Toward sa Model of Preventing School Leaving in The Context of Lipa City Public Elementary Schools

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Educational leadership always accentuates how every learner can develop competencies through the collaborative effort of all stakeholders. However, the school needs to continuously assess why a 100% completion rate cannot be achieved despite of all the exerted efforts. Thus, this study was formulated out of the researcher's eagerness to analyze school leaving in the context of Lipa City public elementary schools. One of its highlights centers on the proposed model on school leaving that can aid any educational leader in upholding the right of all learners to quality education.

METHODS

Through a descriptive method, views and observations of 180 respondents from school heads and teachers were analyzed. The questionnaire consisted of four distinct factors of pupils leaving the school system coined as underpinnings of school leavings being experienced in the locality. These comprised related factors in the family, school, and community contexts together with personal factors. Moreover, 20 school leavers randomly selected were interviewed to capture their personal views on the matter. Data collected through the instrument were statistically tested using Weighted Mean, T-test Differences and Friedman's Analysis of Variance.

RESULTS

Considering identified causes of school leaving, family-related factors appeared to have the highest impact on school leaving as compared to personal, school, and community-related factors. The indicators highlighted the following factors as primary reasons why pupils left the system: 1) lack of a stable family environment; 2) parents are less involved in their children's education and upbringing; 3) pupils tend to adapt specific attitudes that might defer poor habits including laziness and loss of motivation; 4) pupils lose enthusiasm to attend classes due to lack of support; and 5) lack of resources and low socio-economic status lead to inability to afford tutoring or other resources to help improve academic performance. In addition, two of the primary experiences pupils display were school performance and their engagement with school. When they lose their interest on their studies, they tend to have poor academic performance especially when they receive no support from their immediate families.

DISCUSSIONS

The results reveal that schools are geared towards providing optimal developing activities for pupils to acquire the high academic performance, hence, school head and teachers take on their best roles to uplift the level of academic performance pupils portray every year. Though it appeared that family-related factors seemed to get the highest impact on school leaving, the school has its capacity to mediate between the reasons and the interventions that can be carried out to prevent such scenarios. Other researchers had maximized the data by exposing readers to more detailed activities that schools can implement to avoid pupils from leaving the school system. Thus, another research that will highlight the step-by-step process every teacher can follow once a pupil exhibit any of the inhibiting factors must be prioritized.