The role of secondary schools in preventing early school leaving An analysis from the micropolitics perspective

Abstract

Spain and Catalonia register high percentages of early school leaving (ESL), remarkably far from the targets set by the European Strategy Education and Training 2020. Given the relevance of this phenomenon, many policies have been developed in order to tackle ESL, both focusing in its prevention and reduction. Secondary schools are not neutral agents in adopting such policies, but have an active role in its implementation and recontextualisation. The aim of this paper is to analyse the way in which schools, understood as micropolitical contexts, manage the risks of dropping out of schools and implement different strategies to combat ESL. To do so, a multiple case study in five compulsory secondary schools in Barcelona has been conducted. The results of the analysis allow identifying four main logics in managing the risk of ESC. These are: heterogeneity, acompainment, omission and expulsion. These rationales generate different opportunity frameworks in achieving educational success of all students and highlight the importance of implementing preventive strategies at school level to combat ESL.