and abuse is widespread and prevalent in most places where street girls are
found. These dangers on the street are known to both boys and girls and when
asked whether the street was more dangerous for boys or girls the following
responses were recorded:
It’s more dangerous for girls as they fear boys might rape them because they are marijuana smokers. (Jane)
It’s more dangerous for girls as they can get infected with HIV/AIDS (John)
It’s dangerous for both but a lot more for girls they fear boys might rape them because they are so rude and marijuana
smokers. (Saidi)
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These responses show that there is a general awareness of the danger, which
surround girls. This danger has been explored by several other researchers such
as Swart 1988, Scharf 1986, who found that girls have less access to the informal
economy which boys generally have more access to. By not gaining access to
other forms of income generation girls are left with no other choice but to
pursue jobs, which are more dangerous. This is largely due to the reproduction
of social patriarchal attitudes, which have been adopted, in the street
environment where girls lie at the bottom of the street sub-‐culture. This danger
demonstrates how the status of being a street child and being a girl coincide
with one another to produce further discrimination for one sect of a sub-‐culture.
This subordination of girls means that they cannot create the identities which
they desire and are forced to conform to the preassigned identity categories
which street boys and society assigns them. The assignment of roles is similar to
the roles assigned to women in most Tanzanian communities, however, street
girls are ascribed separate norms and they are more likely to be punished, as
shown in Sue’s testimony, if they do not adhere to them.
Whilst there is a vast amount of literature on the dangers which street girls face
there is limited amount of information on the dangers and abuse of street boys.
When conducting interviews with the three boys I found incidences, which
require a more in-‐depth analysis, of how street boys are treated. Saidi reported
that he knew of younger boys who had been mistreated by older street boys
stating:
In the streets there are bad things such as big street boys wanting to have anal sex with young ones and if you refuse then you get in trouble. Sometimes if you have some money and they see it, they
snatch it away from the weak children. (Saidi)
One day, the big street boys ordered me to go buy them some cigarettes. After bringing them back one of them asked me
''Aren't you smoking?'' I refused. They held me at knife point and forced me to smoke while saying "How come you bring us
cigarettes everyday but you don't smoke?'' I had to smoke it and I left in peace. (Saidi)
60
Saidi’s testimony demonstrates that boys also experience abuse on the streets
including rape. This underreseached area has also been noted by Rajani and
Kudrati (1996) who found in their research on Mwanza street boys that anal sex
was practised as an initiation rite for those entering the streets. The initiation
rite allows those boys to gain access to the group’s secrets and also allow them
to learn about the behaviours and practises of street life. It is another way of
asserting control over younger street boys and further research needs to be
carried out in order to gain a meaningful picture of the extent which this occurs.
Finally, from the participant’s testimonies it is evident that the social norms of
society, including age and gender, have been reproduced within the street
environment to maintain the status quo of those who have power. This means
that those who are younger or female face further hardships compared to those
who are older and in more authoritative positions. Individuals migrating to the
streets have to put on and portray certain identities, which will keep them safe
or put them in danger. If a child does not conform to these identities then they
are most likely to be subjugated to harassment and despair which has been
evident in the case of the participants in this study.
Looking Forward
In this final section I will examine the participants future aspirations and goals
and see how their trajectories both on the street and in their families have
influenced their future aspirations. All of the children had future careers they
wanted to pursue and some participants knew a great deal about how they were
going to pursue their career whilst others did not. Below are some of the future
careers they hoped to pursue:
I would like to be a driver or businessman (Arnold)
I am not well educated but I would like to be a tailor (Jane)
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I wanted to be a nurse but now the only thing that I want to learn is how to use the sewing machine and be a tailor (Jennifer)
I would like to be a pilot for airplanes. (Saidi)
I would like to be a lawyer (Sue)
I would like to be a doctor. (John)
Most of the children knew the difficulties of pursuing their desired careers with
participants stating money and hard work as the main obstacles in achieving
their dreams. Arnold stated that in order to be a businessman he needs to ‘be
able to save money’ while Jennifer stated that it was impossible for her to pursue
tailoring, as she ‘doesn’t have the fees to pay for the course’. Other participants,
such as John, also expressed Jennifer’s desire for vocational skills:
I would like to learn to ride a motorbike so I am able to overcome life and with a motorbike it will be easy. If I fail my final exams
then I can ride the motorbike and earn money (John)
John’s desire to become a motorbike driver show’s how his previous dream of
becoming a doctor may not be achievable under the current circumstances that
he is in. This is also demonstrated by the knowledge he has of how to attain
becoming a driver of a motorbike and a doctor. John states:
To learn pikipiki [motorbike] would be up hill around Ibanda Mzunguko they have a driving school there.
