The impact of life skills education on reducing the number of early pregnancies among primary school pupils in Tanzania

The study assessed the impact of Life Skills Education (LSE) in reducing the number of early pregnancies among primary school pupils in Tanzania. It focused on the teachers’ knowledge levels for effective teaching of LSE to realize its objectives. The study was conducted in six primary schools in Kibaha district, Coast Region. The researcher used the qualitative research approach and the case study design. The study involved 104 respondents: The Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) Director, the District Education Academic Officer, the Chief Inspector of Schools, six head teachers, thirty teachers, five parents and sixty pupils. The study employed purposive and stratified random sampling techniques. Data were collected through interviews, focus group discussions, documentary review and questionnaires. Qualitative information was subjected to content analysis, while for quantitative data frequencies were tallied and percentages were calculated then summarized in tabular form. The findings revealed that although the LSE curriculum content was integrated in existing primary education subjects, there was ineffective teaching of topics on health care and moral values. Factors such as the low quality of students joining teachers’ training programmes, little time devoted to LSE during the training programme, limited opportunities for induction and in-service training (INSET) for LSE curriculum implementers, improper teaching strategies, insufficient teaching and learning facilities, poor infrastructure, pupils’ lack of knowledge and socio-cultural setbacks contributed to this state of affairs. It was concluded that the poor teaching of LSE in schools resulted in there being limited impact on reducing the number of pregnancy cases. It caused pupils to have inadequate knowledge and skills to combat daily challenges. It was recommended that the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training should provide funds for teachers to have regular INSET and student teachers to be well trained, in order to manage and implement the LSE curriculum effectively.