Cologne (dpa / lnw) – Before the start of the 2022/23 school year, the Caritas association called for more support for school-tired children and young people. The number of school dropouts increased in the corona pandemic, said the Caritas director for the Archdiocese of Cologne, Frank Johannes Hensel, on Friday. “Each early school leaving is a drama for the young person, society and the school system.” One shouldn’t leave tens of thousands of young people to a “day laborer existence”. NRW is the first federal state to start classes again on Wednesday after the summer holidays.
For the past year, a significant increase in the number of young people who drop out of school can be expected, the Caritas association reported, citing a forecast by the Institute for Social Education Research in Mainz. According to the National Education Report, around 45,000 young people left school without a degree in the first year of the pandemic, 2020.
Hensel emphasized that many students were “lost” due to distance learning and school closures. “All these young people desperately need a real second chance right now.” Caritas help on site. But the state needs to get more involved. Schools, open all-day schools and school social work should create offers together with the municipalities.
