14/12/2023
Fundación Secretariado Gitano
Fundación Secretariado Gitano presented this week in the Spanish Congress of Deputies the study "The educational situation of Roma students in Spain" before members of the Education, Social Rights, Children and Youth committees, and various representatives of other public institutions and civil society.
The results of the study are devastating: the educational levels of the Roma population are far behind the average in Spain for any educational indicator and the gap is widening. Six out of ten Roma students do not graduate from compulsory secondary education, and no significant progress has been made in the last ten years. Forty per cent of Roma students drop out of school by the age of 16. There is early drop-out, among other reasons, due to increased grade repetition and a progressive educational gap. The school failure rate (young people between 16 and 24 who do not graduate from compulsory secondary education) is still much higher than that of the general population: 63% compared to 4%; as is the rate of early school leaving, according to Isidro Rodríguez, director of Fundación Secretariado Gitano.
The situation of inequality is produced by different and complex causes, among them the social context in which Roma families live, with poverty rates of 87%.
Fundación Secretariado Gitano denounced before the MPs the lack of response from the education system to offer inclusive education that responds to this situation, as well as the segregation of Roma students in classrooms and schools separated from the rest of the students.
Sara Giménez, president of Fundación Secretariado Gitano, was categorical in calling for a "political commitment to correct the great disadvantage of Roma children. A disadvantage that can be seen in the lack of resources at home to support their children in their studies; in the continuous repetitions that mean that in primary school there is already a gap, in the lack of support in schools, or in the existence of ghetto centres".
The session was moderated by journalist Ana Pardo de Vera and the institutional welcome was given by Mercedes González, chair of the Education Committee of the Congress of Deputies. The Roma students, Ainhoa Ramírez and Samuel Hernández, gave testimonies about the difficulties they have encountered in their educational path, but also about how, with sufficient support, it is possible to pursue higher education.
RTVE 24 horas Parlamento
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