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ABSTRACT
The objective of the article is to examine what is ‘taken for granted’ in the policies designed to combat Early School Leaving (ESL) in Catalonia, identifying their implicit ontologies, causal assumptions and logics of action. In order to do so, the realist evaluation is applied. Specifically, this methodology has been applied to compare the discourses, priorities and policies of two key agents in defining and implementing policies to combat ESL in Catalonia: the Catalan Department for Education (Regional Government body) and the Barcelona Education Consortium (Local Government body). In each case, systematic documentary analysis has been conducted as well as in-depth interviews with educational experts and policymakers. The results of the analysis allows opening up the black box of the political priorities defined by this two political agents, identifying two highly controversial logics to understand educational success and to consequently address ESL
Acknowledgement
The authors wish to acknowledge the anonymous referees for their insightful comments to the manuscript.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes
1. The compulsory age of schooling in Catalonia is from 6 (Grade 1) to 16 (Grade10) years old.
2. For Grades 9 and 10, secondary schools can organise smaller groups of 10–15 students called Open Classrooms. In these groups, teachers offer a diversified curricular content, pedagogical methodologies and evaluation criteria. The rationale of such a device is to promote more holistic learning and offer more manual activities in order to stimulate students’ motivation for learning while strengthening core competencies.
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Notes on contributors
Aina Tarabini
Aina Tarabini is doctor is sociology from Autonomous University of Barcelona, senior lecturer in sociology of education at the same university and researcher at GEPS (Globalization, Education and Social Policies) and GIPE research groups (Interdisciplinary Group on Education Policies). Her research is concerned with the educational effects of social inequalities at three main levels: actors’ subjectivities, schools’ practices and educational policies. Currently, she is leading a research project on Early School Leaving in Spain (abjoves.es).
Marta Curran
Marta Curran is PhD student at the Department of Sociology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and member at GEPS (Globalization, Education and Social Policies) and GIPE research groups (Interdisciplinary Group on Education Policies) since 2011. Her thesis dissertation deals with how gender and class shape educational experiences, expectations and decisions.
Alejandro Montes
Alejandro Montes is PhD student at the Department of Sociology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and member of GEPS (Globalization, Education and Social Policies) since 2003. He is member of the research project ‘Early school leaving in Spain. An analysis of young people’s educational decisions, motivations and strategies (ABJOVES)’. His doctoral thesis deals with trajectories of Early School Leaving and educational return in Spain.
Lluís Parcerisa
Lluís Parcerisa is PhD student at the Department of Sociology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and member of GEPS (Globalization, Education and Social Policies) since 2003. His doctoral thesis analyses the transnationalisation of new public management in the education field and its recontextualisation in public schools in Catalonia and Chile.