The European Scenario in Fighting Early School Leaving
Final ConferencePrato - F.Datini Institute -
10th September 2013
Prof. Mauro Di Grazia
Traduzione Prof.ssa Paola Bertini
Prato 10 settembre 2013
2012 European Data
Early school leavers are reducing in the EU:The decline is slowing
Reduction target of 10% ( ET 2020 European Strategy for Education and Training ) is far away for many countries. EU average is 13 %
Of 27 EU countries:• 12 have reached the target
• 10 are about to reach it
• 2 are still far away ( Italy / Romania)
• 3 are more than 20 % drop out rate (Spain, Portugal , Malta)
Prato 10 settembre 2013
2010 2011 2012Change 2011-2012
National target
Finland 10.3 9.8 8.9 -0.9 8.0
Un. Kingdom 14.9 15.0 13.5 -1.5 No target
France 12.6 12.0 11.6 -0.4 9.5
Germany 11.9 11.7 10.5 -1.2 less than 10.0
Greece 13.7 13.1 11.4 -1.7 9.7
Ireland 11.4 10.8 9.7 -1.1 8.0
Belgium 11.9 12.3 12.0 -0.3 9.5
Romania 18.4 17.5 17.4 -0.1 11.3
Italy 18.8 18.2 17.6 -0.6 15.0-16.0
Spain 28.4 26.5 24.9 -1.6 15.0
EU 14.0 13.5 12.8 -0.7 less than 10.0
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Italian data
Eurostat data of 2013 - ( about year 2012): Statistical models and inconsistencies Italian Istat data 2012: 18.8% ( worse than
the 17.6 % ) Strong gender difference , in Italy as in the
EU: boys 22% , girls 15.4 % : males are left behind.
Tuscan data : increase of drop out ( from 15.5 % in the year 2008 to 17.5% in 2010)
in parallel with the worsening of the economic crisis.
Prato 10 settembre 2013
2020 EU Strategy
Recommendations of the EU Council 191/2011 Early school leaving reduction thanks to the "
smart growth" (higher education / higher growth ) and "inclusive growth" (less unemployment , less social exclusion : reduce the poor rate by 20 million)
ESL = 52% unemployed But : youth unemployment in the EU 23% (IT
39%, Spain / Greece 60 %): 5.6 million young people without a future , a dramatic crisis of our socio-economic model
Prato 10 settembre 2013
2020 EU Strategy
Early identification of groups at drop out risk : children of immigrants socially and economically disadvantaged groups DSA (Learning Disabilities) and young people with
other disabilities
“Reviewing existing policies” " with " global cross-sector-based strategies ," with " a range of measures relating to the school as a whole ", " systemic”
Cross-sector-based integration of school policies , with those concerning social welfare, children, youth, families,work, integration
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Suggested Measures
Permanent monitoring of ESL (Early school leaving) - causes, even internal to the system, starting from data
Strategic plan for each country by 2012 involving :
- "prevention " / " intervention " / " compensation" measures addressed to immigrants , gypsies , DSA students , disadvantaged young people
- Involvement of education and vocational training ( key role of the latter )
- Extension of nursery school
- Enhancement of the " key role " of teachers and headteachers
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Prevention Policies
Optimize education opportunities and training (high quality for everybody):
- increase education beyond compulsory level
- plans for disadvantaged areas
- language support and the participation of parents
- flexibility and "permeability" of education paths (eg modules - combined school and work )
- strengthen Vocational Training
- strengthen the link work / training ( internships, involving companies )
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Schools Intervention Policies
Turning schools into learning communities (vision shared by everybody, "an open, stimulating and pleasant " environment )
- Early identify students at-risk
- Establish a network of relationships with parents and external parties ( local communities, immigrant associations , sport, volunteer work , work associations...)
