ABSTRACT
The study looked into the consequences of early marriage on married female students’ academic achievements in Nigerian universities.
The study’s goal was to determine the educational and non-educational consequences of early marriage on married female students’ academic results.
Purposive sampling was utilized to choose 225 married female students from UI, UNILAG, and FUTA.
The survey included a total of 183 respondents. To extract information from the respondents, a well-designed questionnaire was used.
The data was subjected to quantitative descriptive statistics techniques, and the chi-squared was used to test the hypotheses at.
a significance level of.05.
According to the findings, poverty is the primary factor for early marriage in Nigeria.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Most people’s lives are marked by three major events: birth, marriage, and death. However, only’marriage’ is an option among these three occurrences. The freedom to make that decision has been recognized as a legal principle since the Roman era and is enshrined in international human rights accords. Despite this, many young women marry without having the opportunity to exercise their freedom to choose. The majority of them are forced into marriage at a young or vulnerable age. Others are simply too young to make an informed decision about their marriage partner or the marriage’s consequences. In the eyes of the law, they may have provided ‘counsel,’ but in reality, they have consented to their obligatory advice. The axiom states that once a girl marries, she becomes a woman regardless of her age. Early marriage, or the marriage of children and adolescents under the age of 18, is still common in the country, particularly in the north. Early marriage can take many shapes and have many causes, but one concern stands out: it is a violation of human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948 and other human rights documents acknowledge the right to free and informed consent to marriage (Shehu, 2010; Bunting, 2012). Early marriage has significant physical, intellectual, psychological, and emotional consequences, and it has the potential to squander educational possibilities and opportunities for personal development. Marriage is seen as a means of guaranteeing and protecting the future for many young females in developing countries. Families drive girls into marriage while they are still children in the hopes that marriage will provide them with financial and social benefits (Shobba, 2009). Early marriage, on the other hand, violates children’s rights and has severe consequences. It jeopardizes their total development, leaving them socially isolated with little or no education, skills, or work options, as well as limited opportunities for self-realization. Married females are vulnerable to poverty as a result of these circumstances. These young women are expected to perform an unusually large number of chores, which includes new roles and responsibilities as husbands and moms.
The young bride’s status in the family is largely reliant on her, and she must frequently demonstrate her fertility within the first year of her marriage. She is not psychologically, emotionally, or biologically prepared for these roles at this time. Furthermore, while still children, girls are considered responsible for the care and wellbeing of future generations. Young women with limited decision-making authority, mobility, and financial resources are more likely to pass on their vulnerability to their children. As a result, early marriage contributes to the feminization of poverty as well as intergenerational poverty.
Early marriage leads to early pregnancy and parenthood, which has a negative impact on girls’ school education. Despite the fact that women’s education is valued, there are numerous obstacles in the way of women obtaining higher education.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Marriage at a young age is a sign of inadequate orientation. Marriage is seen as a moment of celebration and a turning point in one’s life all over the world. Regrettably, the practice of early marriage entails the denial of basic human rights. Young girls are stripped of their innocence and forced to take on roles for which they are not emotionally equipped. The majority of young girls have little say in the time of their marriages or who they marry. Some people are forced to marry, while others are too vulnerable to make an informed decision. Premature marriage denies them the chance to grow as individuals, as well as their rights to reproductive health, well-being, education, and civil participation. Although there is agreement in the literature that early marriage disrupts, disturbs, and distorts female students’ academic performance, this does not indicate that all students involved in early marriage perform poorly in school. The academic success of students forced into early marriage is jeopardized. Poor attendance in class, insufficient time to read and study, a shift in attention from academics to the wellbeing of the family, occasional disengagement, and poor time management. All of these issues have been linked to the consequences of early marriage on female academic achievement in previous research.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The study’s major goal is to look into the impact of early marriage on female academic achievement in Nigeria, utilizing three universities in the southwest as a case study.
The study’s particular goals are as follows:
The purpose of this study is to determine the possible causes of early marriage in Nigeria.
The purpose of this study is to see how early marriage affects women’s academic achievement in Nigeria.
The goal of this study was to look into the non-educational effects of early marriage on women’s academic achievement in Nigeria.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following questions of interest were raised in the study in accordance with the research objectives:
What could be the reasons for early marriage in Nigeria?
What impact does early marriage have on a woman’s academic success in Nigeria?
What non-educational effects does early marriage have on Nigerian women’s academic performance?
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
A hypothesis is a proposal based on limited data and evidence that is utilized to arrive at a legitimate conclusion and judgment. The following are the hypotheses proposed in this study:
H01: In Nigeria, early marriage has no substantial educational consequences for female academic achievement.
H02: In Nigeria, early marriage has no substantial non-academic effects on female academic achievement.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The outcomes of this study are extremely beneficial in the following areas:
Female students will benefit from this research by understanding that education is the only route to achieve bigger life goals, which will aid them in eliminating the inconsistencies that previously existed in girls’ education.
Parents will gain a lot from this study by learning that women’s education is not a waste, and that educating a woman educates a family, a nation, and that this will help them improve their attitudes and ignorance about girls’ education.
This study will benefit the government at all levels, including the federal, state, and local levels, by revealing that funds, increased access to education, and poverty reduction are all benefits of this study.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The influence of early marriage on female academic performance in Nigerian women who have experienced early marriage in three selected South-western universities, namely the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, and Federal University of Technology, Akure, was the subject of this study.
However, there are some limitations to the study, including:
a) Inadequate Research Materials: The researcher’s research materials are insufficient, restricting the study’s scope.
b) Time: The study’s time frame does not allow for broader coverage because the researcher must balance other academic pursuits and examinations.
c) Respondents’ unwillingness to engage in the poll out of fear of being victimized.
DEFINITION OF TERMS
Education is the process of facilitating learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, skills, values, beliefs, and habits.
Early marriage, often known as child marriage, is defined as a partnership between two people who are either under the age of 18 or both under the age of 18.
Academic Performance: Academic performance refers to a student’s, teacher’s, or institution’s achievement of their educational objectives. Exams or continuous assessment are routinely used to assess academic achievement, but there is no consensus on how best to test it or which parts are more significant.
REFERENCE
A. Bunting (2012); The Fundamental Human Rights: Contextual Diversity. Mc-Graw Hill, New York.
R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz, R. Daraz 3(4): 232-256 in Journal of Social Issues.
L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien, L. Goldien London: Sage Publications.
M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu, M. Shehu 29(1):73-86 in International Journal of Social Issues.
A. Shobba, A. Shobba, A. Shobba, A. Shobba, A. Shobba, A. Shobba, A. Sho 2(2): 970-976 in International Journal of Academic Research in Public Policy.
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