Eight-year-old Sam from The Hague has been stuck at home for more than four months, without lessons or regular contact with children his age. His primary school no longer allows him to attend due to behavioral problems, and an alternative has not yet been organized. The situation is barely manageable for his family. “We have no idea how long this will last,” they tell the Dutch newspaper “General Dagblad“.

Sam is not allowed to go to school: being gifted is his downfall

Sam has always learned faster than many other children: he could speak from an early age and read fluently by first grade. However, he often reacted with anger and frustration, especially when he felt overwhelmed or misunderstood. After one Test for giftedness Teachers suspected that the lessons were simply not challenging him.

The school eventually let him skip a grade, which seemed to work. But after the summer holidays, the situation got out of control again. With his new one Teacher Sam got along worse. The school called his parents more and more often to have him picked up. Finally, they were told that Sam could not currently study in a regular class.

“Completely at the end”: Sam’s parents despair

Since then, parents and school have been trying to find a solution together. There are offers for lessons, but according to experts, Sam should ideally no longer be taught in groups at all. This means months of waiting for the family. “We are completely at the end of our tether,” confesses Sam’s mother.

But the problem doesn’t just affect this family. In The Hague, more than 1,500 children spent time at home instead of attending class last school year, over 800 of them for more than three months. According to estimates, there are more than 19,000 Dutch students affected nationwide. Experts warn: The longer children stay out of schoolthe more difficult it will be to reconnect later.

The situation in Germany

In this country too, it is evident that children often go without regular lessons for long periods of time. The reasons given are psychological stress, fear of school or conflicts in everyday school life. Educational researcher at the Joachim Herz Foundation estimate that between five and ten percent of students regularly miss classes or are at high risk of being permanently absent from school. However, in Germany, school refusal, fear of school or long periods of absence are summarized under the collective term “school absenteeism”.