The journey into motherhood and schooling: narratives of teenage mothers in the South African context

ABSTRACT

In recent years there has been growing awareness about teenage motherhood, a phenomenon constructed as an economic and social concern in South Africa. This article presents a narrative inquiry undertaken with seven teenage mothers on their experiences of schooling and motherhood at a rural secondary school in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study illuminates how the young mothers are positioned by dominant social narratives, how they position themselves through their own stories, and how they navigate existing narratives. The findings show that dominant pathologising narratives of deviance, shame and stigma shape the social realities of the young mothers. The young mothers receive limited support from the school to assist them in navigating barriers to curriculum access and quality education. Although extended families and community members provide networks of support, these are fragile in a context of poverty and disadvantage. Nevertheless, the findings show that although teenage motherhood and parenting remain stigmatised in the particular schooling context, the young mothers display resiliency and agency in the ways in which they navigate difficulties and commit to completing secondary education. The paper argues for interventions to support young mothers who have returned to school that are framed by a social justice education agenda.

KEYWORDS:

• Teenage mothers
• schooling
• narrative inquiry
• social justice education
• resiliency
• agency

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jaqueline Naidoo

Dr Jaqueline Naidoo is a lecturer at the School of Education, University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her research explores issues in teacher development, social justice education, HIV & AIDS education, teacher emotions and narrative methodology.

Nithi Muthukrishna

Professor Nithi Muthukrishna is Emeritus Professor in the School of Education, University of KwaZulu-Natal. She has published widely in the areas of childhood studies; disability studies; diversity studies; social inclusion/exclusion; and social justice education.

Rosemary Nkabinde

Rosemary Nkabinde is a postgraduate student at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her research interest is teenage motherhood and learner parenting.