Effect of Early Marriage

Kristine V. Tomas
III-Bs-Social Work
Research 1

The Effects of Early Marriage to the Educational Attainment of Children in Sta Ines West, Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac

CHAPTER 1
THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND
INTRODUCTION
Child marriage is defined by the World Health Organization (2005) as the period between 15 and 19 years of age when girls contract a permanent sexual relationship. At a global and national level, there has been growing concern about girl-child marriage age (The Family Life Movement of Zambia, 2006; UNICEF, 2005). This is because girls who marry early are twice as likely to die from childbirth and are more vulnerable to pregnancy-related complications, sexually transmitted diseases, and higher levels of reproductive mortality and morbidity. Despite these, a number of girls get married earlier than expected in Uganda (UNICEF, 2005; World Health Day: Safe Motherhood, 2007), which shows that the problem still looms at large with a mean age of early marriage at 15.5 years (UNICEF, 2005). Historically, individuals were allowed to enter into a marriage contract at a very young age. In Ancient Rome, the appropriate minimum age was regarded as 14 for males and 12 for females. When Rome became Christianized, these age minimums were adopted into the ecclesiastical law of the Catholic Church. This canon law governed most marriages in Western Europe until the Reformation. When England broke away from the Catholic Church, the Anglican Church carried with it the same minimum age requirements for the prospective bride and groom. The minimum age requirements of 12 and 14 were eventually written into English civil law. By default, these provisions became the minimum marriage ages in colonial America. These common laws inherited from the British remained in force in America unless a specific state law was enacted to replace them. Encyclopædia Britannica 2005. While Roman, Catholic, English, and early American law may have allowed marriage at 12 for girls and 14 for boys, many questioned the advisability of such early unions. Researchers and policymakers around the turn of the twentieth century recognized that teens may be especially ill-prepared to assume the familial responsibilities and financial pressures associated with marriage. As a result of the changing economic and social landscape of the United States, in the latter part of the nineteenth century and throughout the twentieth century, individual states began to slowly raise the minimum legal age at which individuals were allowed to marry. In the United States, as in most developed countries, age restrictions have been revised upward so that they are now between 15 and 21 years of age. Although uncommon in most developed countries, early marriage is still prevalent in developing countries around the world. According to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW, 2003), the practice is highest overall in West Africa and in south and central Asia. Although rates vary considerably from country to country, in Bangladesh, Cameroon, Mali, Mozambique, Nicaragua and Uganda, more than half of today’s 20–24-year-old women married before turning 18. The increase in number of early girl age at marriage may be due to low academic achievement and low spirituality among girls but requires a study to be conducted for empirical evidence. Evidence shows that academic achievement among Ugandan girls is lower compared to boys (Kasente, 2005; MoES, 2006; Muhwezi, 2007; Wagwau, 2008). The indicator of academic achievement is a student’s progression from one class to another and can be measured in terms of student attrition (that is school dropout and class repetition) and academic performance (Bean,2007). The dropout rate at secondary school for girls in 2005 was 7.6 percent while that of boys was six percent (Muhwezi 2006). The rate for girls had gone down to 6.9 percent while that for boys was still at six percent. In the number of dropouts was 48,570, of whom 25,679 (52.9%) were girls and 22,891 (47.1%) were boys (MoES, 2006). Thus, school attrition is higher for the girls than boys at the secondary level (Kasente, 2005). Early marriage contributes to a series of negative consequences for both young girls and the society in which they live. It is a violation of human rights in general and of girl’s rights in particular. For both girls and boys, early marriage has profound physical, intellectual, psychological and emotional impacts, cutting off educational and employment opportunities and chances of personal growth. This study focused on girls, as early marriage impacts upon girls in far larger numbers and with more intensity. Besides having a negative impact on girls themselves, the practice of early marriage also has negative consequences on their children, families, and society as a whole. UNICEF (2005) argued that it is not only girls that pay for early marriage but also the society as a whole. Population pressure, health care costs and lost opportunities of human development are just a few of the growing burdens that society shoulders because of teenage pregnancies. Early marriage also undermines international efforts to fight against poverty in developing countries. Bunch (2005) made it clear that the widespread practice of child marriage makes it increasingly difficult for families to escape poverty in the developing world. This is because girl-children, when married off at an early age, are denied an opportunity to access education and be equipped with skills that would make them productive. In addition, they can be exposed to HIV/AIDS at an early age and, if infected, their health may not allow them to be productive. Thus, this undermines critical international efforts to fight poverty, HIV/AIDS and other development challenges, making billions of dollars in development assistance less effective. According to Erickson's identity vs. role diffusion, the years of puberty (12 years old to 18 years old) may be a time for confusion because adolescents are trying new roles as they transition into adulthood (Strong & DeVault, 2008). To make a successful transition, they need to have a sense of self. As with every marriage, there will be stresses and strains but because adolescents. Many factors contribute in causing early marriage, among which are traditional practices, myths about early marriage, social and economic pressures. Moreover, these causes lead to harmful consequences and violation of human rights; since early marriage deprives young girls of their right to attain education, enforces them into a maturity level at an early age, expose them to health risks, captivates their freedom, and in some cases leads to divorce. Unfortunately, early marriage is not prohibited, and according to international conventions, early marriage is still being practiced making young girls the victim of this abuse. The researcher motivation in doing the study primarily came from it’s about early marriage problem and issues about them, between the subjects of the study, and lastly the problems and issues about early marriage will one of the problem of social workers encountered. The study will be a good training ground for the researcher to materialized and apply all the learning specifically the principles, techniques and skills in social work. The research problem is about the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of children; the existence of the problem is already proved and showed in the information above. It is the view of the researcher that early marriage continues to increase daily in spite of the awareness being created by government and non-government agents over the dangers of early marriage which posses problem to the entire society. The researcher believes that it is relevant to study the major causes and effects of early marriage in order to enlighten people about the dangers in contracting such marriages where people involved are not matured to carry out family responsibilities but were still pushed into marriage due to one reason or the other.
Statement of the Problem This study aimed to answer the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of children in Sta. Ines West, Sta Ignacia, Tarlac. Specifically, this study tries to find out the following 1. What is the profile of the respondents according the following: a. Age of during the marriage: b. Gender: c. Number of children: 2. What are the educational attainments of the children of the respondents? 3. What is the reason for early marriage? 4. What are the factors that contributed to the educational attainment of the children. 3.1 Economic 3.2 Social 3.3Emotional 3.4Physical

