Towards Inclusive Education: Understanding and Addressing Tribal Dropout

Abstract

Dropout of students from tribal communities has been persistently hampering the goals of universal and inclusive education. The persistence of the issue of dropout among Scheduled Tribe (ST) students has received increased attention in the New Education Policy (2020) as a crucial aspect in achieving universal inclusive education in India. With this background, the study determined dropout first and then made a comparative analysis across dimensions including social category, gender, educational zones and dropout rates (aggregate). Finally, the study tried to determine the reasons for the dropout among tribal students at the upper primary stage. The study applied a descriptive survey method to carry out the research and purposive sampling for sample selection. Inquiry forms (Structured questionnaires) were used for the collection of data. Data analysis was carried out through Microsoft Excel v. 2021 and SPSS v.29, and frequency counts, percentage and descriptive statistics were used for statistical analysis. The study found a significant proportion of student’s dropout at the upper primary stage, as the dropout rate is 11.38%, and the majority of them, that is, 59.62%, belong to tribal communities. And the same for tribals was found to be 18.16%. Tribal males were found to leave school more (23.92%) compared to tribal females (21.62%) at the upper primary stage. Similarly, inter- and intra-zonal differences have also been found in dropouts. Educational zones (Hariganwan and Kangan) with major tribal populations and enrolment were found to have high dropout rates. The reasons responsible for the dropout were illiteracy, poverty, hereditary occupation, sibling care, early engagement, lack of mobile schools, school distance, irrelevant pedagogy/curriculum and low achievement in academic pursuits. The results highlight the necessity for coordinated and result-oriented efforts from concerned stakeholders, including students, parents, tribal chieftain, teachers and administration, to effectively address the context-specific and broader determinants of dropout, thereby promoting sustained school continuity at the upper primary stage.