IMPLICATIONS OF WIDOWHOOD FOR CHILDREN'S EDUCATIONAL CONTINUITY IN YENAGOA, BAYELSA STATE

Abstract

This study examines the lived experiences of widows and the socioeconomic implications of widowhood for children's educational continuity in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. The study argues that widows face life-altering realities as a result of widowhood that extend beyond physical, cultural, emotional, and psychological turmoil. However, widowhood also has economic implications, such as poverty and income loss, that affect their capacity for survival, sustenance, and stability within the household. Drawing from this argument, the study interrogates how poverty and income loss affect the educational continuity of the children of widows. The study adopted a qualitative research design and collected data through individual in-depth interviews with 12 purposively sampled widows in the Atissa Clan of Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, as well as complementing it with secondary sources. The study found that while poverty and income loss affect widows, given that most women in Yenagoa are economically productive and dominate the informal sector, children's educational continuity is less affected. Furthermore, the study found that in Atissa, Yenagoa, women are culturally accustomed to providing educational support for their children; the death of their husbands does not disrupt the children's education. The study recommends women's economic empowerment as a step towards socioeconomic adjustment to widowhood.