To learn to become a doctor I only need to learn English, that’s all (John)
John’s testimony highlights that he is more knowledgeable of how to become a
motorbike driver compared with becoming a doctor. His response shows how
street life has had a significant impact on his identity of what he is able to
62
achieve and now he has a back up career should he not achieve becoming a
doctor. This is also evident in both Jennifer’s and Sue’s testimonies as they
previously wanted to become nurses and lawyers but now they’re aspiring to
become a tailors. The change in participant’s aspirations suggests that the
environment and people who they are surrounded by has had a significant effect
on their future identity. Whilst in school these children adopted the identity of
wanting to pursue more ‘linear’ professionals but as soon as they transitioned to
the street they were influenced by the prospect of other professions and the
ability to survive.
In contrast to the other participants, Saidi showed that he was still envisioning
pursuing his aspiration of becoming a pilot. Saidi’s understanding of how to
become a pilot is demonstrated as he states that he is able to achieve his dream
depending on ‘how hard I study’ and whether he is able to find a ‘qualified tutor’.
Saidi’s confidence could be explained by his maturity and intuition and his
efforts of learning new skills. Saidi stated at one point:
In the street, there is a place where they do welding. I passed there once and asked them if I can pick the scrap metals. They
allowed me and when picking, the man told me to be careful with the cables as they contain electric power. I became interested and since then the man has been very helpful to me educating me
more on electricity. (Saidi)
Saidi’s demonstrates his desire to learn and leave the situation he currently is in
and is taking active steps in order to learn new things. This could be explained
by the fact that Saidi was relatively new to the streets and had only spent two-‐
three months on the street whilst the others had spent significantly longer
periods.
On the other hand, other participant’s testimonies demonstrate that if they had
not experienced the hardships at home they may still be pursuing their original
aspirations. Instead these children have chosen alternative aspirations where
63
they have been influenced by their street lives. These vocational aspirations may
not mean that they have given up on their original desired profession but in fact
demonstrate that being exposed to the streets changes ones identity and opens
children up to other career choices. The traditional linear professions of
becoming a doctor, lawyer and nurse are often what children are told to become
by societies and as a result these professions seem to be the ‘correct’ thing to do.
64
Chapter Six: Conclusion and Recommendations Through the exploration of street children’s trajectories this study has sought to
further understand the multidimensional forces, which contribute to street
children’s identities. The literature review focussed on how gender, education
and family structures were all contributing factors to street children’s identities
and their migration to the streets. However, within these studies, facets of
gender, education, and family were explored separately rather than holistically.
By exploring children’s identities in linear fashions the representation of a street
child became one-‐dimensional. This study sought to fill that gap by allowing
children to shape their own representations in their current and previous
environments.
This conclusion brings together findings from the data analysis and the reviewed
literature to highlight the key findings, implications, and potential for further
discovery. The section will be split in four sections to focus on Intersectional
research approach, street children and their families, the role of the school and
looking forward from the street.
Intersectional Research Approach with Street Children
Little research has been carried out on how intersectionality can be applied
when researching street children and the developing world more broadly. This
study has shown that intersectionality is a useful framework in drawing out
injustices as it ‘goes beyond just looking at the gender aspects of racial
discrimination. It seeks to provide a tool for analyzing the ways in which gender,
race, class and all other forms of identity and distinction, in different contexts,
produce situations in which girls and boys become vulnerable to abuse and
discrimination’ (George 2007). Adopting this holistic framework, both
empirically and academically, has enabled this study to draw out new injustices.
