Proposition de RECOMMANDATION DU CONSEIL concernant les politiques de réduction de l’abandon scolaire
Date: 2011-01-31
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, dropout, education policy, report

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 31.1.2011 
COM(2011) 19 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION 

On policies to reduce early school leaving 

SEC(2011) 98 final 
SEC(2011) 97 final 
SEC(2011) 96 final 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

In  June  2010,  the  European  Council  adopted  the  Europe  2020  Strategy,  based  on  three 
mutually  reinforcing  priorities  for  smart,  sustainable  and  inclusive  growth.  One  of  its  five 
headline targets is to reduce the rate of early school leaving1 in the EU to less than 10% by the 
year 2020. Currently, around 6 million young people in the EU leave school with only lower 
secondary  education  or  less.  We  cannot  afford  to  allow  this  to  continue.  Preventing  early 
school leaving is particularly important both in order to combat the negative consequences of 
poverty  and  social  exclusion  on  the  child’s  development  and  in  order  to  empower  children 
and break the intergenerational inheritance of disadvantage. 

As the EU emerges from economic crisis, the motor for growth will be increasing skill levels 
and there will be fewer and fewer jobs for the low-skilled. High rates of early school leaving 
are  a  bottleneck  for  smart  and  inclusive  growth.  They  impact  negatively  on  youth 
employment  and  increase  the  risk  of  poverty  and  social  exclusion.  Early  school  leaving 
represents  missed  opportunities  for  young  people  as  well  as  a  loss  of  social  and  economic 
potential.  Drastically  reducing  the  numbers  of  young  people  leaving  school  early  is  a  key 
investment in the future prosperity and social cohesion of the EU. 

Early School Leaving is not a new problem, but it is becoming more acute. Nearly a decade 
ago,  Education  Ministers  in  the  Council  set  themselves  the  objective  to  reduce  the  rate  of 
early  school  leaving,  reflecting  a  policy  priority  across  all  Member  States.  There  has  been 
progress,  from  17.6%  in  2000  to  14.4%  in  20092,  but  this  is  not  enough  and  the  rate  of 
improvement is not fast enough to reach the 2020 target. There are many examples of good 
practice  in  Member  States,  but  the  overall  policy  approach  is  not  effective  enough  nor 
sufficiently strategic in most countries. The EU can add value by helping Member States to 
develop more effective policy approaches and so to accelerate the process of improvement.  

Although the reasons to leave education and training prematurely are highly individual, early 
school leavers are in general more likely to come from socio-economically disadvantaged and 
low  education  backgrounds.  Vulnerable  groups  and  young  people  with  special  educational 
needs  are  overrepresented  among  early  leavers from  education  and  training.  Boys  are  much 
more  likely  to  leave  school  early  than  girls.  The  EU  average  early  school  leaving  rate  is 
double for migrant first generation youth than for natives; in some countries more than 40% 
of  migrant  youth  are  early  school  leavers.  Early  school  leaving  among  Roma  is  running  at 
even higher levels.  

Students  who  have  encountered  difficulties  in  general  education  often  go  into  vocational 
education  and  training  (VET).  For  this  reason,  vocational  schools  face  a  particular 
responsibility  and  challenge  with  respect  to  the  reduction  of  early  school  leaving.  VET  can 
increase  the  motivation  to  learn,  can  offer  students  more  flexibility,  a  more  appropriate 
pedagogy and can target directly the labour market aspirations of young people. 

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The term 'Early School Leaving' includes all forms of leaving education and training before completing 
upper secondary education or equivalents in vocational education and training. 
Eurostat, Labour Force Survey 2010. 

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Despite  slow  aggregate  progress  across  the  EU  in  reducing  early  school  leaving,  some 
Member  States  have  been  highly  successful.  However,  both  the  joint  work  within  the  Open 
Method of Coordination, comparative data and analytical research suggest that the key issues 
for  successful  policies  include  a  strong  evidence  base  on  the  drivers  and  incidence  of  early 
school leaving, the consistency and coherence of measures taken against it, the cross-sectoral 
nature  of  collaboration  and  the  comprehensiveness  of  the  approach.  Early  school  leaving 
needs  to  be  addressed  across  a  range  of  social,  youth,  family,  health,  local  community, 
employment,  as  well  as  education  policies.  Also  extended  educational  concepts  such  as 
cultural education, cooperation with businesses or other outside school actors, and sports can 
play an important role in reducing early school leaving by promoting creativity, new ways of 
thinking, intercultural dialogue, and social cohesion. 

