Early School Leaving Research Papers (original) (raw)

Much has been written about participatory approaches in planning and implementing research. The process and practice of participatory data interpretation and analysis is, however, less discussed. This article explores the value of the Voice-Centred Relational (VCR) method of data analysis and interpretation in the context of participatory research with socially excluded teenagers. Focussing on participatory data analysis, the implemen- tation of the method with teenagers in a West of Ireland town who have left school early is described. Written from the perspectives of academic researchers, members of a research team that included teenagers and a Community Arts artist, this article introduces the VCR method and describes the participatory processes, practices and pitfalls. The challenges of doing participatory interpretation with VCR method are considered.

Discussione della situazione del sistema formativo italiano rispetto all'idea e alle pratiche di valutazione diagnostica. Discusse alcune valenze di questo concetto, si esaminano le decisioni pubbliche relative a modelli e strumenti valutativi e in particolare rispetto alla duplice articolazione, interna ed esterna, che la valutazione diagnostica dovrebbe avere: la prima colloca i discenti su una scala costruita in base al parametro rappresentato dagli obiettivi. La seconda codifica l’insieme delle caratteristiche dell’individuo che incidono sull’apprendimento. Nella situazione di palude del sistema formativo italiano, soprattutto delle articolazioni centrali, si suggerisce di organizzarsi dal basso.

In this paper, the authors identify, analyze and discuss schooling factors that (negatively) impact the educational attainment of adolescents and young adults (12-24 year olds) in two national contexts that present close resemblances –... more

- by Pedro Patacho and +2
- •
- Social Justice, Spain, Portugal, School Failure

El fenómeno de la deserción escolar o abandono temprano de la escuela ha sido abordado con frecuencia por diversos investigadores, académicos y pedagogos de Europa, Norteamérica y Latinoamérica desde hace al menos 40 años (Gómez-Restrepo, et al.2016, entre otros). Las investigaciones relacionadas con la deserción escolar se han nutrido de un gran número de aproximaciones conceptuales y teóricas, así como de un importante número de trabajos de campo que han desarrollado por académicos y pedagogos en el escenario internacional. A pesar de la diferencia de enfoques y aproximaciones, múltiples investigaciones coinciden en señalar que el fenómeno de la deserción escolar rara vez se encuentra asociado a una única causa o factor, y por el contrario, resulta ser un proceso en el que intervienen muchos factores relacionados con las características o circunstancias individuales, familiares, escolares, comunitarias y/o de contexto territorial, que interactúan de formas complejas y dinámicas. Ese conjunto de causas, circunstancias o situaciones que aumentas las probabilidades de que un niño, niña o adolescente abandone sus estudios, se reconoce como un factor de riesgo asociado a la deserción escolar. Esta combinación compleja y superpuesta de factores de riesgo, plantea diversos desafíos que requieren estrategias e intervenciones de múltiples frentes para abordar muchos factores al mismo tiempo: desde las prácticas escolares, métodos de enseñanza, fomento del bienestar físico y emocional, hasta enfoques más integrales que buscan apoyar a los niños, niñas y adolescentes facilitando el acceso gratuito a servicios como el transporte y la alimentación para fomentar la permanencia en el sistema educativo. En este contexto, se presenta una propuesta para la implementación de Planes de Permanencia escolar, articulada alrededor de tres conceptos: Factores de Riesgo, Factores de protección, y gestión Integral del Riesgo Escolar; que concibe a la deserción escolar como un fenómeno originado por múltiples factores de riesgo que influyen, en muchos casos de manera simultánea, sobre la trayectoria educativa de los niños niñas y adolescentes, y que contempla a las Estrategias de Permanencia Escolar como el conjunto de factores de protección que deben ser desplegados por los actores del sector educativo, con un enfoque diferencial que incida en cada una de las esferas en las cuales se originan y prosperan los factores de riesgo, es decir, en los ámbitos individual, familiar, escolar, comunitario y/o territorial, incorporando tres proceso de gestión: Conocimiento, del riesgo, Reducción del riesgo y Manejo de eventos de ausentismo y deserción. Comprensión de las causas de la deserción escolar Como se mencionó previamente, existe un amplio consenso en la literatura respecto a que la deserción es un proceso multifactorial,

