The best educated nations are invariably the most prosperous. Among developing nations, those that have the best chances of sustainable growth to economic maturity are those where young people take the opportunity to complete the education cycle and can thereby enter advanced productive employment.
Unfortunately these opportunities are still not extended to all. According to UNESCO estimates, there are over 200 million children of school age no longer receiving education worldwide. With many conflict areas affecting refugee flows, these numbers may even be growing.
According to a recent report prepared by Dr. Punsaran Tongliemnak, Policy Analyst at Thailand's Ministry of Education, the challenge of school drop-outs remains unsolved even in such ASEAN countries as Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, countries included in the report entitled "A Way Back to School: Improving Outcomes for Out-of-School Children", with research funded by DHL Asia Pacific.
Dimensions of Drop-Out
According to these research findings, which covered five ASEAN countries plus Bangladesh and India, losses to GDP arising from school drop-outs were as high as 2.0% in Indonesia, and 1.7% in Thailand.
According to these estimates, over 9% of primary children (454,000), nearly 11% of lower secondary children (192,000) and over 14% of upper secondary children (379,000) in Thailand are missing out on gaining a full education. This amounts to over one million children in Thailand at any one time. Although this situation appears to be more favourable than in Indonesia, Malaysia or Vietnam, both in percentages and absolute numbers, the Thailand figures are disturbing. Children who do not complete a full cycle of primary and lower secondary education cannot enter technical and vocational education and training (TVET) at the upper secondary level, while those that do not complete the upper secondary level cannot enter the tertiary sector of education.
Causes of Drop-Out
The root causes of education drop-out are evident in all countries. Even government-provided education is expensive for the poorer levels of society, who need at least to provide some funding for clothing, educational supplies, food and transport to school.
Even reaching school can be a challenge, if the locations are remote from home, and working parents do not have free time to accompany small children to and from school.
Furthermore, having children in school means not having their help in home farming, cottage industries, or even outside jobs. Older children often have to leave school early in order to earn enough money to enable younger siblings to enter at least the lower levels of education. It is particularly difficult for larger families to provide education for all the children, so that, tragically, some have to lose out in favour of others. Girls, in particular, can be disfavoured, as compared to their male siblings.
Continuing education does, naturally, require that the education provided should be of good quality. Thailand may fall short in many cases in this respect, but almost any education, however inadequate is better than none. It would be unduly pessimistic about the prospects of Thai educational performance and reform to suggest that not proceeding with continued education might represent a net intellectual benefit for the unfortunate child recipients.
Solutions to Drop-Out
Most Thai parents do recognise the importance and value of education, even if they did not receive much of it themselves. It is fully appreciated that more education means better jobs, higher pay, and greater future opportunities. However it is well worth the effort of trying to persuade parents to make sacrifices to keep children in school. Given that relatively few families in Thailand can save enough to provide for their old age, having well-educated follow-on generations can mean investing in support for an otherwise indigent future for eventually ageing parents.
Although not mentioned in the report, many societies have found that enrolment in the military or other unformed services can offer the opportunity for continuing education, with recruitment being targeted to poor areas of any country. All ASEAN countries might contribute much more towards education and community service through better use of military time and budget allocation.
An educated youth represents the greatest asset that any country can have, and is likely to offer a greater guarantee of peace and stability than investment in fighter planes or submarines.
Although it may be difficult to actually subsidise educational attendance, every effort needs to be made to minimise the cost of continuing school enrolment. This can include free educational materials, uniforms, transport, as well as the best possible educational facilities. Some schools have engaged in agricultural projects for children to grow food for use in school meals, learning agricultural management alongside production. The poorest family children might even be accommodated at school to take the burden of providing for them off their parents.
Corporate Contributions to Educational Sustainability
There are also possibilities for companies to offer internships to students who reach the upper secondary levels, where the greatest drop-out levels tend to occur. Such programs require careful structuring, since labour laws, minimum wages and accusations of less than fair practices can become issues for criticism.
However well-designed internship programs can combine work and education, enabling students to transit from education to employment, gaining qualifications along the way. Companies may also in this way identify potential long-term employment recruits. In any case, such programs can form an excellent contribution to corporate social responsibility.
As Thailand and its ASEAN neighbours move forward towards digital economies and "4.0 status", every qualified worker that can be trained rather than lost will be needed. Drop-outs from the educational pyramid cannot be afforded or tolerated in any forward looking society.
DHL is to be complimented for bringing this issue to the attention of planners, and proposing solutions.
Christopher F. Bruton is Executive Director of Dataconsult Ltd, chris@dataconsult.co.th. Dataconsult's Thailand Regional Forum provides seminars and extensive documentation to update business on future trends in Thailand and in the Mekong Region.