Given the strong subsidiarity in the area of education and the diversity of education systems, 
it would be neither possible nor desirable to impose a single solution common to all Member 
States.  Continuing  with  the  status  quo  has  led  to  only  limited  progress  far  short  of  the 
ambition jointly expressed by Ministers of Education and confirmed by the European Council. 
The Commission therefore judges that a Council Recommendation is the most effective way 
of providing a framework for the development of such a comprehensive approach in Member 
States to support the Europe 2020 headline target.  

The  Recommendation  will  add  value  to  Member  States’  efforts  by  supporting  them  in 
developing policies that identify the causes of and address early school leaving in a lifelong 
learning  perspective,  shift  from  implementing  individual  measures  against  early  school 
leaving  to  introducing  comprehensive  strategies,  tackle  it  as  a  phenomenon  that  cuts  across 
several  related  policy  areas,  involve  all  stakeholders,  and  make  policy  interventions  more 
systematic and consistent. 

It sets out basic guidelines for coherent, comprehensive and evidence based policies against 
early school leaving and aims: 

•  to  provide  a  reference  framework  to  assist  Member  States  to  develop  more  effective 

policies against early school leaving,  

•  to support Member States in their implementation, and so 

•  to lead to a significant reduction in the rate of early school leaving in all Member States. 

2. 

RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND 
IMPACT ASSESSMENTS 

The proposal is based on the work of Member States under the Open Method of Coordination 
focusing on "Access and social inclusion in lifelong learning", between 2006 and 2010. The 
substance  of  the  policy  framework  has  been  subject  of  extensive  consultation  with 
stakeholders  from  a  variety  of  backgrounds:  education  ministries,  European  stakeholder 
organisations in school and vocational education, organisations for children's rights and well-
being, for migrants and Roma. The topic of early school leaving has also been addressed in 
two public consultations, 'Schools for the 21st century' (2007) and 'Migration and Education' 
(2008).  Stakeholders  strongly  supported  the  idea  of  EU  level  action  to  underpin  national 
efforts and underlined the urgency of the problem in times of economic crisis. Most recently, 
the Ministerial Seminar organised under the Belgian Presidency in July 2010 stressed the need 

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to  intensify  the  exchange  of  experiences  and  good  practice  among  Member  States  and 
welcomed suggestions that the Union should provide a flexible policy framework, building on 
experience on issues such as the common European definition of key competences for school 
education. 

The  Impact  Assessment  Board  provided  a  first  opinion  on  the  Impact  Assessment  on 
24 September 2010 and gave a positive opinion on the revised Impact Assessment Report on 
22 October 2010. The final version of the Impact Assessment Report has taken the comments 
of the Board into account. 

3. 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

Summary of the proposed action 

The Recommendation sets out the main elements of a coherent, comprehensive and evidence 
based  policy  against  early  school  leaving.  These  include  prevention,  intervention  and 
compensatory measures. They address all levels of education and training, structural aspects 
in  education  and  training  systems,  the  possible  interventions  at  school  level  and  support 
schemes for individual pupils at risk of dropping out. 

The Recommendation reflects the fact that early school leaving is a complex phenomenon and 
that  its  characteristics  differ  from  country  to  country,  between  and  sometimes  even  within 
regions.  This  requires  not  only  close  monitoring  of  the  problem,  but  tailored  action,  in  line 
with  the  subsidiarity  principle.  The  Recommendation  also  aims  to  provide  a  focal  point  for 
further  exchanges  of  good  practice  and  for  policy  development  within  the  open  method  of 
coordination. 

The Recommendation invites Member States: 

•  to  identify  main  factors  leading  to  early  school  leaving  and  monitor  developments  at 

national, regional and local level, 

•  to develop and implement comprehensive and cross-sectoral policies against early school 

leaving, based on their specific conditions. 

