Exploring rural primary schools Maasai women Teachers’ constructions of womanhood: A case of Kajiado County, Kenya

Abstract

Women form the majority of the world’s population. Despite this, their representation in politics, economic and social spheres of life are minimal due to how society constructs their womanhood. This societal construction has been used to socialize women and girls into stereotypical feminine roles and jobs, hence limiting their capability to harness their full agency. It is on this basis that this study sought to understand how Maasai women teachers construct their womanhood in Kajiado County, Kenya. The objectives of this study were; to explore how primary schools Maasai women teachers construct their womanhood within the Maasai cultural context in Kajiado County, Kenya, to explore how primary schools Maasai women teachers construct their womanhood within the teaching profession in Kajiado County, Kenya and to explore how primary schools Maasai women teachers construct their womanhood within Kajiado County, Kenya. This qualitative study was guided by the interpretive paradigm and the phenomenological research design. The theoretical framing of the study was the social constructionist theory. Data was generated through drawings and focus group discussions with rural primary school Maasai women teachers. Participant selection was done through purposive sampling. Thematic analysis was used to get meaning from the generated data. The findings of this study reveal that the Maasai women teachers constructed their womanhood in accordance with their socialization within the Maasai cultural context. Their constructions were based on normative (what society expects of a Maasai woman) assumptions of womanhood like procreation, mothering and the male gaze (lenses on how male members of the society view a woman) like being submissive and beautiful. Within the teaching profession, the women teachers constructed their womanhood through liberal lenses, thus constructing their womanhood as inspirational and knowledgeable role models. Within Kajiado County, the women teachers constructed their womanhood as an empowerment powerhouse. Thus, based on these findings, it can be concluded that education played a major role in how these Maasai women teachers constructed their womanhood positively. This study, therefore, recommends; that provision of education among Maasai communities could benefit women and girls in constructing their womanhood and femininity positively; That provision of inclusive quality education among Maasai communities, especially rural communities, such that women and girls can become agents of change and lastly, education contributes to the socio-economic and political spheres of Maasai women and the other women in the country at large.