Mixed-Methods Research: Empowering Adolescent Girls in Practice: An Example from a Girls’ Leadership and Empowerment through Education Project in Mali

• In Event: Girls and Women Leading the Way: How Clubs Empower Changemakers

Proposal

Adolescent girls in Mali confront a host of barriers to educational access. Although enrollment rates for boys and girls have risen over the last 20-30 years, a gender gap has persisted nationally, with girls enrolled at a lower rate (68.1 percent gross enrollment rate in lower primary school) than that of boys (69.1 percent). After the coup d’état in 2012, normal systems and processes were fractured, leaving approximately 1 million primary school-aged Malian children out of school. Over the last 11 years, the conflict in Mali has further unraveled the fabric of government institutions and services, including two additional coups, numerous teacher strikes, and the closure of 1,710 of schools across the country (Cluster Education, 2023). This has particularly affected the northern region of Mopti, where the ongoing conflict has further prevented girls from enrolling and staying in school.
Under a donor-funded Girls Leadership and Empowerment through Education (GLEE) program, our NGO in partnership with an external evaluation team and a Malian research firm took a deep dive into the experiences of adolescent girls in the program, their families, educators, and other community members. This was the third study carried out by the external evaluation team, with the original project baseline (quantitative) and mid-project research study (qualitative) serving as precursors to this final evaluation.
In Mali, traditional gender norms combine with multiple factors, such as the uncertain security environment, to marginalize girls and women and exclude them not just from the education system but also from education-focused programming. The external evaluation team used triad interviews with adolescent girls, in an effort to encourage adolescent girls/young women to share their experiences and perspectives. Research often focuses on the view of expert stakeholders, including government officials and teachers in the education field. Mixed-methods research can help generate knowledge that is grounded in specific times and places, opening the possibility of new insights and improved ways of doing, yet it remains under-utilized. Research is particularly underutilized in situations of insecurity and conflict, where situations can develop rapidly and create an unpredictable environment.
The power of bringing girls and communities together to combat harmful gender norms can bring out significant changes for girls’ trajectories and educational attainment. The mixed-methods research facilitated an approach that looked deeply into the project best practices and lessons learned. The generated insights and recommendations will guide future project implementation, resulting in increased efficiency and effectiveness. The original project design did not directly ask adolescent girls their perspectives on programming, but GLEE is now equipped to help put the lived experience of young women both in and out of school at the center of future programming. We recommend that more projects harness the power of protest in education by engaging vulnerable and marginalized populations in creative ways, generating insights about the specific contexts in which they operate, and innovating to improve implementation.

Author

• Brenda Sinclair, Independent Expert