The findings in this study revealed that the eventual dropping out of school and
migration to the streets was not based on one factor but in fact included several
65
facets. These facets were drawn out by adopting an intersectionality approach,
which allowed participants to be observed through not just one form of
inequality, but several. These forms of discriminations ranged from the usual -‐
gender, poverty and age. However, this research also highlighted other forms of
discriminations, which may often be overlooked, such as being a stepchild or
being a new male entrant on the street. These new discriminations suggest that
the common generalisations made about street children cannot be viewed
collectively as they may divert from the actual realities of children living on the
street.
Whilst the intersectional approach has assisted in drawing out further
categories of discrimination, a generalisation of whether these categories apply
to other street children is limited due to the number of participants taking part
in this study. It is therefore recommended that further research be carried out
with more street children using an intersectional approach. This research
should have more participants in order to fully understand the extent to which
new injustices apply to larger groups of children. However, it should be noted
that generalising these injustices to different contexts could be harmful and that
any new inequalities found should only be focussed on that particular group or
context. Additionally, when carrying out research using an intersectional
approach it is imperative that qualitative methods are adopted as this yields
additional discriminations.
Street children and their families
This study also elucidated to the changing views of street children on family
relationships. The relationship children had with their parents/step-‐parents and
the abuse and harm they experienced while living at home influenced this
change in views. The abuse and mistreatment by step-‐ parents played a
significant role in children either being forced to leave their homes or making
the choice of leaving themselves. This makes the intervention of family
reunification quite problematic for SCO’s. As researchers (Feeney 2005, Lugalla
& Mbwambo 1999) highlight the success of family reunification interventions, it
should be taken with precaution, as this intervention may not meet the needs of
66
all street children. SCO’s offering family reunification, as their main intervention
should also consider offering alternative interventions for those children who
will never return home.
Additionally, gender roles played an important part in the relationship children
had with their stepparents, as all of the male respondents fathers were all
replaced with another male, while all the female respondents’ mothers replaced
with another female. This replacement of both mother and father figures clearly
had an impact on the way children viewed the authority of stepparents and the
way they constructed their own identities. Further research into how children
identify with the loss of their same gender parents will help determine whether
this loss contributes to a child migrating to the street.
Lastly, the formation of identities of the participants suggests that with
increased urbanisation and globalisation the traditional Tanzanian family
structure is being challenged. Participants displayed identities, which were more
aligned with the western construct of the nuclear family rather than the
polygamous and extended families, which have occupied Tanzania for centuries.
Whilst the majority of Tanzanians are still apart of the traditional family form,
where it is common to be polygamous and to have an extended family, this study
highlights that children are increasingly identifying with the western nuclear
family as their ideal family structure. This change could be attributed to
globalisation as children are exposed to more global features, which challenge
and destabilise the traditional histories of gender norms, family structures and
local cultures. Whilst the exploration of this influence was limited to local
individuals and environments in this study; it would be advantageous to
understand the extent to which increased urbanisation and globalisation
impacted street children’s lives and their views on family structures. An
understanding of how globalisation has affected multi-‐generational and
polygamous households would add evidence to Goode’s (1982) theory, which
suggests that with increased industrialisation communities start moving
towards the nuclear family patterns.
67
The role of the school
In exploring children’s migrating patterns, this study found that the majority of
students migrated to the streets over a period of time. Dropping out of school is
one of the first stages which children reported as their eventual demise to the
streets.Their experiences of subjects, teachers and the general school
environment highlighted how schools can act as a tipping point for children to
migrate. In particular, teachers played an important role in children’s lives as
they were viewed as having dual identities. Participants viewed teachers both in
a negative and positive light, where some were seen as loving and almost
mother like, whilst others were seen as barriers to achieving an education. This
highlights that teacher standards are not uniform in Tanzania, which ultimately
affects the quality of education received by children.
