Parents raise concerns about children dropping out of school

Some parents have raised concerns as children are not attending school daily and are dropping out of school. Parents say they only go to school on sports days and when they force their children to attend classes, they are threatened by the children that they will hurt themselves or leave home.

Acting Permanent Secretary for Education Timoci Bure says the Ministry of Education is always concerned about school dropouts and will continue to develop strategies to mitigate this issue. He says various factors such as home, school environment, and peer pressure contributes to school dropouts therefore, parents and teachers must ensure that students are provided the essential support in terms of resources, safe and conducive environment, and a more professional approach in managing students behavior to keep them interested and focused on their goal.

Bure says teachers are also expected to prepare their lessons well and deliver them interestingly to keep students engaged.

The Permanent Secretary further says the MoE has already conducted awareness and training for teachers to identify high-risk students and conduct counseling.

However, what needs strengthening is Community Awareness to educate parents on how they can identify the risks associated with dropouts. He also says the onus is now on teachers who are closest to students to provide counseling and do home visits to better understand the student's home background in addressing issues more appropriately.