Significant of the Study The finding of the study has a great value in preventive the effects of early marriage so that in their near future it will have an effect to the educational attainment of children. It will be useful for the couples or young couples who experiencing early marriage. The researcher is not advocating for early marriage, it’s just that their respondents are at that age and no longer can be track back. The main objective is to know and see what are the possible effects of early marriage in the educational attainment of children. Furthered, the findings, conclusion and recommendation of this study could be useful as a resource material for future researches. As a social worker, this study could be a big help as an educational material about the impact of early marriage. This could be an eye opener to the youth clients regarding involving themselves in early relationships.
Scope and Limitations This study focused on the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of children. The respondent of this research were those who entered on social union and also to those who got married during the age of 13 to 17 yrs old and who are now age of 45 yrs old and above. The research started to gather data from January to June 2013. The main instrument to gathering the data was interview and self-administered questionnaire. This study dealt mainly on the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of the children in Sta. Ines West, Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac. The names of the respondents were not included because of confidentiality. Descriptive method is used to evaluate the study.

Definition of terms
Educational Attainment- refers to the highest degree of education on individual has complicated
Marriage- it is a social union or legal contract between people could spouses that establish right and obligation.
Early marriage- those who get married during the age of 13 to 17 yrs old and who are now age of 45 yrs old and above.
Children- a child is people you have give birth t your son or daughter, a person who hasn’t yet grown up, someone inexperienced in a certain thing or someone behaving in an immature manner.
Effect- refers to something produced by an action or a cause.
Economic- in this study, it refers to the finance of family
Emotional- in this study, it refers to the expression of feelings in children
Physical- in this study refers to the external appearance of children
Social- in this study, this refers on how the respondents deal with other people.

