Causes and Prevention of Dropouts of Students in Higher Secondary Schools of Quetta

Abstract

Education is an essential facet of any country's development, which can have a direct influence on the growth,development, and progress of its citizens. A cause for concern in this study is that education is a key factor in any country'sgrowth & development. The incapability to complete the academic program leads to negative impacts on the students'lives in terms of prospects and overall development. Therefore, it has to be investigated the main dropout reasons in thecountry as well as the implementing strategies to overcome these issues. Regrettably, the dropout rate of students at highersecondary levels is higher, especially in the Quetta City of Pakistan, as most of the students are unable to continue theirhigher studies. So, the current study aimed to examine the causes and prevention plans in terms of teachers' perceptionsat higher secondary levels in Quetta City. The data was collected from 78 teachers from higher secondary schools withthe help of 20 questions using a 5-point Likert scale. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics, includingpercentages and the chi-square method, with the help of the 'Statistical Package of Social Sciences' (SPSS) software.Multiple reasons have been found for dropout at higher secondary levels including lack of community support, socio-economic factors, absence of extra co-curricular activities, family-related issues, a weak relationship between teachers &students, teacher absences, and most importantly the school has no concern regarding these issues. Furthermore, thesehigher secondary schools don't have any prevention plans for that. Although multiple NGOs, UNICEF (ALP), and otherorganizations are working on this issue, there is still no single prevention plan for dropouts. The study also attempted toidentify geographic and societal factors contributing to the high dropout rate and suggest practical solutions.Recommendations; Raising awareness about the issue of school dropouts and prevention strategies is crucial amongparents, teachers, stakeholders, and heads of educational institutions in Quetta's higher secondary schools to decrease thedropout rate and related prevention strategies