70,000 School Refusers And Many Children Without Full Education.

70,000 School Refusers And Many Children Without Full Education.

More and more children in the Netherlands fall outside regular education. According to a new report by Parents Association Balans, the Netherlands has at least 70,000 school dropouts. The organization thinks it is time to look carefully at our education system. They call for full education with learning rights for every child.

Focus on learning rights instead of attendance

The education system now focuses too much on children’s attendance at school, says Balans director Joli Luijckx. “It cannot be that these children are ‘too complex’ to provide education.” For years, it was tried to find a solution for the number of school dropouts by looking at the individual child, but this did not work. There must be recognition of the size of the problem and its unpleasant consequences.

The emphasis on compulsory education instead of learning rights often leads to pressure and force measures from school to get students to come to school, says Balans. Their research shows that 37% of parents deal with this.

The hidden school dropouts

Besides the 70,000 school dropouts, there are also ‘hidden school dropouts’ – children who are registered but hardly or not at all attend school. Balans states that deviating from the set norm can cause feelings of loneliness, exclusion, and fear. This often starts long before children stop going to school. One third of the school dropouts say they sometimes prefer to die. “That education causes this is sad,” says Luijckx.

Time for change

The course must change, says Balans. Tailored education is not only about attendance but about offering a safe and encouraging learning environment where every child can develop.

“School dropouts are a symptom of the underlying problems in education and warn us again and again about non-tailored education,” says Luijckx. “As long as we do not adjust the system, children will keep getting stuck and the number of school dropouts will only rise.”