CHAPTER 2
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES This chapter will comprises the review of literature as well as studies and readings which the researcher has collected from both local and foreign sources that provided relevant information in relation to the present study. This chapter will review the literature available concerning the general relationship between the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of children. Prior to the examination of current research information regarding the relationship of the variables, the literature review will briefly cover the operational definition of early marriage; general and ethnic issues related to early marriage; and information regarding the factors relating to early marriage. To understand factors related to early marriage it is important to consider the Hmong's marital traditions and family unit. Lastly, the literature on the effects of early marriage have on education will be included.
Related Literature Early marriage refers to any marriage of a child younger than 18 years old, in accordance to article 1 of the convention on the right of the child. While child marriage affects both sexes, girls are disproportionately affected as they are the majority of the victims. Their overall development is compromised, leaving them socially isolated with little education, skills and opportunities for employment and self-realization. This leaves child brides more vulnerable to poverty, a consequence of child marriage as well as a cause. In 2005, the median age at first marriage was 26.7 for men and 25.0 for women (U.S. Bureau of the Census). Maintaining a marriage is not easy in a society where one out of every two marriage will end in divorce. Early marriage is followed by early divorce for many, so it is not surprising that teenage marriages are likely to fail. The probability of divorce early in the marriage was nearly four times as high for couples married while still under twenty years old than for couples who twenty-five years or older at the time of marriage ( Levine & hennessy,2005). There have been several studies done on early marriage and family formation in minority groups but few with the hmong population. The hmong have now become america’s third largest and fastest growing minority group (cowart & cowart, 2006). In 2005, there were approximately 110,000 hmong Americans living in Wisconsin and Minnesota (Vang, 2005). In most communities across the nation, a majority of hmong adults are unemployed and most hmong households have incomes below the poverty level (Hutchinson, 2006). The hmong population has faced many difficulties as a result of living in the united states such as language barriers, conflicts in values and social norms, and cultural changes. The traditional value placed on marriage and the significant clan linkages resulting from it are still very important in hmong life (Trueba, Jacobs, & Kirton, 2005). Found that more than half of teenaged hmong girls in highschool will be married and have their first child before their senior year. (Hutchinson and Mcnall, 2006) Early marriage is still a common practice and is often kept a secret until the girl turns 18 years old. When these female adolescents become pregnant, they are seen by the schools as single teen mothers. In many parts of the world parents encourage the marriage of their daughters while they are still children in hopes that the marriage will benefit the children both financially and socially and relieve financial burdens on the family. In actuality, child marriage is a violation of human rights, comprising girls’ development and often resulting in early pregnancy and social isolation, with little education and poor vocational training reinforcing the gendered nature of poverty. At the same time, a concern has been raised about increasingly low spirituality among girls (Irving, 2009; Kagwa, 2006). Spirituality is an individual’s attitude, feelings and behavior related to spiritual activities (Beyerlein, 2007). Kagwa (2006) observed that the number of young girls’ attitudes, feelings and behavior that are not related to spiritual activities was increasing at an alarming rate, citing naked girls dancing for audiences at night. Young school girls who was involved in pornography (Rugyendo 2008).It has been shown elsewhere that academic achievement and spirituality strongly influence early marriage (Bean,2007; Kraig, 2001; Lehver, 2001). However, these studies have been conducted outside the context of Uganda. Child marriage usually refers to two separate social phenomena which are practiced in some societies (international center for research on women’s (ICRW) report, 2005). Child marriages may have many purposes: the nobility of some cultures tend to use child marriage among different factions or states as a method to secure political ties between them. For example, the son or daughter of the royal family of a weaker power would sometimes be arranged to marry into the royal family of a stronger neighboring power, thus preventing itself from being assimilated. In the lower classes, if they were fortunate, families could use child marriages as means to gain financial ties with wealthier people, ensuring their successions.