L’approche du décrochage scolaire selon les théories culturalistes de l’activité. Bénéfices et perspectives

Abstract

Education policies are currently paying increasing attention to the prevention of and the fight against pupils dropping out of school. This is notably because the school dropout rate is considered to be an indicator of an education system’s state of health. Numerous (essentially sociological) studies on this subject allow us to understand the phenomenon as a complex and multifactorial process of non-adherence to school work. Following on from these studies, this article, supported by empirical evidence, seeks to better understand the issues associated with a reduction in the school dropout rate from a “directed activity” approach that is as close as possible to the actors, their practices and the significance they accord them within the work context. We will develop three specific hypotheses from this approach: the hypothesis of development through sense and efficiency, the hypothesis of development through concurrent motives and the hypothesis of development in an “activity system”. The adoption of these hypotheses offers new perspectives to study the school dropout phenomenon in a developmental direction, thus supporting the increased empowerment of education professionals in favour of increased school attendance for pupils and professional satisfaction for teachers.

Keywords

• school dropout
• cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT)
• sense co-construction
• efficiency
• collective work
• education