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Sustainable development goal number five aims to achieve gender equality and
empower all women and girls. Kamunge report recommends that schools and
universities provide guidance to university applicants to enable them make right
choices. The purpose of this study was to explore the correlation between career
guidance and career choice among girls in secondary schools in Vihiga County. The
objectives of the study were to: establish the forms of career guidance services offered
to girls, investigate the professional training levels of career guidance teachers,
determine the effectiveness of career guidance services in enhancing academic and
career choice competencies among girls, establish the level of stereotyping and its
influence on career choices among girls; and establish the relationship between career
teachers’ professional training in career guidance and effectiveness of career guidance
services offered to girls in secondary schools. The study embraced a mixed method
approach. The study targeted 4,628 form four girls of 2012 in mixed and girls’
secondary schools in Vihiga County. There were 112 mixed and girls’ secondary
schools in the county. Sampling was done using probability and non-probability
sampling. Non probability sampling included simple random sampling and stratified
random sampling to select 30 schools, 15 of which were girls’ schools and 15 mixed
schools. Non probability involved purposive sampling to select 30 principals, 30 career
guidance teachers,4 district Quality and Standards Assurance officers and one county
director of education. Data was collected using questionnaires, content analysis and
interview schedules. Quantitative data was analyzed using frequencies, means,
standard deviations, Pearson’s product moment correlation, t-test and Analysis of
Variance (ANOVA) while qualitative data was analyzed thematically. For all statistical
tests, the alpha (significance) level was set at .05. The result of the analysis indicated
that there was a statistically significant correlation among the students’ perception on
guidance and counseling services’ effect on academic performance and career choice, r
= 0.513, p< 0.05, teachers’ perception on guidance and counseling services’ effect on
academic performance and subsequent career choice, t(58) = 2.035, p < .05.The forms
of career guidance were mainly class counseling (83.3% ) and group counseling,
(71.45%), involving subject choices and filling of joint admission boards forms. Career
guidance teachers’ training level was found to be 57.2% trained and 42.8% untrained.
On stereotyping, principals and career teachers agreed (means 4.12 and
4.61respectively on a Likert scale of 1to 5) that female students consider math, sciences
and geography difficult. The study found out that schools that were better equipped and
staffed, with many career guidance programs had better performance and sent more
students to public universities who got admission into a variety of careers. The study
concluded that career guidance is an essential component yet many schools are not
adequately funded, equipped and staffed for it. It recommends that career guidance be
incorporated into mainstream curricular .The study has practical implications for the
ministry of education and school administrators to revamp career guidance and
demystify careers in fields such as science, technology, mathematics and other
emerging ones, for the girl child. The study recommends enactment of career guidance
department in schools, infusion of career guidance in curricular and training of career
guidance specialists. The findings will help in achievement of SDG number five and
consequently goals 1,2,3,4 and 8. |
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