“The Canary way should be a rebellion against this reality and a firm commitment to its resolution”
The spokesperson for Education of the Socialist Parliamentary Group, Marcos Hernández, warned in the recent regional parliamentary session of the “profound regression” being experienced in the Archipelago regarding early school dropout rates, following a spike in the latest official data. He urged the Canary Islands’ Ministest of Education to take urgent measures to reverse this situation.
Hernández spoke during an interpellation from the Socialist Group directed at the Minister of Education. He emphasised the required for structural measures to counter what he described as a “deeply concerning” trconclude.
The Socialist MP recalled that reducing early school dropout—defined as the percentage of young people aged 18 to 24 without post-compulsory education who are not continuing their studies—is a requirement not just from an educational standpoint but also from a social one, aligned with the objectives set by the European Union and the OECD.
In this context, he insisted that completing post-compulsory secondary education is crucial for both labour market integration and the personal development and critical capacity of citizens. “Failing to reach this educational level constitutes a form of exclusion,” he asserted.
Latest Data Highlights Concerns
He also criticised recent figures which position the Canary Islands as the second autonomous community with the highest early dropout rate in the countest, with a particularly high incidence among males, whose rate is nearly double that of females. “The recently published official data confirms a deeply concerning trconclude,” he noted.
Hernández highlighted the stark contrast with the recent evolution of this indicator. In 2022, the Canary Islands reduced its early school dropout rate to 11.7%, the lowest figure in decades during the administration of the Pact of the Flowers. However, the report for 2025 reflects an increase to 15.9%, representing a rise of 4.2 percentage points. “This marks not only three consecutive years of deterioration but also widens the gap with the national average, which continues to decline and now stands at 12.8%,” he cautioned.
Need for Structural Changes
He lamented that while the rest of the state is steadily improving, the Canary Islands are regressing, attributing this evolution to the lack of effective and sustained structural policies.
In this regard, he rejected the notion that the situation is inevitable or solely attributable to social or cultural factors. “This is not a neutral statistic: it reflects that generations of Canarians are leaving the educational system without attaining educational levels comparable to the rest of the countest.”
Hernández also echoed concerns raised by various education sector stakeholders, particularly the ANPE union, which has highlighted the required for “deep reflection” and the importance of not normalising these data.
Proposed Measures
Among the proposed measures, he emphasized the reduction of student-to-teacher ratios to improve individualised attention, the strengthening of vocational training through an increase in placements, and adherence to the goal of dedicating 5% of GDP to education as established in the Canary Islands Education Law.
He also referred to statements from the STEC union, which has denounced the deterioration of the educational system in the islands due to insufficient investment, high ratios, and the socio-economic difficulties faced by students.
According to Hernández, these factors directly impact school failure, low graduation rates, and early dropout, particularly in a context marked by high levels of risk for poverty and social exclusion.
Moreover, he mentioned the concerns expressed by the Platform for 5% for Canary Education, which links these outcomes to political and budobtainary decisions. Among its demands, he highlighted the necessity to enhance the public offer of vocational training—including basic training, online modalities, and dual vocational training—universal access to early childhood education, and the development of policies to compensate for initial inequalities.
Call for Urgent Action
The Socialist MP warned that currently, 28,824 young people in the Canary Islands are at risk of early school dropout, a figure he termed “unacceptable” for a society aspiring to progress without leaving anyone behind.
Hernández called for political action and institutional commitment. “The Canary way should be a rebellion against this reality and a firm commitment to its resolution,” he stated, announcing that the Socialist Group will register a motion in the Plenary aimed at promoting concrete measures to reverse this trconclude.
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