Teachers’ attitudes towards discussing menstruation with boys and girls 1. Male teachers

Most male teachers in Kenyan schools felt uncomfortable discussing menstruation with schoolgirls. They thought that it was not their role to educate girls about menstruation and they were not prepared, or confident enough, to share the information with their students because they had not received formal training (Chandra-Mouli, 2017: 6). One primary school principal in this study found it challenging to educate boys and girls about menstruation and indicated that he would separate the classes. He said the following:

I would get a female teacher to speak to the girls and I would talk to the boys. As (an) educator you do not always know what the reaction with (each) specific class will be.

What prior knowledge do they have? What are their capabilities? You have to keep in mind where they are. They are not comfortable to (be) asked questions freely and even on the topic of menstruation. If both boys and girls are together in the classroom, I find it difficult. I will skip certain sections as a male teacher.

This statement indicates that the principal was uncomfortable discussing reproductive health, including menstruation, with his pupils. Furthermore, a Grade 7 male teacher in the current study indicated the following:

I do not touch on the topic. It is part of the curriculum in Natural Science, but I do not cover that section. The school principal (a female) does that. If I really have to do it and there is nobody else willing to touch on the subject, I will approach it in a very clinical way, it is based on facts and I will handle it factually from a biological perspective.

88 Stryker (1980: 56) observed that within their social environment humans interpret the meaning of their actions and behaviour in a physical, biological and psychological way, noting that

“these words represent conditions that are or can be taken into account by seeking their ends.

Conditions that can guarantee, enhance, impede, or deny the success of their efforts.'' Language as a symbolic system refers to different aspects of these worlds for the actor to give meaning to human interaction. Furthermore, Blumer (1986: 81) explains that “self-indication is a moving communicative process in which the individual notes things, assesses them, gives them a meaning, and decides to act on the basis of the meaning”. Words explaining social objects, such as menstruation and hygiene management and, for the purpose of the current study, the schoolteachers, as actors, provide meaning and interpretation of menstruation, the action as well as the opportunity to educate boys and girls about the topic during the interaction with self and others.

In this study, a senior school male teacher described his experience of educating boys and girls about reproductive health as challenging for him because, as a Xhosa male, he found that “some of them want to entertain more about the topic and then you have to discipline them. We do not call these names in Xhosa because in Xhosa the names do not sound good and are not very sensitive. So that is most challenging. You would explain it in English and not in Xhosa.” The Xhosa language is the mother tongue of learners at this particular school and therefore explaining menstrual health to the learners in their own language was explicit and crude, according to the teacher. The English terms of reproductive health do not always provide the same meaning and interpretation as in Xhosa.

5.2.7.2. Female teachers

Some female teachers in the current study found it challenging to educate boys and girls about menstrual hygiene management. A Life Orientation teacher at a public high school explained her experience of teaching boys and girls about menstrual health:

I think some of the boys are not informed and they do not always know how important certain topics are like menstruation. So, in co-education schools, it seems like the boys do not really pay attention when it is a topic relating to girls. They joke and do not realise what the significance is of what is being taught. So, it can be difficult where boys and girls are together.

89 This teacher felt intimidated by the boys’ behaviour when she was speaking about reproductive health and stated that it created an uncomfortable atmosphere in the classroom. Askan et al.

(2009: 903) explain that “symbolic interaction is a process including the interpretation of action because symbolic meaning might be formed differently for anyone”. Hales et al. (2018: 5) conducted research in India suggests that some boys would use their minimal knowledge to tease girls about menstruation. The teachers in their study observed that the root of these acts was embarrassment. They further explained that the males in India believe that menstruation was not important to men and therefore it was a taboo topic and should be kept hidden.

According to the literature, males globally perceive menstruation as dirty and shameful (Asha et al., 2019, Hales et al., Kirk et al. and Sommer et al., 2015) The behaviour or actions of boys had a different meaning and interpretation for the teacher in her study and therefore made it difficult for this teacher to educate boys and girls together. A senior school principal in the current study said: “…it could be challenging. Boys can be very embarrassed about it and a lot of giggling is going on. It would be quite difficult in a bigger group situation.” At certain schools in this study, the teachers experienced difficulties in controlling the learners when educating them about reproductive health, including menstruation, because the learner ratio per class was above the norm. For example, learner ratio per class or teacher in South African schools are normally, for primary schools, 40 and for senior schools, 35 learners per class. Certain primary and senior schools in the current study had higher numbers of learners per class and therefore teachers found it challenging to discuss reproductive health with their learners (Politic web, 2012).

5.2.7.3. Methods of involving boys in the conversation of menstrual hygiene management

Hales et al. (2018: 6, 7) suggest some strategies for teaching boys about menstruation and menstruation hygiene management. The teachers in their study in India agreed that it was the educational system’s duty to educate boys and girls about the biology and physiology of their bodies but added that it needed to include menstrual hygiene management and cultural ideology, and that it needed to deconstruct the negative perceptions about the female body (Hales et al., 2018: 6). Furthermore, Hales et al. (2018: 7) confirm that the Indian teachers had mixed opinions about whether boys and girls should be taught together or separately. The first opinion was to educate girls separately from the boys until such time as they felt comfortable.

The second view was that by teaching mixed classes, boys could be sensitised to the topic of menstruation and to practice more mature behaviour towards girls.

90 One high school Life Orientation teacher in the current study thought that “…boys should know (about menstruation) so that girls can feel comfortable and not be embarrassed…because in the future they will be fathers who raise a girl”. The teachers in India, according to Hales et al.

(2018: 6), agreed that the appropriate age to educate boys around menstruation was 13 to 14 years. These teachers tried different approaches to educating children about menstrual hygiene management at school, including workshops, open discussions, lectures, role-play and shared experiences. However, Johnson-Robledo et al. (2013: 27) disagree with separating boys and girls when teaching them about puberty because it gives the impression that this is a ‘special’

topic and not an open discussion. Johnson-Robledo et al. (2013) further explain that private or separate conversations between mothers and daughters creates a notion that menstruation should never be discussed openly because it is an embarrassing event, creating stigma around the topic. One primary school principal in the current study indicated that he separated the boys and girls “…because then the girls would feel more comfortable and ask questions and boys as well might be more open and comfortable to ask questions. If I had to deal with that topic, (with) both boys and girls in the situation, I would like to have done it separately (or separate). Explaining to them, it might be a bit embarrassing with the opposite sex (in the class) with them.”