The Recommendation invites the European Commission to support policies at national level 
by: 

•  monitoring  developments  across  Member  States  and  supporting  peer  learning  and 

exchange of good practice between them, 

•  supporting policies to reduce early school leaving in all relevant activities managed by the 
Commission which are targeted at children and young people and promoting cross-sectoral 
cooperation, 

•  launching studies, comparative research and cooperation projects. 

Legal basis 

According to article 165 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the Union 
shall contribute to the development of quality education by encouraging cooperation between 

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Member States and, if necessary, by supporting and complementing their action. Article 166 
TFEU  refers  to  implementation  of  a  vocational  training  policy  which  shall  support  and 
supplement  the  action  of  the  Member  States.  The  proposed  Recommendation  aims  to 
strengthen  Member  State  efforts  to  combat  early  leaving  from  education  and  training.  It 
supports  Member  States  by  providing  a  framework  for  the  development  of  targeted  and 
comprehensive policies against early school leaving. 

In line with Article 9 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which requires 
the  Union  to  "take  into  account  requirements  linked  to  the  promotion  of  a  high  level  of 
employment,  the  guarantee  of  adequate  social  protection,  the  fight  against  social  exclusion, 
and  a  high  level  of  education,  training  and  protection  of  human  health"  in  its  policies  and 
activities, the proposed Recommendation emphasizes the need to combat early school leaving 
in the policies and programmes supported by the Commission and by the Member States. 

Subsidiarity, complementarity and proportionality principles 

The  proposed  Recommendation  is  intended  to  contribute  to  the  quality  of  education  and 
training by facilitating the work to which Member States have committed themselves within 
the Europe 2020 strategy. It supports policy development within Member States and learning 
from  good  practice  in  order  to  help  Member  States  to  create  comprehensive  strategies  to 
reduce  in  a  sustainable  way  early  school  leaving  and  the  number  of  low  skilled  adults.  The 
Recommendation establishes a framework within which Member States can more effectively 
develop policies to reduce early school leaving. The choice of policy measures to be adopted 
remains  theirs,  adapted  to  the  specific  conditions  which  obtain  in  the  Member  States. 
Therefore, this proposal conforms to the principle of subsidiarity.  

It is intended to enhance political commitment for reforms that cannot be achieved by using 
only the EU education and training programmes or Structural Funds. Moreover, it emphasizes 
the need for policy coordination and for actions from several policies, thus moving beyond the 
strict focus on education policies within the open method of coordination ET2020. However, 
the  implementation  arrangements  remain  the  responsibility  of  the  Member  States,  at  the 
appropriate  level  and  in  accordance  with  national,  regional  and/or  local  circumstances,  and 
are therefore in conformity with the proportionality principle.  

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION 

The proposal has no implication for the EU budget. 

5. 

OPTIONAL ELEMENTS 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION 

On policies to reduce early school leaving 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 165 and 166 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas:  

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

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Reducing early school leaving3 is essential for achieving a number of key objectives in 
the Europe 2020 strategy4. It addresses both the aims for 'smart growth' by improving 
education and training levels and for 'inclusive growth' by addressing one of the major 
risk  factors  for  unemployment  and  poverty.  The  Europe  2020  strategy  therefore 
includes  the  headline  target  to  reduce  early  school  leaving  to  less  to  10%  by  2020, 
from  14.4%  in  2009.  Member  States  have  undertaken  to  establish  national  targets, 
taking account of their relative starting positions and national circumstances.  

The Integrated Guidelines for the implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy call on 
Member States to take all necessary efforts to prevent early school leaving5.  

The flagship initiative "A European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion"6 
sets  a  framework  for  action  to  ensure  social  and  territorial  cohesion,  with  a  specific 
focus  on  breaking  the  cycle  of  disadvantage  and  stepping  up  preventive  action.  It 
addresses  the  Europe  2020  headline  target  to  lift  at  least  20  million  people  out  of 
poverty and social exclusion in the next decade. 

'Youth  on  the  Move',  a  flagship  initiative  within  the  Europe  2020  Strategy,  aims  to 
"enhance  the  performance  and  international  attractiveness  of  Europe's  higher 
education  institutions  and  raise  the  overall  quality  of  all  levels  of  education  and 
training  in  the  EU,  combining  both  excellence  and  equity,  by  promoting  student 
mobility  and  trainees'  mobility,  and  improve  the  employment  situation  of  young 
people"7.  

