Psychosocial Support Offered to Learners: A Case of Gwanda District

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the efficacy of interventions by multi-sectoral organisations in enhancing educational opportunities for school-going orphaned children in Gwanda District in Zimbabwe. The thrust of the study was to interrogate whether these interventions addressed holistically the needs and rights of the orphans who were registered under the organisations. Using the child rights-based and human needs theoretical frameworks as a dual lens, the investigation adopted the mixed-model type of mixed methods research premised on the post-positivist paradigm. The total sample of participants comprised 4 organisation representatives, one representative for each of the four categories of multi-sectoral organisations, 426 school-going orphans and 26 school authorities. The data collection instruments were self-administered questionnaires and researcher-administered questionnaires (structured interviews). The study found that only two of the categories of multi-sectoral organisations were implementing psychosocial support programmes. It was established that all the orphans under government and non-governmental organisation were not availed with psychosocial support interventions and thus had missed out on the educational opportunities which were inherent in the psychosocial support programmes availed to their counterparts. Rated on the nature and scope variable, the conclusion was that, psychosocial support interventions were limited and fragmented in the coverage of both organisations and orphans and thus were deemed not efficacious in enhancing educational opportunities for the school-going orphaned children in Gwanda District.