Indicators examples for reengaging measures

Some of the reasons that make it difficult for early leavers to come back to education or training are:

• the traditional, classroom-based approach to learning is not appropriate for some young people who dropped out of education and training in the past 
• these young people have internalised a vision of themselves as ‘poor students’ and do not trust their capacities in education and training
• these young people are facing other challenges (e.g. health and well-being issues, housing, etc.) that impede engagement in education and training

Reengaging measures can have different components:

• they aim at increasing learners’ self-esteem and interest in learning
• they help young people develop the skills and behaviours they need to access formal learning or employment
• they provide individualised support to tackle the different challenges in young people’s lives

Reengaging measures aim to achieve these changes by, for instance:

• building a trusting relationship with the young person
• creating a friendly, open environment based on mutual respect
• using appropriate teaching and learning methods (e.g. make use of a hands-on approach, which enables young people to see how their learning can be applied in practice)
• offering a holistic support to address the full range of barriers to learning faced by the young person

Based on such theory a set of indicators for evaluating a reengaging programme can be developed.

This is an example of an intervention logic for a reengaging measure for young people who left education and training prematurely:

Indicative list:

• human resources put at the disposal of the intervention (teachers, trainers, counsellors, and other professionals)
• budget allocated, broken down by infrastructure and other expenses

Indicative list:

• availability of methodologies, training or tools for staff
• cooperation with local services (e.g. health services, social services, public employment services) and stakeholders (e.g. employers)
• activities to inform the target group of the existence of the measure
• relationships between VET teachers, trainers and other professionals involved in programme delivery

Indicative list:

• number of young persons who contacted those responsible for the programme
• number of young people who took part in activities
• number of young people who followed the whole programme
• features of the learning environment or the teaching approach
• number of contact hours delivered per type of activity
• share of learners with individualised learning plans

Indicative list:

Quantitative indicators:

• share of programme participants who state that they feel happy in the school, training centre, or other entity delivering the measure
• share of programme participants who state the programme contributed to:
  • increasing their self-confidence
  • improving their motivation to study
  • choosing their education/training programme
• share of participants who defined their objectives during their participation in the programme
• share of participants who reached at least one of the objectives during their participation in the programme
• share of participants who:
  • have lower absenteeism
  • improved their education performance

Qualitative indicators:

• narratives from beneficiaries on what differences the measure made to them. Stories about how the measure helped them regain interest in education and training, and decide on their next steps
• narratives from teachers, trainers or other staff on what differences the activities made to the beneficiaries

Indicative list:

Quantitative indicators:

• share of learners who dropped out that return to education or training
• share of learners who complete an education and training programme
• share of participants who move on to further education/training
• share of participants who are in employment X years after taking part in the programme

Qualitative indicators:

• narratives from beneficiaries about how the measure helped them return to education and training and complete their programme
• narratives from teachers, trainers or other staff about how the measure helped beneficiaries return to education and training and complete their programme