The term 'Early School Leaving' includes all forms of leaving education and training before completing 
upper secondary education or equivalents in vocational education and training. 
COM(2010) 2020. 
OJ L 308, 24.11.2010, p. 50. 
COM(2010) 758. 
"A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth" - COM(2010) 2020. 

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(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

The Council conclusions of May  2003 adopting the  work programme Education and 
Training 20108 stated that the share of early school leavers should be below 10% by 
2010, defining early school leavers as persons between 18 and 24 years old with only 
lower  secondary  education  or  less  and  no  longer  in  education  or  training.  The 
benchmark  was  not  achieved.  One  in  seven  young  people  currently  leave  education 
and training before they have completed upper secondary education. 

The  reasons  for  early  school  leaving  differ  widely  from  country  to  country  and  also 
within  regions.  Policies  to  reduce  early  school  leaving  need  to  be  adjusted  to  the 
specific situation within a region or country; there is no single solution for all Member 
States. 

Despite the differences between countries and regions, there is strong evidence in all 
Member  States  that  disadvantaged  and  vulnerable  groups  are  more  affected.  Also 
young people with special educational needs are overrepresented among early leavers 
from education and training. Early school leaving both results of social disadvantage 
and perpetuates the risk of social exclusion. 

The  Council  conclusions  of  26  November  2009  on  the  education  of  children  with  a 
migrant  background9  noted  that  while  large  numbers  of  children  with  migrant 
background  succeed  in  education,  students  with  migrant  background  are  generally 
more likely to leave school early. For migrants the average early school leaving rate 
across the EU is double that of native students. Available evidence indicates that early 
school leaving is higher still among the Roma population. 

The  Council  Conclusions  of  22  May  2008  on  adult  learning10  recognise  the  role  of 
adult learning in addressing early school leaving by offering a second chance to those 
who  reach  adulthood  without  a  qualification,  focusing  especially  on  basic  skills,  IT 
skills and language learning. 

(10)  The Council Resolution of 15 November 2007 on 'New skills for new jobs'11 stressed 
the need to raise overall skill levels and to give priority to the education and training of 
those at risk of economic and social exclusion, particularly early school leavers. They 
underlined the need to provide vocational guidance and personal training plans to job 
seekers  and  to  develop  the  validation  of  learning  outcomes  acquired  through  formal, 
informal and non-formal learning. 

(11)  The  Council  agreed  in  May  2010  in  its  conclusions  on  the  social  dimension  of 
education and training12 that the successful prevention of early school leaving requires 
the development of knowledge about groups at risk of dropping out at local, regional 
and national level, and systems for identifying early individuals who are at such risk, 
that  comprehensive  and  cross-sectoral  strategies  should  be 
and  concluded 
implemented,  which  provide  a  range  of  school-wide  and  systemic  policies  targeting 
the different factors leading to early school leaving. 

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Council  Conclusions  of  5-6  May  2003  on  reference  levels  of  European  average  performance  in 
education and training (Benchmarks) (doc 8981/03). 
OJ C 301, 11.12.2009, p. 5. 
OJ C 140, 6.6.2008, p. 10. 
OJ C 290, 4.12.2007, p. 1. 
OJ C 135, 26.5.2010, p. 2. 

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(12)  Education  reforms  take  time  to  have  effect.  In  order  to  achieve  a  reduction  of  early 
school  leaving  rates  within  the  next  decade  and  reach  the  Europe  2020  target, 
comprehensive and cross-sectoral strategies to reduce early school leaving need to be 
implemented as soon as possible.  

(13)  A common European framework for comprehensive approaches to reduce early school 
leaving can help Member States to review existing policies, to develop their National 
Reform  Programmes  under  the  Europe  2020  strategy,  and  to  innovate  and  develop 
new strategies with a high impact and a good cost-benefit ratio. It can also provide a 
basis for  collaboration  through the Open Method  of  Cooperation and a  focus  for  the 
use of EU funding instruments, 

HEREBY RECOMMEND THAT MEMBER STATES:  

Make use of the framework set out in the Annex to this Recommendation in order to: 

1. Identify the main factors leading to early school leaving and monitor the characteristics of 
the  phenomenon  at  national,  regional  and  local  level  as  a  precondition  for  targeted  and 
effective evidence based policies.  

