Educational Factors Influencing Female Students’ Dropout from High Schools in Nepal

Female students’ retention rate in schools is a serious issue in Nepal, as in other countries. This paper reports on the findings of a qualitative study on the effect of educational factors on female students’ retention rates in high schools in Nepal. Data gathering locations were chosen on the basis of female students’ dropout rates published in the consolidated report of the Ministry of Education (2011). Face to face interviews were conducted with 96 participants. The findings showed that weakness in policy implementation resulted in low motivation in teachers and students, poor learning achievement and student dropout. The participants mentioned weaknesses such as inadequate scholarship quotas and amounts for female students, impractical scholarship criteria, inadequate teaching and untested methods of evaluation.