Basic Vocational Training: an alternative to school failure?

Introduction: In the European context, one of the challenges for the next years centers on reducing academic failure and school drop-out as measures to promote equity, social cohesion and active citizenship. In the case of Spain, Eurostat's latest statistics reveal that this aim is still far from being achieved, since we reach high rates of academic failure and school drop-out. The Organic Law 8/2013, for the Improvement of the Quality of Education, promotes Basic Vocational Training (BVT) with the aim of offering students a professional qualification while helping them to continue in the educational system. With a duration of 2 years, this training started in the academic year 2014-15. On these grounds, our aim is to give a diagnosis of the BVT as regards the opportunity that it entails for students to stay in the educational system. Methodology: We have proceeded to use the technique of analyzing scientific and legal documents and statistical sources with the purpose of deepening into our object of study, broadening the existing knowledge of the topic, clarifying the state of the art, and organizing statistical official information currently disintegrated and dispersed. Results: there is evidence of important differences among the various autonomous communities regarding the rate of suitability, as well as the evolution of enrollment for BVT between the years 2014-15 and 2015-16. Besides, in the transition from the first to the second year 47,82 % of the student body is lost Conclusion: Basic Vocational Training courses do not achieve their basic aim, which is to keep students in the educational system.