Family Life Education Needs of School Children: A Study in Akwapim Akropong

Abstract

Research on children's Family Life Education needs has resulted in changes in the structure and contents of Ghana's basic education for children and the development of policies for youth on their sexual and reproductive health. Since the 1990s there has been a growing amount of information and education from various sources—homes, schools, social clubs, and the media. The quality of information pupils gain equips them with knowledge and tools with which they can plan their future, even while they protect themselves from debilitating and fatal conditions, such as too early and unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS. Adolescence is such a relatively short and transitional stage, when a child develops into and takes on the roles of an adult, that it is necessary to continually study and discuss current groups of young people's mundane life experiences. This paper presents the daily life experiences, constraints and aspirations of Junior School pupils in Akwapim Akropong, where education for both boys and girls has been encouraged for over 150 years, and residents experience the influences of both urban and rural life. (Inst. of African Studies Research Review: 2002 18 (1): 43-50)