School Dropout Questionnaire

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_____