New publication @ Routledge: Comparative Perspectives on Early School Leaving in the European Union

April 3, 2018

Julia Szalai and Agnes Kende, research fellows at CPS, are among the many authors of the book published by Routledge today (April 3, 2018) which aims to summarize the research result of the 5-year long project 'Reducing Early School Leaving in the EU (RESL.eu). Szalai and Kende wrote Chapter 2: Pathways to Early School Leaving in Hungary: Ethnicised Inequalities in Education and the Case of Roma Youth.

Early School Leaving in the European Union provides an analysis of early school leaving (ESL) in nine European Union countries, with a particular focus on young people who were previously enrolled in educational institutions inside and outside mainstream secondary education. The comparative approach employed by this volume adds to the existing body of knowledge on ESL and develops an understanding of how young people navigate through different educational systems.

Contributors acknowledge the importance of reconstructing educational trajectories from the perspective of the individuals involved and, as a result, the book includes data collected during in-depth interviews, surveys, and insights from educational professionals, policymakers and representatives from civil society organisations. Adopting a classic tripartite approach, which acknowledges the complex nature of ESL, the book addresses individual, institutional and systemic factors. It identifies and analyses the prevention, intervention and compensation measures that can succeed in supporting young people’s attainment, and demonstrates how these can be used to reduce ESL.

This unique book will be highly relevant for academics, researchers and postgraduate students, as well as educational practitioners. Drawing on the insights provided by the authors, the book formulates policy recommendations that should also be of interest for policymakers in European countries and beyond.

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Table of Contents

Introduction: theoretical and conceptual framework

Part I: State of the art and impact of early school leaving across European countries

1. Disengaged students: insights from the RESL.eu international survey – Alessio D'Angelo and Neil Kaye

2. Pathways to Early School Leaving in Hungary: Ethnicised Inequalities in Education and the Case of Roma Youth – Ágnes Kende & Júlia Szalai

3. Shaping the policies towards Early School Leaving in Portugal, Sweden and Poland – Helena C. Araújo, Eunice Macedo, Alireza Bethoui, Hanna Tomaszewska-Pękała, Paulina Marchlik, Anna Wrona & Cristina Rocha

4. The individual and economic costs of early school leaving – Marie Gitschthaler & Erna Nairz-Wirth

Part II: Youngsters' perspectives on early school leaving and schooling

5. A narrative approach exploring youngsters' experiences of schooling and leaving school early in Flanders (Belgium): the stories of Simon and Karim – Rut Van Caudenberg, Noel Clycq & Christiane Timmerman

6. Struggling against the waves or taking another course: School disengagement in the educational trajectories of early school leavers from Warsaw – Paulina Marchlik, Anna Wrona, Hanna Tomaszewska-Pękała

7. The Social Relations and Educational Expectations of Young People in Marginalised Areas: Evidence from Sweden – Alireza Behtoui, Marie Björklöf and Isabella Strömberg

8. What's school got to do with it? Comparing educational aspirations of Dutch and English 'white' girls from lower socioeconomic backgrounds – Talitha Stam and Maurice Crul

Part III: Educational trajectories of youth (at risk of) leaving school early

9. Switching practices in vocational education: A comparative case study in Flanders (Belgium) and the Netherlands – Lore Van Praag, Elif Keskiner, Rut Van Caudenberg, Ward Nouwen, Talitha Stam, Noel Clycq, Mariana Orozco, Christiane Timmerman, Maurice Crul

10. Educational Trajectories Of Early School Leavers In Portugal: Processes And Conditions Of (In)Equality – Sofia A. Santos, Eunice Macedo and Helena C. Araújo

11. Neglected aspirations. Academic trajectories and the risk of early school leavers among immigrant and Roma youth in Spain – Silvia Carrasco, Laia Narciso and Marta Bertran

Part IV: Strategies to deal with early school leaving

12. No bridges to re-engagement? Exploring compensatory measures for early school leavers in Catalonia (Spain) from a qualitative approach – Silvia Carrasco, Isidoro Ruiz-Haro & Bálint-Ábel Bereményi

13. Alternative Learning Arenas in Portugal: Hope for Young Adults? – Eunice Macedo, Sofia Almeida Santos & Alexandra Oliveira Doroftei

14. The Opportunities and Challenges of Apprenticeships in England: alternative learning arenas or sites of exploitation? - Louise Ryan & Magdolna Lőrinc

Conclusion: lessons learned from the RESL.eu project: main findings and policy advice