Intervention project

                         Reducing number of early school leavers in Ireland

Audrey Bryan

Arnošt Veselý

Rania Georgiou

Kateřina Vlčková

Charis Konstantinides

                                         Problem definition

•      High-level of drop-outs from secondary education in Ireland (16 per cent)

                                          Community needs

Why is it a problem?

•      For individual:

  –   increased risk of poverty, unemployment and social exclusion,

  –   increased risk of pathological behavior.

•      For society:

  –   increased costs in supporting of those who are unemployed,

  –   loss of human capital (skilled workers),

  –   social pathology.

                                            Target group



•      5 % of secondary schools with the highest level of drop-outs in Ireland

                                        Influential factors

                                        Influential factors

                                       Interventions strategy



•      Training program for teachers

    •    psychological training (self-fulling prophecy ..),

    •    classroom management (disciplinary climate...).



•      Outreach to parents

    •    introductory meetings, common gatherings, „Olympic games“, theater



•      Reorganization of schools

    •    detracking (same curriculum for every student, extra teaching for the needed)

                                          Desired results

•      Outputs

    •   Higher teachers expectations

    •   Higher attachment of parents to school

    •   Less strict school environment

    •   The same curriculum for every student

•      Outcomes

    •   Reducing level of drop-outs

•      Impact

    •   Continuing in further education

                                             Resources

•      Skilled instructors for training program

•      Mentors in designing out-reach activities

•      Financial funds for out-reach activities

•      More teachers



                                            Assumptions

•      School matters !



•      Coleman et al.: Structure and organization of schools do not have any effect upon achievement
– what matters are students‘ and parents‘ characteristics

                                            Assumptions

•      School matters !



•      Coleman et al.: Structure and organization of schools do not have any effect upon achievement
– what matters are students‘ and parents‘ characteristics

                                          Research design

•      Quasi-experiment

•      Unit: school

Two groups:

  N O X O  (5 % schools with highest drop-out)

  N O     O  (other secondary schools)



                                        Statistical analysis

•      Regression-discontinuity design



•      Potential threats:

    •   History                     th

    •   Maturation                ý

    •   Testing                    ý

    •   Instrumentation        ý

    •   Mortality                    ý

    •   Regression             th

                                             Advantages

•      Cheap

•      Relatively ethical in contrast to randomized design

•      Access to data (data from central register, no need for data collecting, not time and money
consuming)





                                            Limitations

•      Intervention only at the school level

•      Impact not measured

                                           Open questions

•      Multi-level design?

•      If individual level included, how to contact persons later?



                                       Possible interventions
                                        at individual level

•      Counselor

•      Special instruction in study skills and knowledge for students

•      Assistance for the homework

•      Extra-curricular activities

•      Common breakfast

•      …….

                                        Influential factors





                                             Thank you

                                         for your attention

                                               ………….



                              Critical friends are more than welcome!