- Provide teachers with adequate tools ( " Tools" !) for their work ( ad hoc training )
- Organize extra-curricular activities - artistic , cultural, sport events to strengthen self-esteem
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Policies of Intervention
(Individual) Programming individual mechanisms of support Individual monitoring and mentoring for groups Key to teaching on the needs of pupils
( individualized learning ) Strengthen guidance and counseling activities in
order to promote well-aware choices in line with individual skills
Ensure financial support to young people for the coming back to school
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CompensationPolicies
For drop out students Promote "second chance" education
programs, other than school / formal both from the organization and pedagogical point of view
Promote remedial courses and guidance Recognize and validate prior learning
(including non-formal and informal ) Promote individual and specific support
( financial , educational, psychological ... )
Prato 10 settembre 2013
1st -2nd March 2012 EU Seminar
Organized by the EU to take stock of the situation: 300 participants - researchers, experts ( Italians
absent... ?) Underline the holistic approach to the problem objectives : Knowing the ESL phenomenon on the basis of evidence
/ data Establish a cross- sector-based cooperation Address the dropout to Vocational Training Develop different forms of teaching Exchange experiences and good practices in the EU
Prato 10 settembre 2013
1st -2nd March 2012 EU Seminar
themes emphasized :
Know the processes to build effective/efficient policies Great importance of guidance Growing distinction between traditional learning and
learning via new media
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EU Seminar1st Workgroup
Workgroup 1/Who leaves , why and when
- Importance of database and data processing (individual, joined by type , area, region) . Permanent monitoring . Good practices in UK, NL , HU, LU
Suggestions (ideas , success factors...) :
- Develop comparable database
- Focus monitoring on motivation
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EU Seminar2nd Workgroup
Workgroup 2/It takes a village to raise a child
- Involve the community to establish local cross- sector-based cooperation
Suggestions (ideas , success factors...) :
- Flexibility ( adapting to the context)
- Integrating the levels of intervention
- Parental involvement ( emphasized )
- Variety of options for the students
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EU Seminar2nd Workgroup
Suggestions (ideas , success factors...) :
- Early intervention
- Incentives to schools
- Multidisciplinary teams
- Policy-makers should set goals , monitor, evaluate results
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EU Seminar3rd Workgroup
• Workgroup 3/Challenge and opportunities
- Enhance the different pedagogical approach of Vocational Education for ESL and drop out ( step by step, little by little teaching )
Suggestions (ideas , success factors...) :
- More days of internship / training , general education fewer school days
- Take a good balance between theory and practice
- Introduce an operational dimension in the early years of education
- Define a new social contract / training agreement
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EU Seminar4th Workgroup
• Workgroup 4/Learning differently
Success factors : Self-mastery Interactive , individual , flexible, peer to peer,
funny learning Motivated teachers , “coaches” more than
“evaluators”
Prato 10 settembre 2013
EU Seminar4th Workgroup
Suggestions (ideas... ) :
- Teachers need to feel safe and work in teams
- Schools need to feel part of the community (ie no mega- schools)
- Schools' autonomy is fundamental, which involves responsibility for the results
Good news: the Structural Funds and the ESF 2014/20 , linked to EU targets, include policies for Early School Leaving
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Challenge to Schools
Factors of school education influence and sometimes cause Early School Leaving
Challenge for schools: being able to respond to students' different learning styles and help teachers meet the different needs of groups of students with different skills
Not all European countries follow consistent policies to fight early school leaving
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Challenge toRegions
In Italy, for example, there is no central government policy against early school leaving (except in the southern regions - see project " Skills For Development " - done with PON funds in the four regions allowed)
The problem is in fact left to the sensitivity of the Regions which manage the IeFP system and the recovery of drop out (see Tuscan regional policy and its commitment in this direction)
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Challenge toRegions
The distance between Regions and schools
(especially Vocational ones, entrusted with the task
) is still too big, because both human and material
resources are under state jurisdiction, so
handled with rigid and often inefficient bureaucratic
rules
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Project Products
School Inclusion and Stay@School Project deal with the problem from the “inside” of school , through five modules including :
- Early recognition of risk factors
- Protocols for effective communication
- Solicitation of an innovative subject-centered teaching, inductive learning , new technologies and a proper assessment
- Choice of working in a network with many external supports.
Prato 10 settembre 2013
Project Products
Stay@School has deepened the tracks traced by School Inclusion Project and the tools produced are going to be presented today
The overall picture has not changed, but the problem has worsened in the context of the general crisis
So, there's the risk of blocking the same efforts put in