2.  Adopt  by  the  end  of  2012  and  ensure  the  implementation  of  comprehensive  strategies  to 
reduce early school leaving, in line with national Europe 2020 targets; these strategies should 
include prevention, intervention and compensation measures. 

3.  Ensure  that  these  strategies  include  appropriate  measures  for  groups  at  increased  risk  of 
early  school  leaving  in  the  Member  State,  such  as  children  with  a  socio-economically 
disadvantaged, migrant or Roma background, or with special educational needs. 

4.  Ensure  that  these  strategies  address  both  general  education  and  vocational  education  and 
training and the challenges specific to each. 

5. Since early school leaving is a complex phenomenon that cannot be tackled by education 
and  training  alone,  integrate  measures  which  support  the  reduction  of  early  school  leaving 
rates  in  all  relevant  policies  targeted  at  children  and  young  people  and  coordinate  activities 
among different policy sectors and stakeholders to help people who are at risk of early school 
leaving, including those who have dropped out already.  

INVITE THE COMMISSION TO: 

1.  Contribute  to  the  efforts  made  by  Member  States  by  monitoring  developments  across 
Member States to determine tendencies. 

2.  Support  the  development  of  national  strategies  and  the  exchange  of  experience  and  good 
practice,  and  facilitate  effective  peer-learning  among  Member  States  on  measures  to  reduce 
early school leaving and to improve educational outcomes of children from groups at risk of 
early school leaving. 

3. Integrate measures which support the reduction of early school leaving rates in all relevant 
EU actions targeted at children and young adults. 

4.  Support  the  development  of  effective  policies  against  early  school  leaving  by  launching 
comparative studies and research. 

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5.  Ensure  that,  in  cooperation  with  the  Member  States,  the  EU's  Lifelong  Learning 
Programme and the European Structural Funds and the Framework Programme for Research 
and Innovation support and contribute to the implementation of national strategies. 

6. Report periodically on the progress towards the Europe 2020 target on early school leaving 
through the Annual Growth Survey, and on the implementation of national strategies within 
the reporting of the strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training 
(ET 2020), for the first time as part of the joint progress report 2015. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX 

A framework for comprehensive policies to reduce early school leaving 

Strategies to reduce early school leaving should be based on an analysis at national, regional 
and local level of the conditions leading to the phenomenon, as average rates often mask large 
differences between different regions or countries. Early school leavers  are a heterogeneous 
group  and  individual  motivations  to  leave  education  prematurely  differ  widely.  Family 
background  and  wider  socio-economic  conditions  such  as  pull  from  the  labour  market  are 
important factors. Their impact is conditioned by the structure of the education and training 
system,  by  available  learning  opportunities,  and  by  the  learning  environment.  The 
coordination  of  policies  addressing  the  well-being  of  children  and  young  people,  social 
security,  youth  employment  and  future  career  perspectives  has  an  important  role  to  play  in 
reducing early school leaving.  

1. 

IDENTIFICATION OF MAIN FACTORS AND MONITORING  

Early school leaving processes have complex and varied causes, but are often linked to socio-
economic  disadvantage,  to  low  education  backgrounds,  to  alienation  from  or  poor 
achievement  in  education  and  training,  to  pull  factors  from  the  labour  market,  and/or  to  a 
combination  of  social,  emotional  and  educational  problems  putting  individuals  at  risk  of 
dropping out. 

Account needs to be taken of the type of education in which students are enrolled. In some 
Member States, students who have encountered difficulties in general education often go into 
vocational education and training (VET). For this reason, vocational schools face a particular 
responsibility and challenge with respect to the reduction of early school leaving. Evidence-
based  policies  require  that  a  particular  attention  be  given  to  performance  by  sector  of 
education or training.  

The development of evidence-based and cost-effective policies to combat early school leaving 
requires  gathering  and  maintaining  data  on  the  phenomenon.  This  should  allow  analysis  at 
local, regional and national levels. It may contain information on early school leaving rates, 
on  transitions  between  educational  levels,  as  well  as  on  school  absenteeism  and  school 
avoiding behaviour.  

