Child neglect and literacy in selected primary schools in Katabi town council, Wakiso District.

Abstract

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to determine how child neglect relates to pupils’ literacy in selected primary schools in Katabi Town Council, Wakiso District. It aimed at achieving the following objectives: to find out the effect of physical neglect on pupils’ literacy, examine the impact of social neglect on pupils’ literacy and to establish the relationship between psychological neglect and pupils’ literacy in selected primary schools in Katabi Town Council, Wakiso District. The study specifically adopted a cross-sectional survey design with a sample of 144 respondents selected using simple random and purposive sampling. Instruments of data collection were questionnaires and interviews. Data from the questionnaires was analyzed by use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), while qualitative data from interviews was sorted, organized and analyzed narratively. The study established a very weak linear positive, but significant relationship between psychological neglect and pupils’ literacy (r = 0.132, p = 0.013). The findings suggest psychological neglect is likely to cause low literacy levels among the pupils. The likelihood of pupils’ literacy is explained by the positive linear relationship (r = 0.013). The study concluded that basic necessities have an impact on analyzing and reading and can affect reasoning and creating, that abandonment does not only have an effect on analyzing reading but also has a direct link with writing ability and that criticism affects ability to analyze and read greatly affects the child’s education. The study recommended that government and parents should provide basic necessities to primary school pupils so as to enhance their analyzing and reading, reasoning and creating as well as ability to write. In addition, parents and the relevant authorities should address physical neglect to boost pupils’ literacy; that community leaders and parents need to adopt appropriate measures that are aimed at minimizing abandonment since this has an effect not only on analyzing reading but also on writing ability among primary school going children. There is need for community sensitization to curb social neglect as this has an impact on pupils’ literacy and that there is urgent need for local communities and parent to adopt viable mechanisms and interventions to curtail criticism and threats as forms of psychological neglect because these affect abilities to analyze, read, writing ability, reasoning and creativity which greatly not only affects pupils’ literacy but also child’s education.