Secondary Education Achievement in Senegal: Comparing Rural and Urban Perspectives on a Middle School Exam

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the urban bias in educational progress through examining the perceptions surrounding a government mandated exam at the end of middle school in Senegal. Data from a rural middle school, CEM de Leona, and an urban middle school, CEM Amadou Fara Mbodji was collected to understand from a qualitative research view the value and perceptions of preparing for Brevet de Fin d’Etudes Moyennes (BFEM - Certificate of the End of Middle School Studies). There are four actors who play a role in the preparation of students for the exam: the administration, the teachers, the students themselves, and the students’ families. While the variables existent within this framework determine the individual success of students on the exam, urban and rural differences maintain the largest polarity in perspectives and passing rates.