The Graphical Representation of School Dropout: Definitional Challenges and Educational Implications

Visualising data is a key analytical and communicative tool, particularly for complex phenomena such as school dropout. This article examines how national and international educational bodies (e.g., UNESCO, the EU and the Italian Ministry of Education) depict dropout, highlighting issues stemming from non-standard definitions, heterogeneous indicators and incomplete data. These limitations reduce the effectiveness of such representations, which often fail to capture the phenomenon’s dynamic nature or guide timely interventions. The article stresses the need to improve data accessibility through clearer communication and to adopt longitudinal approaches enabling more accurate tracking of educational trajectories, thereby supporting more effective educational policies.