STAYING TO LEARN: ADDRESSING DEMOTIVATION, LEARNING DIFFICULTIES, AND SCHOOL DROPOUT

Abstract

School permanence cannot be limited to enrollment or student attendance, since it presupposes effective conditions for participation, belonging, and learning. In this context, demotivation, learning difficulties, and school dropout are complex phenomena shaped by pedagogical, relational, family, socioeconomic, and institutional dimensions. This article aims to analyze the relationships among these three phenomena, discussing pedagogical and institutional practices capable of supporting students’ permanence and learning. Methodologically, it is characterized as qualitative, bibliographic, exploratory, and interpretive research. Its main corpus comprises three academic studies: Santos’s article (2024) on lack of interest in school in Latin America; Garcia’s dissertation (2022) on learning difficulties and disorders in the context of pedagogical practices; and the study by Ramos and Gonçalves Junior (2024), which addresses school withdrawal and dropout from the perspectives of the subjects involved. The analysis indicates that demotivation cannot be understood as an exclusively individual disposition, just as learning difficulties should not be reduced to students’ limitations. Likewise, school dropout does not necessarily occur suddenly and may represent the culmination of a progressive process of disengagement from school. It is concluded that promoting school permanence requires the early identification of difficulties, diversification of pedagogical practices, strengthening of relationships, student listening, teacher education, and coordination among schools, families, and protection networks.