THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

School dropout is the phenomenon of leaving the educational system before obtaining a graduate certificate. Oficial statistics point to the fact that in our country school dropout is a serious problem that places Romania on one of the leading places of school dropout rates in Europe. We can thinks of school drop out as a final step in a larger process of disengagement from school that starts long before the student actually leaves the educational system.

The risk factors for school drop out can be clasified:-economic factors-demografic, socio economic factors-personal factors

In Romania, the socio economic risk factors have a large importance for school drop out rates. This are: Roma nationality, rural residence, parents in agriculture related occupation, poverty.

The personal risk factors that correlate with higher risk of school drop out are:- school failure ( learning disabilities; perceived difficulties related to school assignements) - perceived relationship with the school (perceived negative relationship with professors and peers;

perceived inequity; social isolation; social rejection).- deliquency and antisocial behaviours - school alienation- low satisfaction related to the school- peer group influence

The survey questionnaire was constructed by including items formulated to assess this main correlates of school dropout .

The application of the survey instrument has two aims:1) to identify students at high risk of school dropput ( screening instrument)2) to monitorize the efficiency of implementing the mentoring intervention of our project

The psychometric indices of the instrument ( validity, fidelity, ) are to be established in future applications.

SCHOOL DROPOUT RISK ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Sex. F_____ M____

2. Residence: URBAN____ RURAL____

3. You live with : FAMILY____ RELATIVES____ FOSTER CARE____ ALONE____

4. Parents’ education: NO HIGHSCHOOL____ HIGHSCHOOL____ COLLEGE____

5. Parents’ occupation: FATHER________________ MOTHER__________________

6. How happy are you with ?

a) your school results?

VERY HAPPY____ HAPPY____ NOT VERY HAPPY____ NOT HAPPY AT ALL____

b) your peer students ?

VERY HAPPY____ HAPPY____ NOT VERY HAPPY____ NOT HAPPY AT ALL____

c) your professors?

VERY HAPPY____ HAPPY____ NOT VERY HAPPY____ NOT HAPPY AT ALL____

d) school in general?

VERY HAPPY____ HAPPY____ NOT VERY HAPPY____ NOT HAPPY AT ALL____

7. I think that in my school :

a) The professors have a good relationship with the students :

NO___ MORE OR LESS___ YES____

b) I feel good when I’m at school:

NO___ MORE OR LESS___ YES____

c) The professors respect our opinions :

NO___ MORE OR LESS___ YES____

d) The professors show interest in our school results :

NO___ MORE OR LESS___ YES____

e) I am treated fairly :

NO___ MORE OR LESS___ YES____

8. In the last year how often did it happen that ?:

a) a peer bullied you or laughed at you :

OFTEN___SOMETIMES ___NOT AT ALL

b) a peer didn’t want to be friends with you:

OFTEN____SOMETIMES ___NOT AT ALL

c) you felt rejected at school :

OFTEN____SOMETIMES ___NOT AT ALL

d) you felt that you didn’t like being at school:

OFTEN____SOMETIMES ___NOT AT ALL

9. Do you think sometimes that you want to do something different than to come to school ?

YES___NO___

10. In the last semester did you have problems related to skipping classes ?

YES (with sanction)___ SOME PROBLEMS (with warning)____NO____

11. Do you find school disciplines interesting? YES___ SOME___ NO___

12. Do you study when you find something interesting? YES___NO___

13. Can you focus when you study or do your assignments?

YES____MORE OR LESS____NO___

14. Do you usually do your assignments? YES___NO___

15. Do you like school? YES___NO___

16. Did you have problems at school in the last year?

a) fights with peers or other students : YES___NO___

b) cought smoking or drinking at school : YES___NO___

c) warned by principal or professors because of your behavior: YES___NO___

17. Do you like doing something better than coming to school ? YES___NO___

18. If you answered “YES” to the last question : What else do you like better than coming to

school??

19. Do you see yourself finishing high school ? YES___NO___

20. If you don’t see yourself finishing high school , you see yourself:

a) learning a craft

b) working

c) something else____________________________________________________

21. Do you have friends that haven’t finished high school ?

YES___ (if “YES” How many? ______ ) NO___

22. Does your family show interest in your school results?

YES____ MORE OR LESS____ NO_____

23. Does your family encourage you to graduate from high school?

YES____ MORE OR LESS____ NO_____

24 . Do you feel that you cannot cope with pressure at school?

YES___ SOMETIMES___NEVER__

25. Do you plan on working during high school years?

YES____ NO_____

26. Are there people around you that think school is a waste of time?

YES____ MORE OR LESS____ NO_____

27. Do you have older friends?

YES, MANY_____YES , A FEW , ____ONE____NO _____

28. Do you have problems that might prevent you from finishing highschool? (exgoing to school,

financial etc.) YES_____NO_____

29. Do you feel sometimes that your assignments are to difficult ? YES_____NO_____

30. Can you do your assignments without help? YES_____NO_____

31. Do you think that in school you find somebody understanding your problems?

YES_____NO_____