Early School Leaving in Spain: a longitudinal analysis by gender

TL;DR

This study analyzes early school leaving in Spain from 2002 to 2020 using panel data, highlighting regional inequalities, gender differences, and socioeconomic factors influencing ESL rates.

Contribution

It is the first to examine Spanish ESL with panel data, considering regional inequalities and gender differences, providing new insights into macroeconomic and demographic influences.

Findings

Socioeconomic variables positively correlate with ESL.

Gender differences influence the impact of economic factors.

Youth unemployment has a limited effect on female ESL.

Abstract

Spain is one of the eight EU-27 countries that failed to reduce early school leaving (ESL) below 10% in 2020, and now faces the challenge of achieving a rate below 9% by 2030. The determinants of this phenomenon are usually studied using cross-sectional data at the micro-level and without differentiation by gender. In this study, we analyse it for the first time for Spain using panel data (between 2002-2020), taking into account the high regional inequalities at the macroeconomic level and the masculinisation of the phenomenon. The results show a positive relationship between ESL and socioeconomic variables such as the adolescent fertility rate, immigration, unemployment or the weight of the industrial and construction sectors in the regional economy, with significant gender differences that invite us to discuss educational policies. Surprisingly, youth unemployment has only small but significant impact on female ESL.