"Wow where do I begin? These past two and a half weeks have been incredible, challenging, adventurous, enjoyable. The time has sped by, yet at the same time, my life at home seems so far away already. There have been some lows – lack of electricity and lugging buckets of water up the hill to hand wash my clothes for example– but my overwhelming feeling here is contented happiness and excitement to learn. I am really enjoying the slow pace of life here; what a change from living in the center of Los Angeles!
My absolute favorite part of Ghana though is the people. I had heard they were hospitable before I left, but that doesn’t even do it justice. They are the friendliest, nicest, happiest people I’ve met. They are quick to smile, quick to laugh, and always greet you with a friendly wave. One of the most memorable moments was when Aron, Lauren, and I met this woman on the way home from town. Within two minutes of conversation, she invited us to visit her home. Once there, she introduced us to all of her family, gave us the only three chairs in the house and insisted we sit down, and then after, showed us all over her farm for two hours. She gave us fruits and vegetables to try, and had her cousin climb a palm tree to cut down a cocoanut to drink. We were complete strangers, yet she acted like we are the best of friends. These situations happen all the time here and it blows me away each time.
I could go on about how much I love Ghana for a long time (and I actually do on my own blog www.MeganLambertGhana.blogspot.com), but I’ll talk about my research now. I’m studying female education in Ghana, focusing on the critical transition from junior high school to senior high school. Only one of four girls that start formal school end up finishing junior high school (8th grade in America), and for that one girl that is lucky enough to finish JHS, her chances of attending high school are only abut 15%. My goal is to find out what factors affect her decision to attend high school, and what can be done to encourage other girls to as well. I really believe that educating females is the best ways that Ghana can improve. By giving half of their population an education, the business sector will double, health will improve, family planning will be more prevalent, domestic abuse will decrease, and a whole host of other benefits. The school I visited yesterday had a statue that summed it up well: “Educate women, educate the nation.”
My research is split into three parts. The first is to meet with officials in charge of public education. I’ve talked to the Minister of Tertiary Education, the district Minister of Education, and the regional Girls’ Education Officer, as well as gather all available statistics on the subject. This part was interesting but it was largely idealistic – what the government would like to see, rather than what is actually happening. To find out the reality, I went into rural villages and surveyed 200 primary students, 140 JHS students, and am currently surveying SHS students. With the help of a translator, I ask them about their career goals, educational path, and what problems they face in school. Yesterday I analyzed the data for primary and JHS and it was really exciting to see patterns emerge. Now I’m on the third part of my research, which involves one-to-one personal interviews with students where they can openly tell me about their experience with the educational system. This part is my favorite, since it gives the students a chance to speak and be heard in their own words. I’ll be doing interviews for the final two weeks and wrapping up my paper after that. I love learning about the educational system here. The students have so much to teach me, and each day I go into it with an open mind, not sure what I’ll find out but excited all the same. I’m really grateful to have the opportunity to learn and expand my mind like this; it’s definitely been an once-in-a-lifetime experience."
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