RESLEU European Policy Brief

In all of the countries studied, teacher support and involvement was a significant protective factor that guards against school disengagement. Both quantitative analysis and qualitative and field studies of schools confirmed this finding, even considering that most schools in our sample are characterised by school populations with a high risk of ESL based on socio-demographic and educational background variables.
Our quantitative and qualitative data show that parents are also an important protective factor in com-batting school disengagement.
Certain educational transition moments, when pupils had to make choices that would affect their future education careers, emerged as crucial points in their educational trajectories. Examples of this include the transition to upper secondary education in the Netherlands, Poland and Belgium, or the post-16 transition in the UK and in Spain.
The alternative learning pathways (ALPs) we studied in the RESL.eu project proved successful in accom-modating institutional flexibility and providing individual solutions and a caring environment in the majority of the cases (although this was not the case in Spain). ALPs can be effective in reintegrating young people into education and work. ALPs can also make it more feasible to combine work and study, which is a necessity for youngsters experiencing financial hardship.
Ethnic and social school segregation, whereby pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds are concentrated in certain urban areas and schools, emerged as a critical issue in all seven countries in the RESL.eu study. Segregation particularly affected pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds (hence, those most at risk) in urban areas.