Indicator history

Dropout rates among the Roma, although improving during the past few years, are disproportionately high compared to other ethnic groups. In a survey, held by Vitosha research in 2007 and published in "Reasons for Children Dropping Out of School", 74% of the children who leave school are Roma, 12.4% are Turks and 10.1% are Bulgarian. Among the main reasons pointed out by the parents are: lack of funding for food and clothes (41.4%), the child experienced difficulties in studying (35.7%), lack of funding for textbooks and notebooks (29.5%), poor interest in education (24.4%). Among the top reasons given by teachers in primary schools are: lack of interest by parents (54.2%), lack of finances (49.5%), problems in the family, e.g. divorce, domestic violence, alcoholism (37.5%), and parents who do not allow their children to go to school (35.9%).