Why some young people leave education before finishing

All young people in Estonia must now continue their education after basic school until they turn 18, but some still drop out of the education system, ERR reported.

Kätlin Jaanus, a 10th-grade student at Tallinn Old Town Adult Gymnasium, left school 30 years ago. After finishing basic school, she enrolled in vocational school but soon entered the workforce instead. Her family did not react well at the time, but also did not know how to provide enough support.

Jaanus is now a mother of two sons, one of whom began studying at the University of Tartu this autumn. She said her son was happy and supportive when she told him that she planned to return to school and finish upper secondary education.

“He said, ‘Mum, I will help you with everything, but do not turn to me for help with mathematics,’” Jaanus said. She added that she had received a great deal of support both from her family and from people outside her home.

Jaanus was nervous when she brought her documents to the school for the first time. She said she realised that she had been warmly welcomed and not judged.

She said she had felt considerable shame about having incomplete education and had rarely spoken about it openly.

Raili Veiman, a final-year student at the same school, also took a break from her studies, although hers lasted only six months. After ninth grade, she went to a gymnasium near her home, but left halfway through 10th grade. The following autumn, she began studying at the adult gymnasium.

Veiman said her relationships had deteriorated and that she was facing difficulties both at school and at home. She gradually stopped attending school, first missing some mornings because she lacked the motivation, until she stopped going altogether.

Because she had always enjoyed studying, Veiman felt guilty for letting herself down. She did not even dare tell her friends that she had left school.

Before enrolling at the adult gymnasium, Veiman had not known other young people who had dropped out. She said the school was now full of people with similar experiences, each with their own story.

According to Veiman, some students went straight to work after basic school, intending to continue their studies later, but never did. Others entered vocational education but did not like the speciality they had chosen.

Kristi Feldman, a psychologist at Kiili Gymnasium, said she was seeing more children and young people develop an aversion to school each year. In her view, this occurs most often in the third stage of basic school, although the signs are usually visible earlier.