Unpacking school dropout in the 2023 General Household Survey

The statistics within provided great insight to the state of our education system as well as issues relative to our mandate such as availability, accessibility, and dropout.

Attendance of individuals older than five years old

When children miss out on crucial developmental phases in education, they end up struggling. The GHS shows that this is the number one factor that leads to children dropping out of school. Of the youth surveyed, 30.8% of males and 27.4 % of females said that they end up leaving school because of their poor performance. This decision to leave school is more prevalent after the age of 14, as the data reveals a high rate of school attendance within the 7 to 14 years age group, followed by a sharp decline in attendance at educational facilities beyond this age range. 

Enrolment and Dropout

There’s been a notable improvement since Stats SA began the survey in 2002, and the number of young people between 7 and 24 years who attended educational institutions increased from 73.1%, to 75.7% in 2023. In numbers, learners who attended school stood at 15,4 million in 2023, compared to 14,5 million in 2022, this increase could be a signal that the effects of recent challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic are continuing to subside.

Census 2022 shows that the proportion of persons completing Grade 12 after completing Grade 9 varies according to sex. The data shows that slightly six in ten males go on to pass matric after they’ve finished Grade 9, while around 70% of females do. 

Family commitments significantly contribute to children dropping out of school. About 7.2% of children under 18 are not attending school due to reasons like pregnancy, marriage, and caregiving for younger or elder relatives. Notably, only 0.1% of these are boys, indicating that girls are disproportionately expected to take on caregiving roles, often to their detriment.

These gender gaps are echoed in the Net Enrolment Ratios (NER), which take into account the official school age, thereby over-aged and under-aged enrolment. In primary school, the data favours male learners, of whom 81.6% are appropriately aged, while female learners are at 78.5%. In high school, there is more equitable distribution of enrolment, with males at 73%, and females at 72.4%

Our 2021 publication, School Dropout: Gender Matters, provides an in-depth look at matters around gender and education, as it explores how gender exacerbates disruptions to young people’s schooling caused by factors like income, teacher absenteeism, and access to resources. It examines gendered challenges at home, school, and neighbourhood levels, and how policies reinforce gender inequality, destabilising young people and hindering school completion.

Conclusion

The GHS helps paint a statistical portrait of the education sector to provide those concerned with an accurate picture of where we stand as a nation.

Collecting accurate, detailed, and regular data about schools and learners is essential for the improvement of our education system. It helps us understand specific needs, design better policies and programs, track progress, allocate resources effectively, and ensure accountability. 

The Zero Dropout Campaign will continue to advocate for regular data collection and publication to ensure that the work done in our sector is informed by the most recent and relevant information possible.

References

↑1        Statistics South Africa, General Household Survey 2022, 17 August 2023. https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0318/P03182022.pdf

↑2        Statistics South Africa, CENSUS 2022 A Profile of Education Enrolment, Attainment and Progression in South Africa: Education and Child Statistics Directorate, March 2024. https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/Report-03-01-81/PresentationUpdatedFinal.pdf