- by Hernando Jose Macias Alvarez
- •
- Education, Colombia, Risk Management, School

L’alternanza scuola - lavoro può aiutare a contrastare l'abbandono scolastico precoce e la dispersione scolastica, fenomeni che preoccupano tutti gli Stati europei e che sono al centro delle politiche educative europee e nazionali.
Si tratta infatti di aspetti cruciali, dai quali si può valutare lo stato di salute di un sistema educativo, ed è uno dei principali parametri di riferimento che la Commissione europea utilizza per la misurazione dei progressi fatti dagli Stati membri nel settore istruzione e formazione.
La Legge 107/15 ha stanziato 100 milioni di euro all’anno per l’alternanza a decorrere dal 2016, ma non ha apportato sostanziali modifiche di carattere ordinamentale alla normativa di settore.
Sono, invece, previste alcune specificazioni:
quantificazione del numero di ore (almeno 400 ore per tecnici e professionali, almeno 200 ore per i licei) da effettuare in alternanza nel secondo biennio e nell’ultimo anno;
i percorsi in alternanza sono finalizzati anche ad incrementare le opportunità di lavoro e le capacità di orientamento degli studenti. L'alternanza può essere svolta anche durante la sospensione delle attività didattiche;
il percorso di alternanza scuola-lavoro si può realizzare anche all'estero;
tra i soggetti presso i quali è possibile effettuare l’alternanza, sono stati inseriti gli ordini professionali e i musei e gli altri istituti pubblici e privati, operanti nei settori del patrimonio e delle attività culturali, artistiche e musicali, nonché con enti che svolgono attività afferenti al patrimonio ambientale.

Qu’est-ce qui amène les jeunes à interrompre, au moins temporairement, leurs études : l’envie de rejoindre la vie professionnelle, des difficultés personnelles ou financières, des relations conflictuelles au sein de l’établissement, une formation non choisie, etc. ? Une recherche conduite auprès de 1155 jeunes ayant interrompu leurs études secondaires dresse les principales raisons du décrochage directement évoquées par les jeunes concernés. Ces derniers condamnent fortement le système scolaire qu’ils considèrent comme inadapté, sélectif et injuste.

- by Maria Álvares
- •
- School Failure, Early School Leaving, English As a Second Language (ESL), Aep

Against the background of the EU2020 headline target of reducing early school leaving to 10% across Europe, this article examines the conceptual foundations of the understanding of inclusive systems for early school leaving prevention
that has emerged in EU policy documents and research reports in recent years.
Traditionally, inclusive education has referred to a focus on children with special educational needs. However, this conceptual review examines how inclusion is
increasingly being examined in broader terms.This review seeks to critically reconstruct foundational understandings of systems and resilience in developmental
and educational psychology. A systems focus on inclusion needs to address the
neglect in psychology of system blockages and power imbalances. Resilience is
typically framed as the capacity of the individual to navigate their way to environmental resources. This places the onus of accessibility onto the individual’s
efforts rather than a concern with responsive systems accessible to marginalised
groups. A concern with inclusive systems goes beyond not only the well-established framework of individual resilience in developmental psychology, but also
beyond its expansion into resilient systems, as these omit a focus on outreach and
multidisciplinary teams in systems of care for integrated services. Common principles for a framework of inclusive systems include children’s voices, equality and
non-discrimination, parental involvement that is integrated holistically with family support, and lifelong learning principles for schools. Illustrative examples of these principles for reforming authoritarian teaching and discriminatory bullying,
for opening schools to the local community and for targeting those with highest
levels of need are highlighted.

