Do we have any success stories to tell?

1
Do we have any success stories to tell?

• Marta Korintus
• Andrea Racz
• Robert Csak
• Institute for Social Policy and Labour
• Budapest, Hungary

2
What is success?

• Success could be defined in terms of the ratio
  of young people studying in further and higher
  education
• Success of the system
• Success of the individual

3
Educational promise

• Young people showing educational promise
• Systematic approach
• Completed compulsory school
• and
• Have started on further or higher education
• Individual approach
• Motivated to study

4
External factors

• Related to stable place of care and emotional
  support
• Related to good schooling
• Related to financial support

5
Example Sweden

• The family I ended up with, definitely. Almost
  everything depends on that. Ive been so lucky
  with the family I was placed with. Not many are
  so lucky. () The second I think of the help I
  got at school while growing up it wasnt help
  with dealing with the actual subjects, it was
  more like help and support in doing it at all
  (Boy, 20, applying for university programme in
  computer game designing)

6
Example Hungary

• The school I attend, I have to pay a fee. The
  fee is 350 thousand Forints a year but it is paid
  for me. So, I have always got all the support
  If I wanted to do sports, it was paid. They just
  wanted to see, yes, that I continue and do not
  quit. And there is the photography I have
  received a camera not long ago that was not
  cheap either. (Girl, 20, studying at the
  University of Applied Arts)

7
Example England

• Went into care as a baby following sexual abuse
  by her birth parents. Was adopted by foster
  carers but went back into care again at age 14.
  She said she has had about 15 care placements in
  total. Missed a lot of school due to frequent
  suspensions said that she was angry all the time
  but turned her life around in Year 11 (age 15).
  She had very good support from her school
  particularly her Head of Year, Learning Mentor,
  music and drama teachers, she said that they
  believed in her and saw her potential/talents
  (Girl, 21, applying to do a university degree in
  English Literature and Drama)

8
Internal factors

• Related to will, persistence, commitment
• Related to valuing knowledge
• Related to building a good future

9
Example Sweden

• Girl, 20, just been accepted for nursing-course
  at university Its 45 years to retirement and I
  will do something I like, God damn it. I dont
  necessarily have to become a nurse but I can do
  alternative medicine, or deviate after university
  and go into massage, or continue my studies and
  become a midwife or a operating room-nurse.

10
Example Hungary

• Well, I do not know, but limits are not very
  extended for children in care. Meaning how far
  they can push and what kinds of dreams they can
  have. Therefore Ok, I will have a low qualified
  job, maybe I can pass the national secondary
  school leaving exam that is all. But I have
  much more ambitious goals than this. (Girl, 20,
  studying at the University of Applied Arts)

11
Example Denmark

• Yes the fact of getting employed in a company
  and having to climb the ladder does not appeal to
  me. Well I have been working for two years so I
  do not have a lot of experience but generally I
  do not consider unqualified work very appealing,
  I do not think that want to keep showing my
  competences  all the time. I do not think that I
  want to work my way up, I will rather take an
  education and then I can prove that I can
  something (Girl, 20, who wants to study
  communication at Copenhagen Business School)

12
Success?

• So far, higher educational attainment and
  securing an autonomous / independent life can be
  mostly seen as an individual achievement
• Comprehensive improvements to ensure better
  results can be initiated on the level of the
  system

13
Example Spain

• I have been successful in getting a job, a
  house, and I am fortunate in general because of
  my job opportunities and my opportunities to
  study.- after all the experiences I had, I am so
  fortunate not to have a depression and to have
  food on my table everyday. (Girl, 20)

14
Improvements needed to ensure better educational
levels and better employability

• Studying/knowledge as value
• Emphasis on developing competences rather than
  feeding facts
• Improving the conditions of providing personal
  support both in care and education
• Positive discrimination
• Financial support
• Positive models