(Locoh,2005). In Africa, despite many countries enacting a marriagble age of 16-18, customary and early marriages are widespread (Bayisenge, 2010). Observed that this phenomenon s still widespread in many developing countries with a high prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa more particularly in central and West Africa. In many tribal systems a man pays a dowry to the girl’s family in order to marry. This in many parts of Africa decreases as a girl gets older. Even before puberty, it is common for a married girl to leave her parents to be with her ‘husband’. Many of the marriage therefore are poverty related, with parents seeking a dowry to feed, clothe, educate and house the rest of the family. A male child in these countries is still more likely to gain a full education, gain employment/pursue a working life and therefore they tend to marry later. In mali the girl: boy ratio of marriage before age 18 is 72:1; in Kenya, 21:1. The various UN commissioned reports indicate that in many Sub-Saharan countries there is a high incidence of marriage among girls aged less than 15. Many governments have tended to overlook the particular problems which child marriage has resulted in. Throughout the world, marriage is regarded as a moment of celebration and a milestone in adult life. Sadly, the practice of early marriage gives no such cause for celebration. All too often, the imposition of a marriage partner upon a child means that a girl or boy’s childhood is cut short and their fundamental rights are compromised (UNICEF, 2005; Lefevre, Quiroga and Murply, 2008). The positive effect of educational attainment and school enrollment in raising age at marriage has been documented. With an increase in girls’ schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa, there has been a growing recognition of the importance of secondary schooling and thus, a steady decline in girl-child marriage age (Lloyd, 2006). Marriage is found in all cultures. It is a process by which individuals select their life partners. It is an old institution which regulates the term upon which male and female reproduce according to well defined and acceptable social norms. The “early marriage” is used to refer both formal marriages and informal unions which a girl lives with a partner as if married before age 18 (UNICEF 2005; forum on marriage and the rights of woman and girls 2001). Early marriage, also known as child marriage, is defined as “any marriage carried out below the age of 18years old, before the girl is physically, physiologically, and psychologically ready to shoulder the responsibilities of marriages and childbearing”. Child marriage, on the other hand, involves either one or both spouses being children and may take place with or without formal registration, and under civil, religious or customary laws. The convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimation against women (CEDAW), the most comprehensive international bill of rights of women, states that any betrothal or marriage of a child should not have any legal status. The committee that any monitors this convention states further in general recommendations 21 (articles 6 (2)) that the minimum age should be 18 years, the age when they have attained full maturity and capacity to act. Most early marriages are arranged and based on the consent of parents and often fail to ensure the best interest of the girl child. Early marriages often include some elements of force. (Otoo-Oyorteyand pobi 2005). “Early marriage is not just a result of cultural practices. The muslim code allows it. Challenging the practice of early and arranged marriage needs evidence-based argumentation which we hope this research will address,” Marriage takes place for economic, cultural, religious, social and emotional reasons. In many countries, especially among poor, migrant or displaced communities, marriage at a young age is common. Usually it is girls who marry early (thought it can happen to boys as well). The gender inequality present in all aspect of society, including education, leads to girls often lacking life skills and negotiating power. Therefore, while most boys have a say in when and who they marry and what they do once they are married, many girls do not get the chance to make these decisions. Early marriage of girls and boys impairs the realization and enjoyment of virtually every one of their rights. The imposition of a marriage partner on children or adolescents who are in no way ready for married life, and whose marriage will deprive them of freedom, opportunity for personal development, and other rights including health and well being, education, and participation in civic life, nullifies the meaning of the CRC’s core protections for those concerned. Unless measures are taken to address early marriage, it will continue to be a major stumbling block to the achievement of human rights. This digest is intended merely as a starting-point, drawing attention to apractice that has been neglected by both women’s and children’s rights campaigners in recent decades. It is hoped that it will provide an incentive for a campaign to prevent early marriage and end the silent misery of millions of girls in many countries around the world, to open up new horizons for them, and contribute to the development of policies, program and advocacy to bring this about. Early and arranged marriages are common practice in muslim culture in the Philippines where about 5 percent of Filipino muslim live on the southern island of Mindanao. Muslim has a different set of rules governing marriage, divorce, custody of children, among others.
Synthesis
In US, the early marriage is a secret because turning 18 yrs old they have a one child, because from high school they are engage to early marriage before senior year. Hutchinson and Mcnall (2005). The early marriage is arranged and base on consent of parents because of some elements to force. In Africa, the early marriage is tolerated, because of practice and because of their culture and tradition. “Early marriage is not just a result of cultural practices. The muslim code allows it. Challenging the practice of early and arranged marriage needs evidence-based argumentation which we hope this research will address,” Marriage takes place for economic, cultural, religious, social and emotional reasons. In many countries, especially among poor, migrant or displaced communities, marriage at a young age is common. This study mentioned of the present study because they also involved the teenager engaged of early marriage. The literature and studies about early marriage in other country is practice and traditional, but in Philippines, in Mindanao, the early marriage is practice because they adopt the tradition of china earlier that consent/force of parents, pursue the conduct of this study, although the researcher is trying to look at other possible factors that contribution to educational attainment of children like self interest, trends and famous personalities.

