Causes of early school leaving in southern nations nationalities and people's regional state

Abstract

This study was undertaken in view to: (1) Examining the status of early school leaving in Southern Nations Nationalities and People’s Region, and (2) Identifying the principal factors that interfere with children’s persistence in primary schools of the regional state. The study, thus, adopted both qualitative and quantitative methods of inquiry in order to effectively address the problem of primary school dropping out in the region. Purposive sampling was used in selection of sample districts and involving respondents in securing qualitative data. Simple random sampling was employed in identification of respondents for the quantitative data collection. Analysis of qualitative data was carried out via thematic classification, categorical analysis, and contextualization. Simple descriptive statistics were employed for quantitative data analysis. Consequently, the study unveiled the prevalence of high rate of primary school dropout in the region. The main attributes of the dropout can roughly be classified into such three broad categories as household related, those of which associated to societal conviction and school linked setbacks. The study has also portrayed the way forward in tackling challenges of primary school dropping out across the regional state.

Keywords: Dropout, early school leaving, educational wastage, external efficiency, gender, internal efficiency, Millennium Development Goals