Better vocational training options lead to reduce early school leaving
Early findings of a Europe-wide Cedefop study of the effect of vocational education and training (VET) on the dropout rate reveal that this effect is largely positive. In countries where vocational pathways account for a large share of education and training, rates of early school leaving are below the EU target for 2020 (10%).
Conversely, in countries where VET lags behind, the dropout rate is higher than 10%; in some cases, significantly so.
Addressing the workshop, Cedefop Director James Calleja pointed out that the problem of early leaving is largely VET’s to solve: early leavers between 16 and 24 who return to education typically choose vocational options. Mr Calleja spoke of early leavers as ‘casualties of the education system’ whom public authorities have a responsibility to support
How to measure the magnitude and determine the causes of early leaving from VET? The ways in which improved data and analysis can feed into targeted policy measures.
Cedefop has launched a three-year project (2014-17) to address the lack of data on early leaving specifically from vocational pathways and to analyze the role VET plays in reducing the dropout rate. This is the link:http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/publications/22244.aspx
More information: http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/Files/2014-06-10_Press-release_Workshop-ELET.pdf
