Policy dialogue held on school dropout issue

Islamabad:The Pakistan Institute of Education (PIE) and the Data and Research in Education - Research Consortium (DARE-RC) jointly hosted a policy dialogue on ‘Initiating an Early Warning System (EWS) to Identify Students at Risk of Dropout’ here.

The event brought together policymakers, education experts, and key stakeholders to address Pakistan's pressing issue of school dropouts. Additional Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education Hassan Saqlain participated as the chief guest.

Discussions revolved around the alarming statistic of over 26.2 million children aged 5-16 years currently out of school in the country. Participants emphasised the critical need for innovative, data-driven approaches to enhance student retention and ensure equitable access to quality education nationwide. They said a central focus of the discussions was EWS, a globally recognised framework designed to identify students at risk of dropping out.

The participants said the EWS framework leveraged key indicators, including attendance, academic performance, and socio-economic conditions, to enable timely and targeted interventions.

Experts highlighted the potential of this proactive system to prevent dropouts and foster inclusive and sustainable education for all children in the country. The organisers said the dialogue served as a call to action for stakeholders to collaborate on implementing evidence-based strategies and leveraging technology to address the dropout crisis. Participants expressed optimism that the adoption of the EWS framework would contribute significantly to achieving the country's educational goals and reducing the number of out-of-school children.