•  Collection  of  information  should  allow  for  the  analysis  of  the  main  reasons  underlying 
early school leaving for different groups of pupils, schools, types of education and training 
institution, municipalities or regions.  

•  The combination of data on early school leaving and socio-economic data can help in the 
targeting of measures and policies. Gathering and analysing information on the motivation 
of  early  school  leavers,  their  employment  and  career  perspectives  can  also  help  in  the 
targeting of measures and policies.  

•  Evaluation  of  the  effectiveness  and  efficiency  of  existing  policy  measures  aimed  at 
reducing  early  school  leaving  is  an  important  basis  for  improving  strategies  and 
programmes for increasing pupils' chances of school success. 

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2. 

POLICY FRAMEWORK 

Comprehensive  strategies  comprise  a  mix  of  policies,  coordination  across  different  policy 
sectors and the integration of measures supporting the reduction of early school leaving into 
all relevant policies aimed at children and young people. These are principally social policy 
and  support  services,  employment,  youth,  family,  and  integration  policies.  Horizontal 
coordination  between  different  actors  and  vertical  coordination  through  different  levels  of 
government  are  equally  important.  Strategies  against  early  school  leaving  should  comprise 
prevention, intervention and compensation elements. Member States should select the detailed 
components of their strategies according to their own circumstances and contexts. 

2.1 
Prevention  policies  aim  to  reduce  the  risk  of  early  school  leaving  before  problems 
start.  Such  measures  optimise  the  provision  of  education  and  training  in  order  to  support 
better learning outcomes and to remove obstacles to educational success. 

They aim to lay a solid early foundation for children to develop their learning potential and to 
integrate well in schools.  

(1) 

Providing high quality early childhood education and care is beneficial for all children 
and especially relevant for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, including migrants 
and  Roma.  It  enhances  physical  well-being,  social  and  emotional  development, 
language  and  basic  cognitive  skills.  Provision  should  be  high  quality,  affordable, 
adequately staffed and accessible to families with a disadvantaged background.  

They  address  the  organisation  of  education  and  training  systems,  the  resources  available  to 
schools,  the  availability,  permeability  and  flexibility  of  individual  learning  pathways.  They 
also address the gender gap, the support of children from disadvantaged backgrounds or with 
a different mother tongue. 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

Increasing the educational offer by extending the duration of compulsory education or 
by  providing  education  and  training  guarantees  beyond  the  age  of  compulsory 
education can influence the behaviour of young people and their families and lead to 
higher rates of completion of upper secondary qualifications. 

Implementing  active  desegregation  policies  and  providing  additional  support  for 
schools  in  disadvantaged  areas  or  with  high  numbers  of  pupils  from  socio-economic 
disadvantaged  backgrounds  help  them  to  improve  their  social  composition  and  their 
educational  offer,  so  lifting  the  educational  achievements  of  pupils  from  socio-
economic disadvantaged backgrounds and reducing their risk of early school leaving. 

Supporting children with a different mother tongue to improve their proficiency in the 
teaching  language  and  supporting  teachers  to  teach  children  with  different  levels  of 
linguistic competence improve the educational achievements of children with migrant 
background and reduce their risk of early school leaving. 

Increasing  the  flexibility  and  permeability  of  educational  pathways  (e.g.  by 
modularisation  of  courses  or  alternation  of  school  and  work),  supports  especially 
pupils with lower academic performance, can motivate them to continue education and 
training which is better adapted to their needs and abilities. It also allows to address 
gender  specific  reasons  for  early  school  leaving  such  as  joining  the  labour  market 
early or teenage pregnancy. 

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(5) 

Strengthening  vocational  pathways  and  increasing  their  attractiveness  and  flexibility 
provide pupils at risk with credible alternatives to early school leaving. VET provision 
which  is  well  integrated  into  the  overall  education  and  training  systems  allows  for 
alternative pathways into upper secondary and tertiary education. 

2.2 
Intervention  policies  aim  to  avoid  early  school  leaving  by  improving  the  quality  of 
education and training at the level of the educational institutions, by reacting to early warning 
signs and by providing targeted support to pupils or groups of pupils at risk of dropping out. 
They address all educational levels, starting from early childhood education and care to upper 
secondary education. 

