One third fail to finish school

PALMA
THE large number of immigrants living in the Balearics is leading to high levels of early school leaving, it was claimed yesterday- Over 16 percent of students in the education system are now the children of immigrants and this factor, alongside easy availability of employment for low-skilled workers in the islands, is leading to the highest dropout level in Spain.

Yesterday, during the Fourth Annual Conference on Early School Leaving, Alfonso Rodríguez, the Director of the Balearic Institute for Coexistence and School Success, said that one out of three Balearic students or 31 percent did not get to the end of the obligatory phase of secondary education. The national average is 27 percent.

He added that the reason in large part was the “ease with which young people were able to find work that requires few qualifications”.
The Balearic Minister for Education, Bárbara Galmes, who opened the conference along with the Mayor of Palma, Aina Calvo, admitted that there was a high dropout level in the Balearics.

But she said it was necessary to “bear in mind the exact circumstances that caused this problem. These included “the arrival of students in the middle of the course, who didn't know the language, making it unthinkable that they can obtain positive results”.

She added that, besides the “mobility of the student”, another factor that often counted against academic success was the change in the family model. Galmés said that it was important that parents and society in general “regard education as a benefit and a necessity”.

The director of d'Estudio6, Joan Cerdà, said the resources put into the education system must be re-evaluated in the face of the growing immigrant population in schools. He emphasised the introduction of concrete measures so that “the initial disadvantage which these students faced would not be a permanent obstacle, and they could integrate into the education system with success”. He said it was essential to redouble efforts to make sure these students had the same opportunities as their peers.

He added that the high concentration of students with difficulties had negative effects. Psychologist Javier Melgarejo praised the Finnish model as both families and the state were conscious of the importance of education.