| dc.description.abstract | The right to education is an alienable right based on the theory of naturalism and
universalism. It is defined as the universal access to free and compulsory primary
education, universal availability and accessibility of secondary education and equal
access to higher education in Kenya is every human’s right. Nonetheless cultural
dispensations such as Widow Inheritance (WI), undermines the realization and
implementation of this universal concept. WI curtails widow: marital decisions,
infringes upon widows’ rights and by extension those of their children like nutrition,
healthcare, play, property inheritance, parental involvement and particularly the
opportunity to learn. This renders children unprepared to take up challenges and
demands of the early year’s curriculum with the right frame of mind. It is in this context
that the study sought to investigate the effects of widow inheritance on children’s rights
to early childhood education in Ugenya District, Siaya County, Kenya.
The study adopted a descriptive survey design to establish whether the renowned cultural
practice of widow inheritance negates or upholds the right of the affected children to
preschool education. The study used purposive and random sampling techniques. From
a target population of 1349 out of which 200 were sampled of whom 50 were widows,
100 were preschool children, 25 preschool teachers and 14 were from support groups.
Structured questionnaires and oral interviews formed major data collection tools
however, focus group discussion as well as story telling was utilized as a way of getting
the opinions of women leaders and first hand feel of children’s home situation
respectively. Collected data was coded and analyzed using the analysis of data where
frequencies and means was calculated and pulled into percentages.
The study concluded that widow inheritance has got diverse effects on children’s rights to
ECDE. Therefore the study recommends that further studies should be done in other
Districts for comparison and proper generalization of funding. | |
