Resilience Processes Facilitating School Re-Entry among Rural Female High School Learners in South Africa
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2708-9355/9839Keywords:
school dropout, school re-entry, school social work, resilienceAbstract
School dropout is a concern globally. In South Africa, approximately 60 per cent of young adults drop out before completing secondary school. Although much is known about school dropout, little is known about the factors that enable some learners to re-enter education after a period of dropout. In this qualitative descriptive study with 12 adolescent female learners from a rural school in Mpumalanga, South Africa, we sought to understand the social-ecological resilience processes that facilitated their re-entry after one to two years of dropout. The findings indicated several personal and relational resilience processes, including the learners’ desire for success and others’ encouragement of learners to focus on the future. Informed by the resilience and push–pull theories, the findings suggest that a collective narrative of education as being key to one’s future was powerful in facilitating educational re-entry. We argue that school social workers could cultivate this narrative to prevent school dropout and to facilitate the re-entry of dropped-out learners back into school.
References
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Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke. 2006. “Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology.” Qualitative Research in Psychology 3 (2): 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa.
Dube, Andile, and Mokubung Nkomo. 2014. “The Troubled Journeys of School Drop-Outs: Wastage, Redemption and Policy Considerations.” Commonwealth Youth and Development 12 (1): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.25159/1727-7140/1604.
Kim, Hyejin, Justine S. Sefcik, and Christine Bradway. 2017. “Characteristics of Qualitative Descriptive Studies: A Systematic Review.” Research in Nursing & Health 40 (1): 23–42. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.21768.
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Rosenberg, Molly, Michael Emch, Audrey Pettifor, William C. Miller, Harsha Thirumurthy, Sulaimon A. Afolabi, Kathleen Kahn, Mark Collinson, and Stephen Tollman. 2015. “Relationship between School Dropout and Teen Pregnancy among Rural South African Young Women.” International Journal of Epidemiology 44 (3): 928–36. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyv007.
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StatsSA (Statistics South Africa). 2012. “Census 2011.” Accessed 4 April 2022. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P03014/P030142011.pdf.
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StatsSA (Statistics South Africa). 2019. “Youth Graduate Unemployment Rate Increases in Q1: 2019.” Accessed 4 April 2022. http://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=12121.
Stearns, Elizabeth, and Elizabeth J. Glennie. 2006. “When and Why Dropouts Leave High School.” Youth & Society 38 (1): 29–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X05282764.
Stoner, Marie C. D., Katherine B. Rucinski, Jessie K. Edwards, Amanda Selin, James P. Hughes, Jing Wang, Yaw Agyei, F. Xavier Gomez-Olive, Catherine MacPhail, Kathleen Kahn, and Audrey Pettifor. 2019. “The Relationship between School Dropout and Pregnancy among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa: A HPTN 068 Analysis.” Health Education & Behavior 46 (4): 559–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198119831755.
Theron, Linda C. 2019. “Championing the Resilience of Sub-Saharan Adolescents: Pointers for Psychologists.” South African Journal of Psychology 49 (3): 325–36. https://doi.org/10.1177/0081246318801749.
Ungar, Michael. 2012a. “Social Ecologies and Their Contribution to Resilience.” In The Social Ecology of Resilience: A Handbook of Theory and Practice, edited by Michael Ungar, 13–31. New York: Springer.
Ungar, Michael, ed. 2012b. The Social Ecology of Resilience: A Handbook of Theory and Practice. New York: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0586-3_2.
Ungar, Michael, and Linda C. Theron. 2020. “Resilience and Mental Health: How Multisystemic Processes Contribute to Positive Outcomes.” Lancet Psychiatry 7 (5): 441–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(19)30434-1.
Vaismoradi, Mojtaba, Hannele Turunen, and Terese Bondas. 2013. “Content Analysis and Thematic Analysis: Implications for Conducting a Qualitative Descriptive Study.” Nursing & Health Sciences 15 (3): 398–405. https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12048.
Van Breda, Adrian D. 2018. “A Critical Review of Resilience Theory and Its Relevance for Social Work.” Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk 54 (1): 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15270/54-1-611.
Van Breda, Adrian D., and Linda C. Theron. 2018. “A Critical Review of South African Child and Youth Resilience Studies, 2009–2017.” Children and Youth Services Review 91: 237–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.06.022.
Varga, Shannon M., Max Margolius, Catalina Tang Yan, Anna Skubel, Marissa L. Cole, and Jonathan F. Zaff. 2019. I’m Going Back: The Re-Engagement Experiences of Tucson Youth. America’s Promise Alliance.
