Gender Differences in Awareness and Participation: Case of Information Sharing Practices in Maasai Community in Kenya

抄録

It is widely discussed that information sharing can bond the community and school to promote quality education services. This article attempts to examine how awareness and participation regarding children’s education differ by gender of parents before and after text-message information sharing practices in the Maasai community in rural Kenya. Our research does not reveal a simple gender difference in awareness and participation in schools, but more nuanced gender gaps in effects. On average, the positive relationship between accurate awareness of school performance and meeting attendance was much stronger for female guardians than male counterparts after information sharing. An interactive factor of gender and education level was negatively associated with awareness and meeting attendance at baseline, but such a relationship disappeared after information sharing. Furthermore, female guardians improved more awareness after information sharing than males in high-performing schools, while male counterparts reduced their meeting attendance more than female ones.