Students will be out of the long holiday in less than a week and some of them may have experienced sexual, gender-based violence. In all societies, women and girls have less power over their bodies, decisions and resources.
Many marginalised adolescent girls in Kenya face considerable risks and vulnerabilities that affect their education status, health, and general well-being.
It’s disconcerting how little is being said how returning to school for these students might be stressful and might affect the psychological well-being of these young adolescents.
The survivors mostly suffer in silence, preferring to keep silent and safeguard themselves from the trauma due to shame. Kenya is still country struggling to achieve sustainable development goal 4 — quality education — due to equipment shortage, strikes of teachers and inadequate pay.
These students might face challenges in improving their grades due to stress, and most of them do not get any counselling whatsoever. Students spend considerable amount of time in school, while teachers strive to meet the academic needs of students, its important to take into consideration the mental health problems of these children.
Many children spent their holiday in an already challenging environment such as abuse and neglect from the guardians and family members.
The question I pose is how can the schools help children find positive ways to express feelings of fear and sadness?
Many children find it hard to open up to a ‘stranger’ and sometimes being friendly with them, instead of shouting and commanding them on what to do can greatly help. Many of the teachers have a communication gap with the students, for which the children find it difficult to deal with some of the simplest issues in life.
School-based professional will help to address the emotional, social and behavioral needs of the students. The schools should always stay prepared to help curb these stresses and anxieties.
They should provide the mental wellness support where, the survivors need to process their pain, understand them and keep them safe. Age appropriate comprehensive sexuality education, which includes a wide range of information, including gender-based violence prevention, will help adolescents in schools.
Miss Nthiana is a sexual reproductive health advocate at NAYA KENYA
