What makes a learner more likely to drop out?

The likelihood of repeating grades doubles when learners reach high school. And this increases the odds of them dropping out.

This is according to the latest report published by the Zero Dropout Campaign on 25 February 2021. The report found that learners dropped out of school because of a combination of factors, such as failing grades and disruptions in their lives.

GroundUp spoke to the head of Beauvallon Secondary School in Valhalla Park, Cape Town which reported having a dropout rate of 17% in 2020.

Principal Leonard Jansen said that they started the 2020 academic year with 272 learners but during a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, 47 learners dropped out. The school’s matric pass rate was 32%.

Read more on GroundUp