- by Paul Downes
- •
- Resilience, Bullying, Early School Leaving, Inclusive Systems
- by Bruno Coimbra
- •
- School Failure, Early School Leaving, English As a Second Language (ESL), Aep

This study analyses the development of policies and practice on reducing ESL after 2011, seeking to assess the contribution of the 2011 Council Recommendation on Policies to Reduce Early School Leaving (henceforth the 2011 Recommendation) and associated EU policy instruments to the development of policy, practice and research on ESL across Europe. The study looks at the leverage of EU policy on tackling ESL over the actions taken by key stakeholders at EU level and explores the extent of any influence between MS on their respective approaches to reducing ESL. The study also seeks to assess the added value of EU policy to tackle ESL in the Member States, and investigates the relevance, impact, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of the EU policy and tools on reducing ESL.

- by Paul Downes
- •
- Social Inclusion, School Climate, Multidisciplinary Teams, Early School Leaving

We look at determinants of early drop-out, using several case studies (schools) from urban areas.

This article reflects on the potential of non-formal vocational education in Uganda to improve the quality of life of those excluded from formal education. Based on an exploration of humanizing development theorists Sen, Freire and Nyerere, together with two case studies, practical empowerment is described as a desirable outcome of education for development. Practical empowerment includes acquiring
marketable skills as well as capabilities to critically give direction to one’s life. Although education leading to this outcome is desirable for all, non-formal vocational education can reach those currently excluded from formal education, thus enhancing their empowerment by equipping them with useful skills and knowledge.

- by Marit Blaak and +1
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- Non-formal Education, Uganda, Youth, Early School Leaving

لبنان هو من بين المجتمعات المعنية بموضوع الرسوب والتسرّب، وبتداعياته التربوية والإجتماعية والإقتصادية حيث يلاحظ أن المعدل العام للرسوب في صفوف مدارس مرحلة التعليم الأساسي قد تجاوز 14,5٪ عام 2007 في نهاية الحلقة الثانية ووصل إلى 30٪ في نهاية الحلقة الثالثة من العام نفسه، أما التسرّب في القطاع الرسمي فسجّل 17,8٪ في الصف السابع و11,9٪ في الثامن(1). وتتجاوز النسب المسجلة في مدارس القطاع الرسمي هذه المعدلات بشكل ملحوظ

- by Zouheir O Hatab
- •
- Early School Leaving

La ricerca presentata in questo rapporto ha voluto mettere a fuoco il bisogno di educazione dei minori nel
contesto locale, a partire dall’ipotesi che trascurare il problema sociale e umano del giovane abbia conseguenze devastanti non solo sulla persona ma anche, di conseguenza, sul futuro percorso di affermazione individuale e di inserimento lavorativo e sociale.
La ricerca, effettuata nel corso del 2008, è stata concepita e realizzata in stretta connessione con le fasi più operative del progetto Opere Sociali. Il rapporto comprende:
- l'analisi del modello di riferimento
- il contest socio-economico provinciale
- la dispersione scolastica in Provincia di Catania
- buone pratiche di contrasto alla dispersione

- by Elena Ragazzi
- •
- Sicilia, Early School Leaving, Formazione Professionale, Dispersione scolastica

Early school leaving is a considerable problem both for the individual and the family, as well as for the school and the whole society. Students who leave school without qualification have much worse opportunities in the future, regarding career, income, promotion, health conditions, etc. In Hungary, secondary school dropout is a current problem; however, its ratio must be under 10% by 2020 according to an EU strategy. There are several causes leading to school dropout, such as, family background, conflict between family and school, absenteeism from school, bad school achievements, weak school contacts, school failures, etc. The purpose of the research was to find the main causes of early school leaving-according to teachers' opinion. The research was carried out in a Vocational Centre among teachers in the form of self-administered questionnaire in 2017. In the questionnaire, five categories were identified (students' features, family, peers, teachers, and institution) that may contribute to dropout. The result showed that out of the five categories teachers think that mostly students and least the institution is responsible for dropout.

- by Csilla Marianna Szabó
- •
- Education, Science Education, Early School Leaving

In a one year old study, students with mild and moderate intellectual disability, used serious games in their educational practice. Communication, interaction, participation and motivation have been documented in a qualitative study using two different classrooms as case studies. In this paper we describe the documented process of these endeavors, as students turned from gamers into game designers. During the study we were able to document changes in the educational atmosphere, including change of roles and communication re-enforcement between students and teachers. Co-operative game design workshops were organized, as part of the European Project Code RED , targeting students in the risk of early school leaving (ESL), by using game design workshops as a tool of motivation and inclusion.

