Violence and educational quality : effects of violence on the learning outcomes of students in Cameroon

Abstract

This study examines violence and its relation to learning outcomes of secondary school students in Cameroon. The study interconnected with educational quality values of accessibility, inclusiveness, favorable learning climate, tolerance, and responsible behavior. The government of Cameroon has attempted to uphold these values through legislation. In spite of this position, violence at school is still observable on a daily basis, not respecting the human rights of children and young learners and hindering them from learning. The study was to understand the effects of violence on their motivation and self-esteem, and its influence on their learning outcomes and the research question focused on the extent of violence in education. A model was operationalized measuring physical violence, psychological violence, structural violence and sexual violence at school and at home, mediated by self-esteem, motivation and health to the learning outcome, quantified by class repetition, grades and reading enjoyment. The study was designed using a quantitative approach with cross-sectional survey for students. Questionnaires were designed from approved scales which had been adopted to the Cameroonian background by two pretests. Data had been collected from a sample population of 924 students in grades four to seven in Cameroon. The data collection was approved by the regional authorities. The collected data was transformed by controlling the social background and reflecting different types of experiences of violence. The collected information was analyzed using descriptive statistics (means, standards deviation), and inferential statistics (ANOVA). The results indicate an acute prevalence of school violence. Students in Cameroon are affected by four ways of violence. About 20 % of students feel physical violence and psychological violence. More than half of the students’ experiences structural violence and about 23 % have experiences of sexual violence. As a zero-policy on experienced violence is the wished standard, the huge ratio of violence in the life of students in Cameroon becomes visible. The study shows that these experiences of violence affect the self-esteem and the motivation to learn. However, a significant relation between different forms of violence and school grades was not found in this study. In addition, the study shows the poor school quality, and a very discouraging socioeconomic background of students. In the perspective paradigm, the schools are neither an environment of the protection of students nor open spaces for real-world transmission of values. Violence remains a challenge. This requires coordinated and focused action. The study develops a number of suggestions for school practice to overcome this situation and suggests follow-up studies.