he main purpose of the study was to identify the major factors that contribute to students' dropout of school at primary level in Mekdela Woreda at South Wallo Administrative Zone. Descriptive method was employed to carry out the study. The study was conducted in 26 primary schools selected from out of 87 primary schools using cluster sampling. In this study school principals(25), teachers (92), drop out students (42), 10 parents of drop out students and 5 woreda education office heads and process owners were included as participant of the study. Questionnaires and interviews were used as instrument to · collect data. The data obtained from questionnaires were analyzed by using percentage, mean, other statistical tools Cronbach Alpha formula and one sample t-test. The items were constructed in 5 point scale alternatives responses, so I used Chronbach Alpha correlation coefficient to test the reliability. Out of school factors and in-school factors were the major causes of primary school drop out. Among out- of­ school factors: parental low level of education, parents low interest in formal education, unemployment after graduation of different levels, absence of rule and regulation that enforce parents to send their _:.{ children to school, involvement in income generating activities, excessive involvement in domestic work, lack of educational finance, large family size, and lack of time for study were the major ones. Among the in-school factors: shortage of school facilities, inflexible school calendar, failure in examination, shortage of teaching materials and lack of teachers encouragement were the major identified factors. Besides to this poor management for teachers and low level of qualification of principals and teachers were the major ones. Based on the findings, it was concluded that high drop out rate hinders improvement in enrollment ratio; parents, the community and the local government give high attention to students are affected by drop out. In light of the finding addressed by the researcher the following recommendations are forwarded: taking pedagogical measures, expanding adult literacy program, guiding with rule and regulation, expanding employment opportunity, applying flexible school calendar, strengthening parental monthly meeting in the school and improving school facilities were forwarded as ,int~rvention to minimize dropout rate in the study area.

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Art in Educational Planning and Management