- by Maria Saridaki
- •
- Serious Games, Student Motivation And Engagement, Game Design, Game Based Learning

Over the past decades, there has been a substantial increase in post-secondary education participation in most Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and European Union countries. This increase, however, does not necessarily reflect a parallel equitable growth in post secondary education, and early school leaving is still an issue
of concern in particular regions and countries across the world. This paper presents a study on increasing participation in post-secondary education in Malta, the country with the one of the
highest proportions of early school leaving in the European Union. The study was carried out in a region with one of the highest rates of early school leaving in the country, making use of a phenomenological approach as well as a resilient systems perspective to early school leaving.
On the basis of students’ narratives, the study identifies a number of risk and protective factors in early school leaving and makes various suggestions on how to build more resilient systems to facilitate access to post-secondary education, particularly for students coming from low socio-economic, excluded backgrounds.

- by Carmel Cefai and +1
- •
- Resilience, Social Exclusion, Post-Secondary Educational Access, Early School Leaving

A presentation about the data resulting from the monitoring of the implementation of the Strategic Plan for the Prevention of Early School Leaving in Malta 2014, given during a national conference about Preventing ESL in Malta held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta, in April 2016. The conference was organized by the ESL Unit within the Directorate for Lifelong Learning and Early School Leavers.

- by Mario Cardona
- •
- Student Motivation And Engagement, Early School Leaving

Thematic report on the situation of Roma This report summarises the results of the large-scale survey conducted as part of the project 'Novel Approaches to Generating Data on hard-to-reach populations at risk of violation of their rights'. The project was funded under the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 (EEA FM) under call BGLD-3.001, programme 'Local development, poverty reduction and enhanced inclusion of vulnerable groups'.

- by Maddalena Colombo
- •
- Education System, School Dropout, Early School Leaving

This toolkit aims to support practitioners working with youth in identifying and monitoring students and schools in need of greater care and support. It is primarily focused on the situation of those young people who are at risk of early school leaving.
The publication is especially dedicated to school staff: principals, teachers, educators, pedagogical counsellors, class tutors and school psychologists. However it might also be helpful for educational specialists in alternative learning pathways.
This toolkit consists of five parts. The first part introduces the issue of early school leaving. It answers the questions what is the early school leaving phenomenon, what is its scale and why it is considered a problem.
The second part shows how to identify and monitor students and schools at risk of early school leaving. It presents the model of systematic data collection and analysis, as well as explains how the information gathered might be used to measure the most appropriate indicators of risk of ESL at the student and school levels.
The third part of this toolkit shows how to analyse data that are often naturally collected at the school (e.g. administrative data) in the process of identifying learners at risk of early school leav-ing. It provides examples of indicators of distress signals that can be used in that process The monitoring of those indicators gives schools the opportunity to prevent early school leaving and to reengage young people with school by providing them with appropriate care and support on time.
The fourth part contains the assessment tool which can be helpful in gathering information about the students’ characteristics that are relevant to the youngsters’ school engagement and educa-tional success. It is focused on students’ attitudes and beliefs that might increase the risk of early school leaving and which cannot be determined on the basis of the administrative data already gathered by the school. The questionnaire is preceded by detailed instructions on how to use that tool.
The last part of the publication aims to provide information about other valuable projects, tools and inspirations which may be helpful in determining youth at risk of early school leaving, understand-ing that process and tackling the problem.
The publication was developed on the findings from the RESL.eu research project. Detailed information about the research results supporting this toolkit can be found in the many publications and project papers. For more information and output from the project, please visit our project website: www.resl-eu.org.