Willis, Danny G., Susan Sullivan-Bolyai, Kathleen Knafl, and Marlene Z. Cohen. 2016. “Distinguishing Features and Similarities between Descriptive Phenomenological and Qualitative Description Research.” Western Journal of Nursing Research 38 (9): 1185–204. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193945916645499.
Zuilkowski, Stephanie Simmons, Margaret Henning, Joseph Zulu, and Beatrice Matafwali. 2019. “Zambia’s School Re-Entry Policy for Adolescent Mothers: Examining Impacts Beyond Re-Enrollment.” International Journal of Educational Development 64: 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2018.11.001.
Barrat, Vanessa X., and BethAnn Berliner. 2016. Characteristics and Education Outcomes of Utah High School Dropouts Who Re-Enrolled. Washington: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory West.
Barrat, Vanessa X., BethAnn Berliner, and Anthony B. Fong. 2012. “When Dropping out is Not a Permanent High School Outcome: Student Characteristics, Motivations, and Reenrollment Challenges.” Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk 17 (4): 217–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/10824669.2012.717028.
Boylan, Rebecca L., and Linda A. Renzulli. 2017. “Routes and Reasons Out, Paths Back: The Influence of Push and Pull Reasons for Leaving School on Students’ School Reengagement.” Youth & Society 49 (1): 46–71. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X14522078.
Bradley, Christen L., and Linda A. Renzulli. 2011. “The Complexity of Non-Completion: Being Pushed or Pulled to Drop out of High School.” Social Forces 90 (2): 521–45. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/sor003.
Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke. 2006. “Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology.” Qualitative Research in Psychology 3 (2): 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa.
Dube, Andile, and Mokubung Nkomo. 2014. “The Troubled Journeys of School Drop-Outs: Wastage, Redemption and Policy Considerations.” Commonwealth Youth and Development 12 (1): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.25159/1727-7140/1604.
Kim, Hyejin, Justine S. Sefcik, and Christine Bradway. 2017. “Characteristics of Qualitative Descriptive Studies: A Systematic Review.” Research in Nursing & Health 40 (1): 23–42. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.21768.
Lagana, Maureen T. 2004. “Protective Factors for Inner City Adolescents at Risk of School Drop-Out: Family Factors and Social Support.” Children & Schools 26 (4): 211–20. https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/26.4.211.
Lamb, Stephen, and Eifred Markussen. 2011. “School Dropout and Completion: An International Perspective.” In School Dropout and Completion: International Comparative Studies in Theory and Policy, edited by Stephen Lamb, Eifred Markussen, R. Teese, N. Sandberg and John Polesel, 1–18. Dortrecht: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9763-7_1.
Masten, Ann S. 2019. “Resilience from a Developmental Systems Perspective.” World Psychiatry 18 (1): 101–102. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20591.
Maynard, Brandy R., Christopher P. Salas-Wright, and Michael G. Vaughn. 2015. “High School Dropouts in Emerging Adulthood: Substance Use, Mental Health Problems, and Crime.” Community Mental Health Journal 51 (3): 289–99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-014-9760-5.
McWhirter, J Jeffries, T. Benedict, Ellen Hawley McWhirter, and Anna Cecilia McWhirter. 2017. At-Risk Youth: A Comprehensive Response for Counselors, Teachers, Psychologists, and Human Service Professionals. 6th ed. Belmont: Brooks/Cole Cengage.
Milne, Jill, and Kathleen Oberle. 2005. “Enhancing Rigor in Qualitative Description.” Journal of Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nursing 32 (6): 413–20. https://doi.org/10.1097/00152192-200511000-00014.
Mokoena, Prince, and Adrian D. van Breda. 2021. “School Dropout among Female Learners in Rural Mpumalanga, South Africa.” South African Journal of Education 41 (3): 1–9. https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v41n3a1842.
Mulaudzi, T. P., and N. P. Rankakane. 2018. “An Investigation on Factors that Contribute to Female Learners Dropping out of School at Moretele Village in Bojanala District, North West Province.” Gender and Behaviour 16 (2): 11555–70.
Rosenberg, Molly, Michael Emch, Audrey Pettifor, William C. Miller, Harsha Thirumurthy, Sulaimon A. Afolabi, Kathleen Kahn, Mark Collinson, and Stephen Tollman. 2015. “Relationship between School Dropout and Teen Pregnancy among Rural South African Young Women.” International Journal of Epidemiology 44 (3): 928–36. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyv007.
RSA (Republic of South Africa). 2014. National Policy Pertaining to the Programme and Promotion Requirements of the National Curriculum Statement Grades R–12. Department of Basic Education.