This non-‐uniformity of teaching standards is a major issue not only in Tanzania
but across the globe. Goals such as EfA and the sustainable development goals
are shifting towards increasing student-‐learning outcomes, which ultimately
requires the improvement of the teaching environment as well as
methodologies. These goals advocate for increased numbers of teachers, better
teaching methodologies and improvement in teacher to student ratios. Whilst
these improvements will undoubtedly contribute to increased learning
outcomes; teachers and schools should also understand the different
intersectionalities which children experience. Understanding these different
injustices will enable schools and teachers to play an important role in
mediating and assisting MVC’s who are at risk of migrating to the streets. By
simply being aware of children’s situations, teachers may less likely punish a
child if they know the child is being abused at home. This will result in one less
injustice, which may result in a child staying in school and valuing the
importance of education. Incorporating training on vulnerable groups, such as
street children, into existing teacher training courses may also help shape
positive views of education which may influence children’s future trajectories.
68
Looking forward from the street
The street played an important role in constructing children’s future
trajectories. Children’s experience on the streets shows how their future
trajectories have clearly been affected by the experiences they have had on the
streets. Their initial career choice of becoming a doctor or nurse quickly changed
once they were exposed to different occupations. This change demonstrates how
children’s identities were more aligned with vocational professions, as they
were more realistic to achieve. In considering this, schools and governments
should contemplate on delivering more vocational skill courses to those
students who do not identify with the traditional route of education. Providing
this option will enable children to capitalise on their skills and talents and
provide the country with increased productivity as well as possibilities of
alleviating poverty.
Furthermore, the income generating activities, which children engaged in show
that abuse and other hardships have affected the activities, which they are able
to pursue. The children have moved to more gender specific activities such as
boys collecting and selling bottles and girls engaging in sex work. These
gendered street norms have meant that both boys and girls are left vulnerable
on the street and the gendering of street spaces has meant the perpetuation of
societal gender norms. These norms are more harmful for girls as they are seen
to be out of place on the street as witnessed in this study where girls were
sexually abused. This is troubling especially considering the increasing number
of girls migrating to the streets of Mwanza. To meet the needs of these girls it is
essential that SCO’s and government officials work with this less visible
population.
In closing, this paper focussed on the changing identities of six children whose
movement from the home to the streets influenced their future trajectories.
Whilst their struggles of street life has meant living in difficult circumstances;
most of the children are able to formulate identities which are constricted yet
somehow liberating in comparison to their earlier lives. Their stand against
69
traditional family structures, abuse and corporal punishment suggests that
children are becoming less tolerant of the injustices they face.
70
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Appendix
Appendix 1-‐ Children’s Backgrounds
Arnold-‐ is a 13 year-‐old boy who has been on and off the street on several occasions. Arnold came from a poverty stricken family, like other participants, and was living with his mother and siblings. He initially left school when his mother couldn’t afford his textbooks; this led which led him to the streets to earn money. Arnold returned to school when he was in Standard 4 but then started to play truant with his friends often going to the streets. Arnold returned to school and passed standard 5 but in standard 6 he completely dropped out when his mother called the police to discipline him. This led him to migrate to the streets and take up collecting bottles for a living. Jane-‐ is a 14 year-‐old girl who has been on the street for over a year. She enjoyed school, although she often missed periods, as she look after her step-‐ brothers and sisters. Jane eventually dropped out of school after she was prohibited from attending for a month, which coincided with her exams. After not being able to take her exams she stayed home until her father passed away. After, her stepmother kicked her out of the house and made her live with her grandmother. Whilst there she found it very difficult and made the decision to migrate to Mwanza to become a maid. Whilst working as a maid her boss regularly abused and mistreated her, which eventually led her to migrate to the streets. John-‐ is a 13 year-‐old boy who has been connected to the streets for over a year. John is an orphan who has been looked after by his grandmother since his parents died in a car crash. John is the only participant to not sleep on the street but he frequents the street daily in order to earn money from selling bottles. John first migrated to the streets after he missed class and was punished when he returned. Since then he was afraid of going back to school and also states that a lack of documents issued by his previous school prohibits him from finding a new school. Jennifer-‐ is a 13 year-‐old girl who dropped