In this publication we want to gain a deeper understanding of the interrelated processes of early school leaving (ESL) and school disengagement through the triangulation of the qualitative and quantitative data collected in Belgium (Flanders), UK, Sweden, Portugal, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain (as well as supplementary data collected in Hungary and Austria). An in-depth and multifaceted analysis of the educational trajectories of youth at risk of ESL from nine countries led us to create distinct types of trajectories that can provide more insight into the multifaceted routes to early school leaving, and which are used for the development of conceptual models of inspiring practices1 to tackle ESL. Therefore, the main aim of this publication is to provide a link between various educational trajectories and the practices to tackle ESL that can be implemented by schools, as well as other (educational) institutions that work with vulnerable youth, and entities responsible for creating educational policies.
This publication provides the readers with insights into the diversity of the youth’s educational trajectories and with possible ways to prevent students from school disengagement. By creating a conceptual model for inspiring practices, we want to ensure that such practices meet the specific needs of young people at risk of early school leaving and that they can be applied in heterogenous institutional educational contexts. For this reason, the model takes the form of general recommendations, rather than detailed, ready-to-use instructions.
The content of the publication is as follows. Firstly, we present the theoretical framework, the key concepts and methodological aspects of the RESL.eu project on which this publication is based. Secondly, in Part 2, we give an overview of the existing policies towards ESL in the countries included in the study. Next, in Part 3 selected results of the students’ survey are presented and analysed in order to provide the reader with a broad characteristic of the studied youth at risk of school disengagement and early school leaving. Then, in Part 4 we utilise a micro- and meso-level perspective to present the developed typologies of the educational trajectories of youngsters. Finally, Part 5 of this publication is devoted to the presentation of the conceptual model of inspiring practices for schools and alternative learning pathways2, based on the previous findings of the RESL.eu project. In this final section, we want to bring together insights from the micro-, meso- and macro-level in order to address the needs of young people in a holistic way.

Druhošancové vzdelávanie je základným kameňom vzdelávania dospelých. Otvára dospelým, ktorí z rôznych dôvodov predčasne opustili školský systém („early school leavers“) možnosť nadobudnúť vzdelanie, ktoré ich rovesníci už dávno majú, je tiež mostom k uplatniteľnosti na trhu práce a ďalšiemu vzdelávaniu. Základnými princípmi sú však dostupnosť, efektívnosť a rovnosť v jeho poskytovaní. V európskom priestore je jedinou organizáciou, ktorá sa zaoberá iba vzdelávaním druhej šance, Európska asociácia miest, inštitúcií a škôl druhej šance (E2C). V našich podmienkach je druhošancové vzdelávanie pod gesciou rezortu Ministerstva školstva, vedy, výskumu a športu a Ministerstva práce, sociálnych vecí a rodiny, absentuje však medzi nimi systémová spolupráca.

The paper summarizes proposals for improved monitoring of students in Malta at risk of early school leaving (ESL), and improved preventative measures. Administrative data for a full cohort of students in Malta were examined to identify risk factors for ESL, as well as gaps in existing practice for data collection and sharing. Issues identified included the lack of central access to student-level data, of comparable measures of achievement, SEN, behaviour and SES. Existing ESL measures were criticized for lack of targeting, and for a focus on the individual student. Suggested changes included the expansion of the Free Childcare Scheme, a much stronger focus on whole-school approaches to ESL prevention, including a parental engagement programme and increased time for reading instruction, and the option to complete terminal examination subjects in Maltese. Additional supports to schools with a high-need intake were also proposed. The paper is based on work sponsored by the EU’s Structural Reform Support Service, conducted by the IEA for Malta's Education Ministry.

- by Eemer Eivers
- •
- Education Policy, Malta, Early school Leavers, Early School Leaving

