Hyderabad: Child labour behind school dropout surge

Hyderabad: Telangana state has a 37.92 per cent dropout rate for the year 2016-17 in government run schools by the time the students reach the senior secondary level. This is the latest data, by the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE). Experts say that child labour is also one of the reasons for drop outs and pointed that there is a need to improve awareness among parents to send children to schools.

The drop rate gradually increases while students shift from elementary to secondary and secondary to senior secondary levels. The drop rate is minimal at the elementary level with 18.48 percent and maximum at 37.92 percent in the senior secondary level, i.e., after completion of tenth class. Students enter the labour market after finishing their tenth standard because of the financial hardships their families face. In the case of families where there are more siblings, the dropout rate tends to be high, said Mr Chava Ravi, a government teacher.

When the state education department was contacted regarding the measures to decrease the dropout rate, an official said, “Residential schools and colleges are one such initiative aimed at curbing dropouts. We provide mid-day meals to students of regular schools.” Lack of awareness among parents is one of the main problems as parents from rural areas do not  think that education beyond the tenth standard is important. They encourage their children to quit studies, they usually marry off their daughter and introduce their son to the labour market, said an official from the Education department.

A representative from the United Teacher Federation (UTF) said that there is also a need for better infrastructural development in schools, as lack of proper toilets affects girls’ education and recruitment of sufficient teachers. Teachers also play a key role in motivating students to stick to school and continue their education, he said.