In rural Cambodia, students are frequently torn between attending school and staying at home to help work their parents’ farms. The resulting absenteeism, when chronic, can lead to school dropout, which is especially acute in Grades 7-9. The School Dropout Prevention Pilot, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, seeks to reach those at-risk youth by identifying them through an Early Warning System. Some schools in the pilot also received computer labs to entice student attendance.
Preventing Dropout: Reaching At-Risk Students to Ensure They Stay in School
Chronic absenteeism can lead to school dropout, a concern that is especially acute for Cambodian students in Grades 7-9, who are at greatest risk of leaving school. USAID’s School Dropout Prevention Pilot identifies and reengages those at-risk students.
Computer Labs Entice At-Risk Students to Stay in School
Chronic absenteeism puts students at-risk of dropout. In Cambodia, educators and the government thought in-school computer labs would be a draw for students—and they were right. The USAID School Dropout Prevention Pilot’s computer labs program is a hit with students.
Pilot Project Encourages Students to Stay in School
In Cambodia, a number of factors keep children from attending school on a regular basis, which puts them at the greatest risk of dropping out. The USAID School Dropout Prevention Pilot champions the importance of education and regular attendance among children and their parents.
Unique Early Warning System Alerts Parents & Community of At-Risk Students
The warning signs of a child who could eventually leave school are there. Identifying these risk factors and developing an intervention are keys to keeping children in the classroom. The USAID School Dropout Prevention Pilot’s Early Warning System delivers those tools to schools and communities.
