School dropout crisis in Northern Cape municipality

Only half the learners who start primary school make it to high school in the Northern Cape’s Joe Morolong Local Municipality. And of the learners who make it to high school, just 15% matriculate.

These statistics were revealed in a report released on Thursday, last week, by the Zero Dropout Campaign. ​The findings are based on data gathered by the Campaign, as well as in-depth interviews with school staff, learners, families of the learners and community members conducted in 2022.

The researchers, led by Dr Andrew Hartnack, looked at the causes of learner disengagement and dropout at two Northern Cape no-fee schools in particular, Kgoro Intermediate School and Dithaba High (the names of the schools were changed for the report).

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