Early school leaving is considered an obstacle to economic growth and employment. It hampers productivity and competitiveness, and fuels poverty and social exclusion.
In Europe there are over 5 million of early school leavers and that only 40% of them are employed1.
“The EU average rate of early leavers from education and training in 2014 was 11.1%, down 0.8 percentage points from 2013. The improvement is in line with recent progress and, if continued, means that the Europe 2020 headline target of below 10% is within reach2. Nineteen Member States have rates of early leavers from education and training below the Europe 2020 headline target (Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Ireland, France, Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden), up from 18 in 2013. The rate fell under 10% for the first time in Greece, continuing a steadily declining trend. By contrast, it went up again above the target in Estonia”3.
The rate of early leavers from education and training is considerably higher among boys than among girls, in the EU average (12.7% and 9.5% respectively) and in all Member States except Bulgaria. Secondly, across the EU, early school leaving rates among the foreign-born population are nearly twice as high as the early school leaving rates for the native-born population, hinting at worrisome socio-economic discrepancies between the two groups.
In all Europe, the root causes of ineffective policies can be reduced to three typical deficiencies4:
- Lack of a comprehensive strategy: strategic approaches to address early school leaving are not yet broadly implemented in Member States, although there is a growing tendency to better link existing and new measures and develop more comprehensive strategies.
- Lack of evidence-based policy-making: only a few countries take a systematic approach to collecting, monitoring and analysing data on early school leaving
- Insufficient prevention and early intervention: stronger focus on preventive and early intervention measures is needed both at system level and at the level of individual education and training institutions.
To ensure the effectiveness of the policies advocated by the 2011 Council Recommendation, it is important to identify the main factors leading to early school leaving and to monitor developments at national, regional and local level.
It’s very important to apply advanced data collection systems, because high-quality monitoring is very useful in maximising the reduction of early school leaving. At the same time, the intervention measures must be designed in a way that can increase opportunity for young people, that does not lead to segregation in the education system. Combining general education with work experience can provide an alternative, and for some learners, more motivating path through education.

Early school leavers (ELET), normally face greater difficulties in successfully integrating in the labour market, earn less, have higher unemployment rates, and are more at risk of social exclusion and poverty than those who complete higher levels of education. This can have negative consequences not only at the individual level, but also for the society they live in. While youth unemployment has received wide attention by both researchers and policy makers, especially in some EU countries, it is also important to be aware of the fact that these young ELET are also probably more at risk of becoming inactive instead of unemployed (even more than their adult counterparts). These inactive individuals are potentially quite a disadvantaged group in terms of labour market integration and social commitment. Thus, it is worth paying attention to an indicator of “joblessness” which accounts for all those who are neither in employment, nor in education or training (NEET), as a more accurate proxy of the size of the group of individuals most at risk on the labour market. Thus, the main objectives of this technical brief are: 1) To provide some descriptive evidence on the size of ELET and NEETs across EU Member States using aggregate data from the Labour Force Survey (LFS); 2) To further examine how countries compare
with respect to school-to-work transitions of early leavers from education and training; and 3) To investigate the link between educational attainment and NEET status.

- by Valentina Goglio
- •
- Early School Leaving, NEETS

The EducOpera is an Erasmus + project that brought together 5 international partners to search for the way to recognize the skills and competences that young people may acquire during their opera education and in music in general. For the... more

- by Mojca Kovačič
- •
- Music, Education, Youngsters, Competences

El abandono escolar prematuro1 (AEP) se mide por el porcentaje de jóvenes entre 18 y 24 años sin
formación post-obligatoria y España tiene la segunda tasa más alta de AEP de la Unión Europea,
alrededor del 20%, situándose Cataluña en la media de las CCAA. Constituye el mayor indicador de
riesgo de exclusión de la población joven en Europa. Para comprender las trayectorias que conducen
al abandono y orientar las políticas europeas y estatales se ha llevado a cabo el proyecto Reducing
Early School Leaving in Europe (www.resl.eu) financiado por el 7º Programa Marco de la Unión Europa
entre 2013 y 2018 en 9 países, con la participación del grupo EMIGRA2 de la UAB como partner. El
proyecto se ha desarrollado a partir de una amplia muestra de centros y programas de las comarcas
del Vallès Occidental y el Maresme. Gracias a la financiación adicional de la Diputación de Barcelona,
se ha ampliado posteriormente con un estudio de caso que investiga la totalidad de la cohorte de 4º de
ESO del curs 2016-2017 en la ciudad de Sabadell. Este documento es el Resumen Ejecutivo del
informe completo (no publicado) sobre el estudio de caso de la ciudad, realizado con el objetivo de
fundamentar y mejorar las políticas locales de acompañamiento a la escolaridad en la lucha contra el
AEP, para su difusión pública.

