Possible Effects of Menopause on the Ability and Educational Performance of Postgraduate Women in Nigerian Universities

Menopause is an aspect of ageing that is peculiar to women. There are different stages of menopause namely; perimenopause (which is the early stage of menopause with irregular menstruation), premenopause (which is the year leading up to the last period ever) and postmenopause (which takes place after the last period ever). Menopause is universal and inevitable. It comes in a subtle and gradual manner with obvious symptoms that usually render women weak, passive and unable to perform certain day-to-day activities that require mental alertness and physical strength. This study examines the possible effects of menopause on the agility and educational performance of postgraduate women in Nigerian Universities. Three hundred postgraduate women from three universities in Southern Nigeria were randomly selected for the study. Questionnaires entitled “Effects of Menopause on women’s agility and Educational performance” were used for collecting the data. The results/fi ndings indicated that women attended classes irregularly and participated in class activities passively; thus, performing poorly in educational activities at the perimenopausal stage, but perform better at the postmenopausal stage. The results also revealed that women are weak and fragile at the perimenopausal stage and slightly agile or stronger at their postmenopausal stage. The conclusions and recommendations are based on these results and they include: making learning more democratic for women at the postgraduate level, postgraduate institutions need to establish a counseling section for the sake of women with bio-psycho-social problems. Also, postgraduate women must not be engaged in rigorous exercises, and they should be given enough time to react to teaching-learning activities.