An ambitious study to understand why 100 000 young people drop out of school every year
Break Poverty Foundation, which analyzes the factors leading to extreme poverty and promotes the best actions to prevent it, has undertaken a review of the mechanisms that cause educational failure and social exclusion.
This work consisted of a review of field surveys carried out with young people experiencing difficulties at school or in finding employment, the compilation of 150 works by researchers, the exploitation of available statistical data, interviews with numerous professionals and the production of new analyses. This has enabled us to confront a number of preconceived and false ideas about school dropout, its origins, and policies to prevent it, with the reality of the facts.
The study also offers a better understanding of who these young people are: from what backgrounds do they come, and what is their family model? Finally, this study highlights two priority areas for investment to improve the lot of young people who drop out of school: initiating profound changes in the school institution, and strengthening and upgrading extra-curricular support for young people who don’t fit in at school.
Download our study to understand the true stakes of this critical situation and explore concrete solutions to act now.
100000
That's the number of school dropouts per year in France, according to the Education Nationale. Among these drop-outs, 48% are children of bue-collar workers. This unbearable fact compels us to mobilize to support these young people in difficulty.
A few preconcieved ideas about school dropout
The situation for young people is improving
In reality: In absolute terms, yes. We’ve gone from 200,000 school dropouts a year to 80,000 in the space of 50 years. But while more young people are graduating, there are also more young people aged 16 to 25 who, after leaving the school system, remain outside employment and training for very long periods. Graduation rates have risen, but those without diplomas are in a much more precarious situation than before: 50% are unemployed three years after leaving school, compared with 25% 20 years ago.
Dropping out of school affects all social backgrounds and can occur at any age. This makes it difficult to prevent
In reality: The group of dropouts is relatively homogeneous. It is essentially made up of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, who have experienced difficulties since first grade, whose fathers are inactive, employed or blue-collar workers, and whose mothers have no qualifications or few qualifications. Targeted, effective solutions are therefore possible.
There is already so much done for these young people
In reality: The scale of the measures put in place by the French Ministry of Education to combat school dropout is very limited. Initiatives aimed specifically at the weakest pupils (SEGPA, Ulis, classes 3e des métiers, dispositifs relais etc.) remain marginal. As for the voluntary sector, it frequently encounters difficulties in targeting the most disadvantaged pupils. The support of public and private players is vital to enable them to support more and more young people.
It's up to schools to fight the dropout problem
In reality: When a young person is having difficulties at school, it’s important to do some in-depth work on non-school and non-cognitive aspects (perseverance, self-confidence, self-control…). Is this the role of the school? In part, yes. But it is also, and above all, outside the school walls, through cultural, sporting and civic activities, that students can acquire the tools and personal resources to escape the threat of dropping out of school.
At the age of 11, everything is set
In reality: Certain personality traits, such as perseverance and self-control, can still be modulated long after the age of 11. Yet these qualities are decisive for a successful professional career. So it’s never too late to support a young person who’s dropping out of school.
It would be too expensive to provide care for all dropouts
In reality: Investing in the fight against school dropout can be a highly profitable investment in the long term. Indeed, students who drop out of school generate a high cost for public finances, of around €240,000 over 40 years, according to a 2013 study by the Boston Consulting Group. This includes the cost of social assistance, healthcare, legal fees and lost tax revenue. Where the average cost of 4 years of college education is around €30,000 per young person.
Photo Credits : Andrew Ebrahim, Unsplash