Almost a quarter of Victorian senior high school students aren't completing year 12 with teachers saying COVID-19 and cost of living are key factors.

    

The quarter of Victorian senior high school students aren't completing year 12. Teachers say COVID and cost of living are key factors. Stephanie Anderson with the details. For a long time, Xander Lekas thought he'd leave school before year 12. Ever since year 8, I've always had that thought in the back of my mind that I wouldn't stick it out. 

Now the 16 -⁠year -⁠old is halfway through year 11 and thriving in the new VCE vocational major program. Instead of like head down into like a Macbeth book, I'm like learning about how to be more confident to talk to people. 

The carry -⁠on from COVID we're still seeing. So we've had students who haven't engaged in school for a couple of years and this is a program where they can see why they're studying. It's working well at Strathmore Secondary where retention is high, but that's not the case in every Victorian classroom. 

New figures from the Productivity Commission show almost 24% of public school students in years 10, 11 and 12 left school early last year, up from 21 .8% in 2021. In comparison, the stat is 10% at private schools. The bit in this data we should be most concerned about is who are the young people who are not going into further learning? 

Where are they? In Victoria, kids are legally required to attend a school campus or approved alternative until they finish year 10. After that, they must take part in at least 25 hours a week of education, training or employment until they turn 17. 

You need room for young people for whom year 12 isn't the be -⁠all and end -⁠all, but we also know that there's often a cap on their potential earnings in the future. Anthony Kassar took the training path. When the opportunity arises, take it on. While Xander is just as focused on what his future holds. 

100% going to stay till then the year 12. Stephanie Anderson, 9 News.