out of primary school at a very early age. Jennifer was prevented from going to school because of her stepmother who made her conduct domestic jobs in the household. She left her family and migrated to the streets after being mistreated on several occasions. Jennifer now works odd jobs on the street to earn money. Sue 15-‐ is the oldest participant to be interviewed and has been living on the street for over a year. She states that her dad was supportive of her education but her step-‐ mother often mistreated her and wouldn’t provide her with food. Sue spent time between here dad’s home and her aunt’s home where she was also mistreated. Sue eventually found solitude in school through a teacher who helped her escape her difficulties at home and took her in. However, the teacher ended up passing away, which meant that Sue had to migrate to Mwanza and take up a position as a housekeeper. This did not go well as she was mistreated
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and abused by the housekeeper and she eventually migrated to the streets taking up sex work in order to make money. Saidi-‐ is a 14-‐year-‐old boy who had only been on the street for three months. He initially had problems with the teachers at school over an incident with another pupil and since then he states that the teachers were not treating him well. He requested to change school but his mother refused. Saidi was previously living with his mother, stepfather and his siblings before he migrated. He states that his father leaving contributed to most of the difficulties he faced at home. He reports being abused by his stepfather and the result of his migration was due to his stepfather stabbing him in the leg. Saidi now works odd jobs, such as collecting bottles to earn a living.
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Appendix 2-‐ River of Life
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Appendix 3-‐ Explanation of Research to Street Children
Hi, I would like to talk to you briefly about a project I am working on do you have a couple of minutes? Great, as you know I have been working with Railway Children for the last year. Alongside this I have also been studying in my home country England. I am at a university similar to the one here in Mwanza and I learn about many different things. One of the topics I am learning about at the moment is street children and what they think of education. For example, one child may think education is good because it helps them learn new things. On the other hand, someone might think its bad because the teachers are not good. Everyone is different and I want to know what you think of education. I would like to ask you to participate in my research but before you say yes I will give you some more information. Do you understand so far? Great. So the study that I will be doing will look at the past and present of children’s lives specifically with their experiences of education. This will look at children’s time in school, their learning on the streets, their favourite subjects etc. Looking at past experiences might be very emotional especially looking back at difficult times. So it is important when you make a decision that you consider that we may talk about personal experiences. The interview will be structured in two sessions with each session lasting around 45 mins. During the interview there will be three people present a translator, NGO worker, and me. We will record thee interview with your permission but do not worry in the research we will not use your real name. Instead I
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will make a name up for you or you could make a name up for yourself. I will be interviewing three boys and three girls and when I have finished I will write up the results. The results will be shared with Railway Children to help them understand the lives of street children better and help them improve their services. Do you understand so far? Do you have any questions? Great. Now I would like to ask you whether you would like to participate in my research. You do not have to give me an answer right now but instead think about it and I will speak to you tomorrow to find out your response.
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Appendix 4-‐ Interview Schedule Child Pseudo name……………………………. Sex………………………………………….. Age………………. Sleeping Arrangement……………………………. Level of education…………………… Date……………………………………………. Introduction Thank you for being willing to take part in an interview in this project. We are going to spend some time talking and doing things together, so that I can get to know about things you like and don’t like. This is a private talk. I won’t tell your parents or your teachers what you say. The only thing I would have to tell is if you said you were going to hurt yourself, hurt someone else, or someone has hurt you. Do you understand? If you’re uncomfortable with a question and don’t want to answer it please tell me or raise one hand. If you are feeling like you don’t want to continue the interview, please raise two hands. You should feel comfortable at all times and should not worry about raising your hands. Also, we are going to record our talk together to help me remember our time together. Is that okay? If you’d like I can play it back to you at the end of the interview. The interview will last around 1.5 hrs with breaks in between. If you feel like going to the bathroom at any point please let us know. So now lets begin, first we’re are going to do a little activity called the river of life.
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River Of life-‐ 30 min
Do you know what a river is? Ok it looks something like this.
