Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to assess the major factors that cause students to drop out
and to look into grade level and sex difference rate of drop out and the magnitude of the
problem in Chonchok primary school. All the 34 teachers of the school, the 5 PTA
members, 13 educational experts, and a principal and Woreda education head were
selected using comprehensive and purposive sampling techniques respectively. Ten
dropped out students were also taken using snow ball or net work sampling technique.
Data were collected through questionnaires, interviews and documents available in the
school , education office, education department and education bureau. The close-ended
questionnaires of teachers and education experts were analyzed using percentages,
means and standard deviations and narrative descriptions were used for open-ended
questionnaire and interviews. Hence the findings indicated that the magnitude of drop
out is in its highest extent that, of the total number of students who entered grade one in
2002103 academic year and graduated grade 8 in 2009/10, 39.45% were drop outs. It
was also found that dropout rate among boys is relatively higher than among girls and
the rate of drop out is considerably greater at the lower grade levels especially to grade
one. No single factor for dropping out but different factors including the conditions of the
school system, socioeconomic and socio cultural influences personal· or individual
factors were identified. Various causes of dropping out including economic constraints,
early marriage, poor awareness and perception of the value of education, lack of interest,
late admission, handicapped, poor academic achievement, competence and shortage of
teachers and religious education were identified. Therefore, intervention programs like
assignment of adequate and competent teachers, preparing awareness creation forums,
incl!"sive system of education, avoiding late admission, expansion of ECD centers,
scaling up of best practices and application of the specified effective strategies to
minimize dropout rate are recommended.
