Surveys on school orientation and early school leaving in Sardinia

Surveys on school orientation and early school leaving in Sardinia

Presented on 16 May 2024 were the findings of the research with which Eurispes Sardegna set out to measure and frame the phenomenon of early school leaving on the island. With the contribution of the Planning and Budget Department of the Region of Sardinia and with the collaboration of the Regional Department of Education, Cultural Heritage, Information, Entertainment and Sport and the Regional Authority for Children and Adolescents, the research project was divided into two different surveys. One focuses on the topic of orientation in primary and secondary schools; the other one devotes special attention to the topic of early school leaving in secondary schools.

The following spoke at the presentation of the surveys: the Regional Councillor for Education of the Region of Sardinia, Ilaria Portas, the President of Eurispes, Gian Maria Fara, the Councillor and Vice-President of the Region of Sardinia, Giuseppe Meloni, the Regional Guarantor for Childhood and Adolescence, Carla Puligheddu, and the Mayor of Tempio Pausania, Gianni Addis. The surveys were illustrated by Marisa Muzzetto, sociologist at Eurispes Sardegna and Giuseppe Pulina, lecturer and member of Eurispes’ National Scientific Committee. The proceedings were introduced and coordinated by the Director and Secretary General of Eurispes Sardegna, Gerolamo Balata. Delegations of students, teachers and headmasters from schools in the territory attended the meeting.

On the whole, the two researches involved about 3,200 students, attending 100 different Institutes representing the different territorial areas of the Island. The generous participation of the students made it possible to collect the data necessary to give authority to the two surveys, whose objective was to understand the dynamics underlying early school leaving, a phenomenon which, as is well known, has one of the highest percentages nationwide in Sardinia. The two surveys provide interesting information on the factors that can most incisively motivate the growth pathway of students as they highlight personal interests and expectations. The assessment of Sardinian pupils’ well-being also includes an analysis of bullying and its various manifestations, an issue on which the regional institutions intend to focus their attention as they see this phenomenon as a threat to the self-esteem and well-being of the students who are its victims. Surveys show, unfortunately, that bullying in schools on the island is increasingly widespread and the phenomenon will soon be studied as part of the research activities planned by Eurispes Sardegna.