Dropout rates in Tanzania pose a significant challenge to the education sector.

Dropout rates in Tanzania pose a significant challenge to the education sector. There are multiple factors contributing to this issue at both primary and secondary levels, such as truancy, deaths, indiscipline, and pregnancy. Truancy stands out as a major culprit leading students to abandon their studies, especially in secondary schools. According to the 2019 data from BEST, truancy accounted for a staggering 92% of secondary school dropouts. Various reasons fuel truancy, including peer pressure, lack of basic needs, involvement in livelihood activities like livestock keeping, parental divorce or separation, illness, engagement in petty trade, domestic chores, unfriendly learning environments, farm work, caregiving responsibilities towards parents or relatives, involvement in mining, fishing, industrial work, and early marriage.

The dropout rates vary across different classes, with those classes that are associated with national examinations and have minimum cut points for progression to the next level experiencing the highest dropout rates. For instance, the enrollment data from 2023 revealed that 39.7% of the 135,801 students who dropped out of secondary schools in Tanzania were in form two, while 29.1% of the 193,605 pupils were in standard four. Deudatus Simwela, aged 29 years old, was born and raised in the Sumbawanga Rukwa region. Currently, he is living in Dar es Salaam and he is a school driver at St Thomas pre and primary school in Dar es Salaam. Mr Deudatus was one of the private candidates who benefited from SHULE DIRECT digital education solutions after he did not manage to complete normal mainstream secondary school education due to family issues and to lack of understanding about the importance of education.

Mr Deudatus studied up to form two before terminating secondary school studies. While in the job market, he found it important to accomplish secondary school education and he decided to register as a private candidate in 2022 where he studied both form one and two subjects, 2023 he studied both form three and four subjects and finally completed form four education. The learning journey for a private candidate was not easy for Mr. Deudatus because of other occupations. He did not know about the availability of digital learning platforms until one of his colleagues told him that he could learn from SHULE DIRECT. This was exciting news and he downloaded the App and started learning. With SHULE DIRECT he accessed notes and MAKINI quizzes to gauge his understanding of the concepts learned. Mr Deudatus added that Teacher Kidevu simplified learning through unlimited support to his learning journey. He added, “Teacher Kidevu was so helpful in answering any question I asked”. This simplified learning at home or any time I needed support. Mr Deudatus appreciates the support received from SHULE DIRECT digital learning platform since it contributed to improving his performance in his studies. In concluding his conversation he advised parents to allow their children to learn using technology and when they feel their children might misuse the device given, they should educate them and buy devices with limited capabilities to allow them to focus on what the device was intended for. He also advised promoting SHULE DIRECT using various approaches like distributing flyers since he feels it is not known by many people regardless of having much learning content and expanding SHULE DIRECT content to reach advanced secondary school learners.