What do we know about the effects of school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV) on education and health outcomes?

Session Submission Type: Group Panel

Description of Session

Despite progress in reducing gender inequalities in access to primary school in low-income settings, policy makers and researchers have increasingly questioned whether girls’ schooling, in its current form, effectively transforms inequitable gender norms, or merely reflects and reinforces those norms (Chisamya, DeJaeghere, et al. 2012; UNESCO 2014; Mensch, Clark, et al. 2001). One area of focus for this discussion has been school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV), which the United Nations (UN) defines as, “acts of sexual, physical or psychological violence inflicted on children in and around schools because of stereotypes and roles or norms attributed to or expected of them because of their sex or gendered identity” (UNGEI & UNESCO 2013).

Beyond its immediate psychological and physical effects, SRGBV, which is often perceived as targeting girls disproportionately, may affect school performance and attainment, as well as the longer-term health and well-being of survivors (Greene, Robles, et al. 2013; Kim & Bailey 2003). However, despite policy attention to SRGBV (UNGEI & UNESCO 2013; USAID 2003), the research to date on this issue has been largely qualitative (Human Rights Watch 2001; Leach, Machakanja, et al. 2000) and descriptive (Afenyadu & Goparaju 2003), with few quantitative analyses linking the experience of SRGBV to education and health outcomes (USAID 2003). Further, little is known about the extent to which boys also experience violence in school, and the potential effects on boys themselves, as well as on girls and women.

The purpose of this panel is to present evidence from low income settings of the effects of school violence on education and health outcomes, and the potential benefits of interventions seeking to prevent and address school violence. A clearer understanding of these relationships can inform more effective interventions, and motivate policy-makers and practitioners to actively address this important issue.

Sub Unit

• Committee: Gender & Education

Chair

• Stephanie Psaki, Population Council

Individual Presentations

• What do we know about School-related Gender-based Violence? - Margaret Greene, GreeneWorks LLC; Omar Robles, Women's Refugee Commission; Krista Stout, University of Toronto, Faculty of Law; Tanja Suvilaakso, Plan Canada

• The Effects of School-related Gender-based Violence on Education and Health Outcomes in Rural Malawi: A Longitudinal Analysis - Stephanie Psaki, Population Council; Erica Soler-Hampejsek, Population Council; Barbara Mensch, Population Council

• School violence and Adult Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence: Findings from the IMAGES Study in Eight countries - Ruti Levtov, Promundo US; Brian Heilman, ICRW; Gary Barker, Promundo

• Using School-based Programs to Change Adolescents’ Attitudes and Behaviors Related to Gender, Violence, and Health: Findings from India and the Balkans - Brian Heilman, ICRW