Between 2004 and 2007, 13,844 students dropped out of the primary school system, representing 4% of the national population.
And according to Evelyn Hamilton, Chief Planning Officer of the Ministry of Education, the situation is much worse, particularly in primary and secondary schools in hinterland areas like Region 1 and Region 9, where rates are more than tripled.
Hamilton, in a presentation to the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Social Services at Parliament Buildings last Friday, said learning disabilities, emotional problems, early adult responsibilities and parenthood were the major contributing factors to children dropping out of schools. These are also coupled with poor attendance, low education expectations, low socio-economic status, poor education of parents, large number of siblings and not living with natural parents. Hamilton listed limited opportunities for academic success; limited resources in schools as well as high pupil/teacher ratios as other factors contributing to the drop-out rates.
Hamilton added that completing high school in such circumstances often takes students far from home, family and community support.
Listing the implications of children dropping out of school, Hamilton noted that it will contribute to unemployment, a life of poverty and them being less healthy. They can also become involved in a life of crime which can lead to imprisonment and dropping out also reduces the possibility of sustainable development in society as a whole because education is critical to improving health, nutrition and productivity.
At the primary level, Region 9 recorded the highest drop-out rate for two of the three years, while Region 2 had the lowest drop-out rate for entire three-year period. Hamilton said that 7,006 males dropped out and 6,838 females dropped out at the primary level over the period.
Between 2004 and 2005, most regions had drop-out rates of between one and four percent for males and females, with Regions 4 and 7 being exceptions. Between 2005 and 2006, there were some gender disparities, with male drop outs being higher in Regions 2, 5 and 8 and female drop outs being higher in Regions 1 and 6. In that period, Region 9’s drop-out rate was 14% higher than any other region.
Between 2006 and 2007 Hamilton reported that in most of the hinterland regions drop-out rates were higher for males than for females, with little disparity in the coastal regions. For this period Regions 7 and 9 recorded the highest rates of 8% and 13%, respectively.
Meanwhile, at the secondary level, Hamilton reported that the primary tops – secondary departments attached to primary schools – had the highest drop-out rates for two of the years under review, with community high schools recording the highest between 2004 and 2005. However, she said that drop-out rates in general secondary and community high schools declined during the period, but remained at an average rate of 14%. Region 4 had the highest average of drop outs at the primary top, with 23% while Region 6 recorded the highest rate for community high schools. Although Region 8 had the highest drop-out rate at the primary top level with 27%, Region 4 had the highest average rate, followed by Region 6.
As for community high schools during this period, Hamilton said that Region 1 had overwhelmingly higher rates than any other region even though Regions 2, 4 and 6 also had very high drop-out rates. And for secondary schools the highest rates were in Region 1 at 17% and Region 2 at 12%.
For the period between 2005 and 2006, the secondary department of primary schools in Region 4 had the highest rate at 22%, followed closely by Region 9 with 20.5%. In the community high schools Region 4 again had the highest drop-out rate with 21%, following by Region 6 with 19%. Meanwhile, between 2006 and 2007 Region 6 had the highest rate among primary tops with 31% and also for the community high school with 22%. Region 4, Hamilton said, had the highest drop-out rates in general for secondary schools.
a very sad report on this situation, the govt is solely responsible for this lack of educational opportunities and very little or no academic resorces in these far flung areas.
Staggering statistics indeed.
Where are all of these “drop-out” children ending up?…….working, at home, on the streets, where???
For me this is of utmost importance to the country and should nave made the front page.
We are talking about the future leaders of Guyana. This is not good news at all.
Most leave school to follow their big brother/sister/relative to Brazil/Venezuela/Suriname/gold mine. They do this to run away from the problems mentioned.
Little wonder why Guyana is in such shambles and so over run by crime. Chances are, the more educated the population, the less crime and more productivity you will have.
I am quite sure the “highly educated” government ministers know this. Why they are sitting on their hands is anyone’s guess.
This problem has been going for a very long time.
For example three of us (two who were born in the village and one from the coastland) from Yupukari Primary got places at St. Ignatius. After about a term or two the girl decided that she would not go back but attend the Secondary section where she can be with her parents (emotional/needed councllor/financial problem too). A while after the coastlander – boy – left the region (9) because he said that he wanted to become a medical doctor. Only God knows what he did there after.
I stayed back and faced the heat of the problems mentioned above all by myself.
My only energy was the the words of my late father – Martin Marco – who told me once when handing me A Caribbean Readers book that he barely bought for me – “Guy you must study hard. Your mother and I never had the opportunity to be schooled like you. If you want to be like us you can throw away this opportunity”. My dear mother never had the opportunity because schools were very few. My father barely went to Prep A at Yupukari under Mr “Bromegine’ (must have been Broom Eugine?) – I have to dig into history .
His has been my energy (and still is ) there and all the way through my endeavours at higher levels of my education .
Many of us there were from a very poor/unemployed/uneducated families that we basically had a pair (not two – one shirt and one pair of pants) of school uniform. Our pants were very transparent at the rear.
I knew of two very smart brothers, among others, of Yupukari who made it to St. Ignatius but opted to ran across to Brazil because of the problems mentioned.
I hope that the drop out rate will decrease at Yupukari since our selfless ’sister ‘ – Alice Taylor – of America has set up a library and connect the village to the rest of the world via saterlite internet – www. rupununilearners.org
For that matter I was told that this year Yupukari passed 6 grade exam with the highest number because the candidates were exposed to reading and did their research online.
Unfortunately our sister – Alice Taylor – was forced out of the village and the country in a most horrible way as if it was a crime for her to set us a library and give us tool that is modern (internet) for our children.
I ask that the President look into this matter urgently and allow her to return to the country/village to continue set up libraries at other villages as she had plannned.
For that matter she was about to assist me in setting a library at my village -Katoka. My task was/is to collect used books of which I have about about 10-15 boxes of books ready to be shipped to Georgetown and to the village.
Due to my experiences and the current rate of dropouts I have been encouraging my villages – Yupukari/Katoka, among other villages in the region and country – that we villagers come together to create/form a fund – Village Education and Development Fund – that will eliminte the situation. This fund idea is to assist parents with micro-loans to pay for their children’s school needs/exam. This fund will be managed by the Village Council. More on this idea later.
If there is any one who is interested in contributing- used books/laptops/art materials etc towards the education of the Children of interior locations/villages please contact me – Macushi9@cfl.rr.com
I hear you Macushi,
Let’s hope we can reverse this trend before it’s too late