What we’re going do today is look at this river as your life. So at one end of the river is when you came into the world and at the other end of the river is where you are now. What I would like to do is for you to draw experiences of your life at different periods. I would like you to draw the peaceful times and difficult times. This can be shown through rocks and flowers, where rocks are difficult times and flowers are peaceful/happy times. If you have any other things you would like to draw please do and we can discuss this after. Probe questions-‐ When did you start school? Was it an enjoyable time? Why? What do you remember studying at school? What did you like best? What was the worst? What do you remember about your teachers and friends? I can see you that you went to school for X amount of time did you always go to school during that time or were there times, which you missed? Why
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Great, do you have anything else important which you would like to add? Thanks, so that’s the first session over, we will meet in the next few days to do the second session and if you have questions in the meantime please let me know. Break
Semi-‐ structured Child interview-‐50 min
1. Street Life In Mwanza there are many children living on the streets. What are the main reasons why this happens? If not revealed in river of life-‐ Ask what was the main reason for you being on the street today? What are some of the names people call young people on the streets? (Do you ever get called these names?) When you were living
Probes Are the reasons the same for boys and girls? Were any of these reasons similar to what happened to you? Are your siblings still at home? Do you think it would have been easier if you were a boy/girl at home? Do you think the community you come from could have done more for you? Do you like these names? Do you think they describe you. Do you miss them?
Observations
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at home, are there things, which you did that you don’t do now?
Positives and negative of being on the streets?
2. Education-‐ Only ask questions which were not covered in the river of life or
Can you tell me how long you were at school? Did you enjoy school? What were your three favourite things at school? What were your three worst things at school? Which subjects do you remember doing at school? Can you make a list? Would you like to return to school? Do you think education is more important now that
Completion of primary or secondary or specific achievements. Subjects Teachers Friends Fees Food Transport Safety Which ones are useful and which ones are not Difficulties of returning to school-‐ Age, Gender, Class etc try to bring up Compared with before. What has changed?
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you are on the street? When you were at school, and living at home, were you also doing other kinds of work outside school? For example were you working in the market selling things or helping your family in another business? Is there something, which you have always wanted to learn? E.g driving car, language, counting. Children learn many things both in school and out of school. For example out of school children learn how to make money from plastic bottles? What are some of the things you have learnt? There are also negative things, which take place on the streets such as children taking Bangy. What are some of the negative things you have learnt on the
What skills were involved? Who did you learn from? Did anything taught in school help with this? Why? Where do you think is the best pace to learn this? Who have you learnt them from? Do you thinks its important? Will it help you in the future?
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street? Who in your family went to school? If things were better at school would you have stayed home? If things were better at home would you have stayed in school? What would you like to be when you’re older?
What are their ages? What tribe do they come from? Is it common to have an education, Is previous education in your family the same for boys and girls and why? How will you achieve this. What do you need to know to become this? How can you find out about this? What will help you achieve your dream and what will make it difficult for you? Do you think it will help you earn a good living? Do you think it’s possible to become this?
3. Gender
What would you think
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Can you name a job that usually a boy/Girl does? What are some of the jobs that boys/girls do on the streets? Do you think it is easier for boys or girls to make money on the streets? Girls are often hidden on the streets compared to boys?
if a boy/girl did this. What would your family think if you did this job? Why are they different? What do you think if a male/female did this? What would your friends/ family think if you did this job? Why? What makes it easier? What are some of the dangers involved? Why do you think this is? Is it more dangerous for girls to be on the streets? Do you think street boys contribute to this danger?
We seem to have covered a great deal of ground and you have been very patient. But do you think these’ anything we’ve missed out? Do you have any other comments about what we have discussed, or about the research as a whole? If you would like to know the findings of the study I will give them to Railway Children in October this year and a social worker will help explain the findings. I thank you for your valuable time and hope you have a great day.
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Please Initial Box
1. I confirm that I have read and understand the information sheet for the above study and have had the opportunity to ask questions.
2. I understand that my participation is voluntary and that I am free to withdraw at any time, without giving reason.
3. I agree to take part in the above study.
4. I agree to the interview consultation being
audio recorded
6. I agree to the use of anonymised quotes in publications
Name of Participant Date Signature Name of Researcher Date Signature