Parental Perception and Retention of Teen Mothers in Schools in Schools in West Pokot County, Kenya

The statistics indicate that teen mothers’ failure to return to school lower their chances of employment opportunities and make them more vulnerable. The purpose of this study was to evaluate parental perception on retention of teenage mothers in Public Secondary Schools in West Pokot County, Kenya. The statistics indicates that prevalence of teen mothers is higher than national average. Thus, there is need of the urgent interventions for retention of teen mothers in schools to enable teen mothers enjoy education opportunities. The study evaluated influence parental perception on retention of teen mothers in West Pokot County, Kenya. The research is based on Resiliency theory. The research focused on 1205 individuals categorized as principals, guidance and counseling teachers, and teenage mothers in West Pokot County, Kenya. The research used a descriptive design and gathered quantitative data through questionnaires, while qualitative data was collected through interview schedules. The survey was employed to gather quantitative data from guidance and counseling teachers, and teen mother learners, while the interview schedule gathered qualitative data from principals. The supervisors and expert from Educational Planning and Management verified the credibility of data collection tools, while reliability was assessed through Cronbach alpha. Descriptive statistics helped to summarize sample characteristics like means, frequencies, and standard deviation, while inferential statistics determined relationships between independent and dependent variables (regression and correlation) using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. The study established that parental perception had positive significant influence on retention of teen mothers. The study recommends that government should sensitize both school administrators and communities about re-entry policies and retention teen mother learners in schools. Lastly, the government and other supporting agencies should increase support for teen mothers to improve their retention in Secondary Schools in Kenya. Key words: parental perception, Retention of teen mothers.