RSA (Republic of South Africa). 2018. Draft National Policy on the Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy in Schools. Department of Basic Education.
Sandelowski, Margarete. 2010. “What’s in a Name? Qualitative Description Revisited.” Research in Nursing & Health 33 (1): 77–84. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.20362.
Sheppard, Charles. 2009. The State of Youth in South Africa: Trends in Education Attainment. Pretoria: HSRC.
South African Human Rights Commission. 2019. Access to a Basic Education for Undocumented Learners in South Africa. Braamfontein: SAHRC.
Spaull, Nicholas. 2015. “Schooling in South Africa: How Low Quality Education Becomes a Poverty Trap.” In South African Child Gauge 2015, edited by A. de Lannoy, S. Swartz, L. Lake and C. Smith, 34–41. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town.
StatsSA (Statistics South Africa). 2012. “Census 2011.” Accessed 4 April 2022. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P03014/P030142011.pdf.
StatsSA (Statistics South Africa). 2017. Quarterly Labour Force Survey Quarter 4, 2016. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa.
StatsSA (Statistics South Africa). 2019. “Youth Graduate Unemployment Rate Increases in Q1: 2019.” Accessed 4 April 2022. http://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=12121.
Stearns, Elizabeth, and Elizabeth J. Glennie. 2006. “When and Why Dropouts Leave High School.” Youth & Society 38 (1): 29–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X05282764.
Stoner, Marie C. D., Katherine B. Rucinski, Jessie K. Edwards, Amanda Selin, James P. Hughes, Jing Wang, Yaw Agyei, F. Xavier Gomez-Olive, Catherine MacPhail, Kathleen Kahn, and Audrey Pettifor. 2019. “The Relationship between School Dropout and Pregnancy among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa: A HPTN 068 Analysis.” Health Education & Behavior 46 (4): 559–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198119831755.
Theron, Linda C. 2019. “Championing the Resilience of Sub-Saharan Adolescents: Pointers for Psychologists.” South African Journal of Psychology 49 (3): 325–36. https://doi.org/10.1177/0081246318801749.
Ungar, Michael. 2012a. “Social Ecologies and Their Contribution to Resilience.” In The Social Ecology of Resilience: A Handbook of Theory and Practice, edited by Michael Ungar, 13–31. New York: Springer.
Ungar, Michael, ed. 2012b. The Social Ecology of Resilience: A Handbook of Theory and Practice. New York: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0586-3_2.
Ungar, Michael, and Linda C. Theron. 2020. “Resilience and Mental Health: How Multisystemic Processes Contribute to Positive Outcomes.” Lancet Psychiatry 7 (5): 441–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(19)30434-1.
Vaismoradi, Mojtaba, Hannele Turunen, and Terese Bondas. 2013. “Content Analysis and Thematic Analysis: Implications for Conducting a Qualitative Descriptive Study.” Nursing & Health Sciences 15 (3): 398–405. https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12048.
Van Breda, Adrian D. 2018. “A Critical Review of Resilience Theory and Its Relevance for Social Work.” Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk 54 (1): 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15270/54-1-611.
Van Breda, Adrian D., and Linda C. Theron. 2018. “A Critical Review of South African Child and Youth Resilience Studies, 2009–2017.” Children and Youth Services Review 91: 237–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.06.022.
Varga, Shannon M., Max Margolius, Catalina Tang Yan, Anna Skubel, Marissa L. Cole, and Jonathan F. Zaff. 2019. I’m Going Back: The Re-Engagement Experiences of Tucson Youth. America’s Promise Alliance.
Willis, Danny G., Susan Sullivan-Bolyai, Kathleen Knafl, and Marlene Z. Cohen. 2016. “Distinguishing Features and Similarities between Descriptive Phenomenological and Qualitative Description Research.” Western Journal of Nursing Research 38 (9): 1185–204. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193945916645499.
Zuilkowski, Stephanie Simmons, Margaret Henning, Joseph Zulu, and Beatrice Matafwali. 2019. “Zambia’s School Re-Entry Policy for Adolescent Mothers: Examining Impacts Beyond Re-Enrollment.” International Journal of Educational Development 64: 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2018.11.001.
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Published
2022-10-06
How to Cite
van Breda, Adrian D, and Prince Mokoena. 2022. “Resilience Processes Facilitating School Re-Entry Among Rural Female High School Learners in South Africa”. Southern African Journal of Social Work and Social Development 34 (3):19 pages. https://doi.org/10.25159/2708-9355/9839.
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