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Sinenhlanhla Nkwanyana, University of the Witwatersrand, South AfricaAbstract
Participation in education beyond the compulsory phase is determined by demographic, socioeconomic, and contextual inequalities. In South Africa, educational equity remains central to the national development agenda, however longitudinal evidence on participation in the post-compulsory phase remains limited. This paper examines school participation among youth aged 16 to 18 years using repeated cross-sectional nationally representative data from the South Africa General Household Survey from 2002 to 2022. Drawing from Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory and the household production framework, the study uses descriptive statistics and pooled multivariate logistic regression to analyse patterns of school attendance over time. The descriptive findings indicate that overall attendance increased from 83.1% in 2002 to 86.8% in 2022. The regression results show that school participation declines significantly with age, with older learners having lower attendance rates. Adolescents without disabilities had significantly higher school attendance, as the odds of attending school were more than twice as high for adolescents without disabilities relative to those with disabilities (OR = 2.416; p < 0.001). Lower participation is also associated with female gender, parental loss, residence on farms, larger household size, and reduced access to household services. The results show that while participation rates have improved in the post-compulsory education phase, significant elements of exclusion remain. The paper argues for greater policy attention to retention, impartial support, and more responsive academic and vocational pathways for young people at a critical point between schooling, employment, and adulthood.
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Conference: SEACE2026Stream: Educational policy
This paper is part of the SEACE2026 Conference Proceedings (View)
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