Conceptual Framework
The tables include the input, process and the output.

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT
| | | | | |
|Profile of the respondents | |Conduct interview, counseling, observation, | |To educate the teenager about early marriage;|
| | |interpret and analyze data and application of | |to motivate the teenager who already engage |
|Factors that contribute effects of early | |social work techniques, skills and principles.| |to early marriage; |
|marriage to the educational attainment of | | | |To inspire those teenager to study hard for |
|children | |Techniques: | |their future and not thinking about having |
| | |Small talk | |early marriage. |
| | |Support | | |
| | |Principles: | | |
| | |Confidentiality | | |
| | |Individualization | | |
| | |Non judgmental | | |
| | |Acceptance | | |
| | |Skills: | | |
| | |Timing | | |
| | |Focusing | | |

Figure 1
Paradigm of the study

CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY

This chapter deals with the Research Design information on the subjects selected and the procedures used. In addition, the instrument used to collect information was being discussed. Data collection and statistical treatment were also being reported.

Research Design In presenting an interpretative data gathering, the descriptive methods were called for because, the study will focus on the present and existing condition, the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of children in Sta. Ines West, Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac. Specifically this research design are used to determine the demographic profile of respondents; the educational attainment of the children of the respondent; the effects of early marriage to the educational attainment of the children; and the factors that contributed to the educational attainment of the children; economic factor; social; emotional; and physical. These results of this study were the basis for the recommendation that the researcher made.
Participants of the Study The respondents of this study were the selected parents who age of 45 yrs old. To gather data the researcher use questionnaire and interview with the respondents. Wherein the researcher prepared a set of carefully prepared and logically ordered questions.
Instrumentation
The main instrument that was in gathering the necessary data in this study was questionnaire and interview. A self-administered questionnaire were distributed to the respondent who were 45 yrs old and above, the first part answered the profile of the respondents while the last part will seeks to answer the factors that contributed to the education attainment of the children.
Data Gathering Procedure The research was gathered the participants of respondent in Sta. Ines West, Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac. The respondent is selected through random sampling. The researcher were administered the questionnaire to all the respondents. The research also conducted interview to all the respondents after they are answered the questionnaire to clarify their responses.
Statistical Treatment Simple percentage, frequency distribution with the different variables was used by the researcher. The data gathered was, tabulated, analyzed, tallied and interpret. This serve as the basis for the findings interpretations and conclusions, as well as recommendations.
Percentage was computed as follows:
Where:
P – Percentage n – number of respondents under each category
N – total number of respondents
Percentage of each score was computed by using the formula P= (n/N)x 100.

CHAPTER 4
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS, AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

