Mobilité scolaire au secondaire et décrochage scolaire : rôle du cycle scolaire et de la période annuelle
Theoretical considerations suggest that school mobility in high school can disrupt adolescent adjustment and lead to dropping out of school, especially when it occurs at particularly challenging times academically or developmentally. Namely, disruptions could be amplified when mobility occurs during the school year, while teaching routines are set, and when it occurs towards the end of the secondary school years, when social circles are well established. The goal of this thesis was to verify, based on a sample of adolescents (N = 545) aged between 14 and 18 years old (M = 16.5), whether a possible link between mobility and dropout would indeed be moderated by its timing, by considering: (1) the time of the year, i.e., whether school mobility occurs during a school year or the summer break, and (2) the school level, i.e., whether it occurs at the beginning or at the end secondary school (1st or 2nd cycle). Beyond potentially confounding factors, the results show that high school changes are associated with a greater risk of dropping out, with particularly strong links for school mobility occurring during a school year compared to mobility occurring during the summer months, and for school mobility occurring during the second cycle of secondary school, compared to that occurring in the first cycle. The discussion underscores the importance of temporality for understanding the impacts of school mobility, both in practical and research terms.
Timing School mobility in high school High school dropout At-risk students Teenagers Temporality