- by Silvia Carrasco Pons
- •
- Education, Education Policy, Social Inequalities, Early School Leaving
- by Chichie Fadziera
- •
- Leaving Care, Parental Leave, Intention to Leave, Paternity Leave

Compared to girls, boys are more at risk of early school leaving. However, it is unclear whether gender differences are driven by push factors, which alienate students from the school system, or pull factors, which attract them out of it. This paper examines gender differences in early school leaving, assessing the role of previous scholastic performance, parental education, and differential employment opportunities. By analyzing two nationallyrepresentative datasets, we focus on Italy, a country with high rates of early school leaving and pronounced gender inequalities in the labor market. Our results show that gender effects are partially mediated by scholastic performance, a crucial push factor, and are stronger among low-achieving students, pointing to a higher resilience of girls to academic failure; parental education is highly protective, especially for boys. Yet, boys’ higher propensity to drop out is also, at least partly, explained by better employment opportunities in the formal and informal labor market.

The transition from school to the labor market (STWT) is a
a complex process, sometimes long-lasting and with very
different trajectories and outcomes. For some young
people, the process leads to precariousness,
marginalization, and exclusion, but for others, it leads to
success and socio-professional integration. When we talk
about NEETs and the transition from school to the labor
market, we tend to think that for these young people the
the process has been a failure; they have le􀀵 the education
system but have failed to integrate either socially or
professionally.
The scope of this Special Issue is to provide a platform for
researchers, professors, Ph.D. students, as well as
specialists in other fields (trainers, youth workers,
entrepreneurs, etc.), to share their research work in the
field of STWT, including aspects of employment,
unemployment, the relationship between the school and
labor markets, employment policies, the accessibility of
various forms of education, early school leaving, school
social exclusion and inclusion, and the relationships
between community, family, and NEETs, etc.

- by Neagu Gabriela
- •
- Sociology, ICT in Education, Youth, Labour Market

Early leaving from education and training (ELET) is a multifaceted and multicomplex phenomenon which has consequences on individual, social and economical level. According to that, it is one of the current priorities of the European Union in the field of education and training. Since the causes for early school leaving are often complex and interrelated, the policies to reduce it must cover a number of issues
(education, employment, labour market, health, youth work, work with parents, analysis of key stakeholders, housing, political participation, local strategies, strengthening the capacity of school staff, improving or changing the school culture etc.). Eurostat data and the progress report by the European Commission states that Italy and Malta have been specifically called upon to address the problem of early school leaving, while Serbia still have an issue with a dropout of children from minority and vulnerable groups, especially children from Roma settlements and youngsters with disabilities. This text aims to explore the situation in Malta, Italy and Serbia, to identify challenges and to provide recommendations on how to tackle ELET. The focus is on introducing successful education action and transferring best practices and innovative approaches regarding ELET.

- by Ljiljana Ćumura Žižić
- •
- Education, Early school Leavers, School Dropout, Early School Leaving

This report is part of a wider project to support Malta's Ministry of Education and Employment in developing a monitoring system for the identification of students at risk of Early School Leaving (ESL). The report is one of five deliverables from that project, and it provides a summary of approaches to ESL prevention that may be effective in Malta. Among the proposed approaches are an expansion of Malta's Free Childcare Scheme, the option of language choice in Secondary Education Certificate examinations, the adoption of whole-school interventions, and greater support for parental engagement with schools. The overall project was commissioned by the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service SRSS and awarded to the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement IEA.

- by Eemer Eivers
- •
- Early School Leaving
- by Joan Amer and +1
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- Sociology of Education, School Failure, Early School Leaving, English As a Second Language (ESL)