At the level of the school or training institution strategies against early school leaving are 
embedded in an overall school development policy. They aim at creating a positive learning 
environment,  reinforcing  pedagogical  quality  and  innovation,  enhancing  teaching  staff 
competences to deal with social and cultural diversity, and developing anti-violence and anti-
bullying approaches. 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

Developing schools into learning communities based on a common vision for school 
development  shared  by  all  stakeholders,  using  the  experience  and  knowledge  of  all, 
and  providing  an  open-minded,  inspiring  and  comfortable  place  for  learning  to 
encourage  young  people  to  continue  education  and  training  and  become  successful 
learners. 

Developing  early-warning  systems  for  pupils  at  risk  can  help  to  take  effective 
measures before problems become manifest, pupils start to alienate from school, play 
truant or drop-out. 

Enhancing  the  involvement  of  parents,  reinforcing  their  cooperation  with  the  school 
and  creating  partnerships  between  schools  and  parents  encourage  family  support  for 
successful  education  and  training.  It  can  be  facilitated  by  mediators  from  the  local 
community who are able to support communication and to reduce distrust. 

Networking with actors outside school such as local community services, migrant or 
minority  community  organisations,  sports  and  culture  associations,  employers  and 
civil society organisations allows for holistic solutions to help pupils at risk and eases 
the access to external support such as psychologists, social and youth workers, cultural 
and community services. 

Supporting and empowering teachers in their work with pupils at risk is a pre-requisite 
to  successful  measures  at  school  level.  Targeted  teacher  training  helps  them  to  deal 
with  diversity  in  the  classroom,  to  support  pupils  from  socially  disadvantaged 
backgrounds and to solve difficult teaching situations. 

Extra-curricular  activities  after  and  outside  school  and  artistic,  cultural  and  sport 
activities can raise the self-esteem of pupils at risk and increase their resilience against 
difficulties in their learning. 

Intervention  policies  at  individual  level  aim  to  provide  a  set  of  support  mechanisms  for 
individual  students  at  risk  of  dropping  out  which  can  be  tailored  to  their  needs.  They  focus 
both  on  personal  development  in  order  to  build  resilience  for  students  at  risk  and  on 
redressing concrete difficulties, which can be of a social, cognitive or emotional nature.  

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(1)  Mentoring  supports  individual  pupils  to  overcome  specific  academic,  social  or 
personal  difficulties.  Either  in  one-to-one  approaches  (mentoring)  or  in  small  groups 
(tutoring),  pupils  receive targeted assistance, often provided  by education staff  or by 
community members. 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

Strengthening  personalised  learning  approaches  and  providing  learning  support  for 
pupils at risk helps them to adapt to the demands of formal education and to overcome 
barriers created by the education and training system. 

Strengthening guidance and counselling supports students’ career choices, transitions 
within  education  or  from  education  to  employment.  It  reduces  poor  decision-making 
based on false expectations or insufficient information. It helps young people to make 
choices which meet their ambitions, personal interests and talents. 

Financial support measures such as study allowances respond to financially motivated 
early  school  leaving.  Such  support  might  be  conditional  on  regular  attendance  or 
might be linked to families' social benefits. 

Compensation aims to help those who left school prematurely, offering routes to re-

2.3 
enter education and training and gain the qualifications they missed. 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

Successful second chance programmes provide learning environments which respond 
to the specific needs of premature leavers, recognise their prior learning and support 
their  well-being.  They  are  different  from  schools  in  both  organisational  and 
pedagogical  approaches  and  are  often  characterised  by  small  learning  groups, 
personalised and innovative teaching and flexible learning pathways. They need to be 
easily accessible and free of charge. 

It is important to provide different routes back into mainstream education and training. 
Transition classes can help to bridge the gap between previous school failure and re-
entering mainstream education. 

Recognising  and  validating  prior  learning  including  competences  achieved  in  non-
formal  and  informal  learning  improves  pupils'  confidence  and  self-esteem  and 
facilitates  re-entry  into  school.  It  can  motivate  them  to  continue  education  and 
training, helps them to identify their talents and to make better career choices. 

Targeted individual support integrates social, financial, educational and psychological 
support for young people in difficulties. It is especially important for young people in 
situations of serious social or emotional distress which hinders them from continuing 
education or training. 

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