Child Labor, Learning Problems, and Poverty

N

24

Foreign Countries; Child Labor; Poverty; Learning Problems; Reading Achievement; Mathematics Achievement; Scores; Comparative Analysis; Agricultural Occupations; Statistical Analysis; At Risk Students; Learning Disabilities; Barriers; Hypothesis Testing; Student Records

Ghana; Africa

In Africa, approximately 80 million children are working. Africa's 41% child labor rate is nearly twice as high as that in Asia. This study examined whether child labor is a direct result of poverty or of reading and math problems in school. The study analyzed reading and math scores of 62 child laborers and 62 non-child laborers from a farming district in the central region of Ghana. The region was chosen due to its high farming population and an equally high nonfarming population, with both groups living under the poverty limit of less than $2.00/day. Intellectus Statistics version 1.01 was used for data analysis. Results using a paired samples t test showed that compared with non-child laborers, child laborers had significantly lower reading scores and math scores (t(61) = -10.96, p < 0.001, and t(61) = -8.43, p < 0.001, respectively). Thus, learning problems may be one factor associated with child labor and should be considered in programs that work to combat child labor.

As Provided

44

2018

ED580822