Given the rising skill demands in the labour market, early school leavers are a category at risk in European societies. Italy is one of the EU-28 countries where this phenomenon is most severe, since about one fifth of Italian young adults do not hold an upper-secondary degree. Despite the relevance of this topic for the equality of life chances, only a few works have investigated the causes and consequences of dropout from secondary schooling in the Italian context. Moreover, even if gender is a crucial dimension of inequality when considering the labour market opportunity structure, gender effects are usually accounted for, but not analysed specifically. By using ISFOL PLUS (waves 2005- 2011) and the “Early school leaving dynamics” (ESLD) survey conducted by ISFOL in 2011, we look directly at gender effects by studying if and to what extent boys more inclined to drop out from upper-secondary schooling than girls, and what are the labour market outcomes for boys and girls who did and did not drop out from high school. The main results of our analyses suggest the existence of different mechanisms for early school leaving for boys and girls, partially mediated by push and pull factors. We find that girls are less likely to drop out from secondary schooling even after accounting for previous scholastic performance, i.e. a key push factor. We argue that pull factors – and especially job-related motivations – may affect boys and girls differently due to differential labour market opportunities. The latter hypothesis is supported by the findings concerning the association between dropout and the area of residence of the pupils and the educational level of their parents. Finally, we analyse the current labour market.

- by Camilla Borgna and +1
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- Sociology of Education, Sociology of Work, Educational Inequalities (class; race; gender etc), Gender

This study focuses on comprehensive measures related to Early School Leaving (ESL) and on effective institutions in the Danish Education System, more particularly, on the everyday practices of the Youth Guidance Centre of Copenhagen (hereafter YGCC) and the Copenhagen Youth School System (hereafter CYSS) by giving voices to participants who work and study there. The research also points out the main role of CYSS in promoting school attendance through the lense of dropouts/at-risk students. For the qualitative inquiry, empirical data were collected from observations conducted in CYSS; a total of 18 interviews with former students; and a total of 20 interviews with a range of stakeholders including policy makers, school management, teachers and guidance counsellors. The qualitative research described herein had the potential to be more sensitive to the micro-processes of students' experiences in education in order to get a deeper insight into the characteristics of the Danish institutional network that adapts flexibly to the needs of students and of a local community.

- by Antoinette Schembri
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- Alternative Education, Mental Health, Well-Being, Early School Leaving

The article 1 analyses selected measures implemented by sectors of education and social policy in Poland, aimed at tackling the early school leaving (ESL) phenomenon. The data presented is based on an analysis of policy documents, IDIs and FGDs with educational experts, representatives of ministries, local authorities, school staff, regional employment centres and chambers of craft within the RESL.eu project. The starting point for the discussion is the hypothesis that there is a relation between leaving the system of education early, youth unemployment and NEETs rate. While the existence of this relationship is equivocal, as shown by the analysis of existing data, the undertaken policy measures somewhat implicitly assume its presence. Early school leavers are seen as the potential unemployed or at least as people who may have certain difficulties in entering the labour market. This is in contrast with the results of qualitative research, which show that the most common reason for abandoning the school education, according to school principals and teachers, is taking up a job accompanied by the inability to reconcile work and study. Thus, further efforts to develop more flexible alternatives to school-based forms of vocational training and education should be reinforced.

- by Hanna Tomaszewska and +2
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- Vocational Education, Early School Leaving, Educational Policy

Il presente contributo illustra i risultati di una ricerca effettuata nell’anno scolastico 2013-2014 per contrastare la dispersione scolastica nella provincia di Mantova. In linea con gli obiettivi di Europa 2020, l’obiettivo era quello di introdurre nuove metodologie educative basate sull’insegnamento dell’imprenditorialità volte a ridurre la dispersione scolastica al quarto anno di studi superiori. Nei tre istituti mantovani partecipanti, seppure con modalità diverse, si sono organizzati dei periodi di alternanza scuola lavoro con contemporanei laboratori settimanali di attraversamento dei confini a cui hanno partecipato insegnanti, rappresentanti del mondo del lavoro e gruppi selezionati di studenti. Durante i laboratori si sono discussi sia i problemi degli studenti tra scuola e lavoro che le tematiche relative all’imprenditorialità. I risultati mostrano avanzamenti nel contrasto della dispersione che variano a seconda del setting dove si è operato. Un elemento comune ad ogni contesto e che desta preoccupazione è che metà degli gli studenti che hanno partecipato alla ricerca dichiarano che hanno almeno un professore che non sopportano.

- by Daniele Morselli and +1
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- Cultural Historical Activity Theory, Entrepreneurship Education, Early School Leaving