With data covering the period from 2001 to 2011, this study investigated trends in basic school enrolments and gender parity in the Eastern region of Ghana using the combined paradigm or the mixed research approach. The population of the study was the enrolment of basic schools in all the districts in the Eastern Region of Ghana and the sample comprised enrolment data from 2001 to 2011 in all the Districts in the Region. The main objective of the study was to investigate the trends and gender parity in the eastern region. The study analyzed the existing EMIS data on enrolment and compared the gender parity index (GPI) from 2001/2 to 2011/12academic years. Specifically, the study looked at GPI at the regional and districts levels focusing on 2001/2, 2006/7 and 2011/12 academic years. The Braiman (2003) Excel was used to analyze the data. The study found that there had been an improvement of enrolment in the Eastern region from the 2001/2 academic year to 2010/11 academic year. The analysis showed that there had been an increase in the enrolment in both the primary school and junior high school levels especially the period from 2006/7 to 2010/11 academic years. However, the increase in enrolment of girls in the primary schools did not reflect the same trends in the junior high school levels in the Region. There had been a wide gap between the primary school and the junior high total enrolment within the study period. The study also found some disparities of GPI in the districts of the region. In other words, the GPI varied from district to district in the region. It is recommended that further research using primary data be conducted to find other reasons necessary for the decreasing enrolment in girls particularly as they climb the academic ladder. The study emphasized that Girl child retention should be a primary concern of policy makers. The emphasis over the years has been how to increase enrolment in schools and not retention. Measures should therefore be taken to ensure that girls complete full cycle of their education.
Keywords: Basic School Enrolment, Gender Parity, Gross Enrolment, Net Enrolment, Retention, Trends in Basic Schools.