Data can be better appreciated and effectively used when they have been thoroughly presented, analyzed and interpreted. Analysis enables the researchers to interpret the results of the study and answer the research question or study objective. In this chapter, a descriptive presentation of the study and the appropriate statistical tools used in analyzing data to answer specific research questions are discussed. 1. Profile of the Respondents
Table 1 presents the profile of early marriage to the educational attainment of the children in Sta. Ines West, Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac. This includes the following: Age Bracket, gender, age upon marriage, and number of children. Age From the table it shows that sixteen (16) or 32 % are within the range of 46 – 50 years old. The second is thirteen (13) or 26% of the 40 – 45 years old, the third is eleven (11) or 22% of the 51 – 59 years old, and last is ten (10) or 20% years old range. Based on age of the respondent, 46 – 50 years old is the highest range in the profile of the respondent. Gender It shows in the table that thirty seven (37) or 74% of the respondents are all females and thirteen (13) or 26% are males. In Africa, many tribal systems a man pays a dowry to the girl’s family in order to marry. Age upon marriage It shows in the table that fifteen (15) or 30% are engage in early marriage, second is twelve (12) or 24% are engage in early marriage, third is eight (8) or 16% are engage in early marriage, fourth is seven (7) or 14% are engage in early marriage, fifth is five (5) or 10% are engage in early marriage, and six is three (3) or 6% are engage in early marriage. According to the respondents who are engage in early marriage, most of them are engage at age of 16 years old. Number of children refers to the children of the respondents. It shows in the table that twenty-five (25) or 50% are the highest rate number of the respondent, second is eighteen (18) or 36% are number of children in the respondents, and seven (7) or 14% are the lowest number of the number of the children in respondents.
Table 1
Profile of the Respondent
|Age bracket |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|60 above |10 |20% |4 |
|51 – 59 |11 |22% |3 |
|46 – 50 |16 |32% |1 |
|40 – 45 |13 |26% |2 |
|Total |50 |100% | |
|Gender |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|Female |37 |74% |1 |
|Male |13 |26% |2 |
|Total |50 |100% | |
|Age upon marriage |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|18 |3 |6% |6 |
|17 |5 |10% |5 |
|16 |15 |30% |1 |
|15 |12 |24% |2 |
|14 |8 |16% |3 |
|13 |7 |14% |4 |
|Total |50 |100% | |
|Number of children |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|10 above |0 |0% |4 |
|9-7 |7 |14% |3 |
|6-4 |18 |36% |2 |
|3-1 |25 |50% |1 |
|Total |50 |100% | |

2. The educational attainment of children in the respondents. Its show in the table that fifteen (15) or 30% are the highest rate of the educational attainment of children of respondents are mostly elementary graduate, second are twelve (12) or 24% are high school graduate, third are six (6) or 12% are graduate in vocational, fourth are five (5) or 10% are in the college level, fifth are two (2) or 4% are in the high school level, and lastly are ten (10) or 2% are graduate in college.

Table 2

Educational Attainment of Children of Respondents

|Educational attainment of children |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|Elementary Grad. |15 |30% |1 |
|High school Grad. |12 |24% |2 |
|High school level |2 |4% |5 |
|Vocational Grad. |6 |12% |3 |
|College Grad. |10 |2% |6 |
|College Level |5 |10% |4 |
|Total |50 |100% | |

Table shows that teenage marriage has affected the educational attainment of their children (rel lit)

3. Reasons for early marriage

Table below shows the reasons for the early marriage of students. Frequencies and percentages were presented

Table 3

Reasons for Early Marriage

|Reason For Early marriage |Frequency |Percentage |Rank |
|Because of poverty |14 |28% |1 |
|Non-education |9 |18% |3 |
|Family Conflict |12 |24% |2 |
|Separated parents |7 |14% |5 |
|Arranged marriage |8 |16% |4 |
|Total |50 |100% | |

It show in the table that Fourteen (14) of 28% of the respondents answered that the number reason for their early marriage was poverty followed by family conflict with 24 % and non education with 18 %, arranged marriage with 16% and separated parents with 14% are the lowest answered for the reason for early marriage.

4. Effects of the early marriage to the Factors that contribute to the educational attainment of children

The following are the effects of the early marriage to the factors that contribute to the educational attainment of children in the respondents.

Economic

“Efficient of financial”

“No job”

“nakikihanap buhay kami ng asawa ko para maitaguyod na makapagtapos ng pagaaral ang mga anak ko”

“Walang pambili ng project ang mga anak ko”

Social

“mahilig silang makihalobilo sa ibang bata”

“mas naging totoo sya sa sarili nya”

“Friendly sya”

“aktibo sya sa pamilya”

Emotional

“Hindi naman sya pala-away na bata”

“wala naman ako napansin na kakaiba sa kinikilos ng anak ko”

“lumaki syang may takot sa ama”

“hindi naman lagging nagiisa”

Physical

“hindi naman sya sakitin”

“laging malusog”

“May kapansanan”

“lagging nakakasakit”