Education of Disadvantaged Children in OIC:
The Key to Escape from Poverty
82
children who speak the language of instruction at home at the end of the primary cycle than at the
beginning (Se . This points to a self-selection through the system of the best students,
who will tend to the ones whose families can speak French at home. The others will attend the
first grades but then drop out.
Figure 31 Percentage of students speaking the language of instruction at home by region
A. Students at the beginning of the primary
cycle
B. Students at the end of the primary cycle
Note: CONFEMEN (2014)
Pre-school: Attention to the importance of pre-school has just recently emerged in Senegal and
the offers of school and curriculum are widely varied and dispersed. This is illustrated by the very
low Gross Enrolment Ratios in pre-primary that currently stands at less than 16.1% in 2014.238
The PASEC 2014 results show a larger proportion of students at the end of the primary cycle
having gone to pre-school versus the proportion of students in early grades (Se . While
this does not show direct impact, it does seem that attending pre-school helps students stay in
school and finish primary.
238 Rapport des indicateurs rétropolés (2002 à 2015) DPRE/MEN (obtained from the Ministry of National Education)
4,7
31,1
13,4
15,9
18,3
20,2
42,5
95,3
68,9
86,6
84,1
81,7
79,8
57,5
0 20 40 60 80 100
North
West
Center
Southeast
Southwest
National
International
speaks the language of instruction at home
does not speak the language of instruction at
home
75,4
89
84
69,9
86,6
84,6
78,7
24,6
11
16
30,1
13,4
15,4
21,3
0 20 40 60 80 100
North
West
Center
Southeast
Southwest
National
International
speaks the language of instruction at home
does not speak the language of instruction at
home