More boys asked to leave school,put to work by family

The nine schools surveyed by Dev Samaj College for Women (Sector 36) and Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan’s (SSA) Chandigarh unit,show a 5 to 7 per cent difference among the dropout rates in boys and girls. (see box)

The overall dropout rate in the nine schools included in the study sample was 8.62 per cent in 2011. It is pertinent to note that all the students who left their schools,in the past one year,were enrolled in primary classes.

According to researchers and teachers in these schools,long absenteeism has been common among children of migrant labourers. “In the absence of any permanent address provided by the migrant labourers,it becomes difficult to locate and retain the children in schools,” said Seema Sareen,researcher and assistant professor in education,Dev Samaj College.

“Even if the families relocate to other areas within the city,the children are not admitted in other schools in the middle of the session. We have suggested that school authorities ask for suitable permanent addresses from the parents of these children. Also,keeping track of their migration,the schools should motivate parents to apply for transfer to another school in case they move to new areas,” added Seema.

The authorities,however,seem unaware of the issue. Asked what steps the Education Department has taken to address the problem,DPI (Schools) Sandeep Hans said,“We are yet to receive the findings of the study. The study is a new initiative by our officials and we can only comment once we have seen the report.”

The study suggests that maintaining records of migrant labourers,sensitising parents of children through awareness camps can help in improving the retention rates in the schools.