Abstract
This study aimed to understand school failure, defined as the distortion between age and school year of two or more years of teaching, through the perception of adolescents with a history of school failure as well as their parents and teachers. This is a qualitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional study. The participants consisted of three distinct groups: 35 adolescents, 11 parents and three teachers. The instruments used were an initial contact sheet as well as focus groups. For the content analysis three categories and their subcategories were derived related to the purpose of the study. The results point out to the complexity of school failure, revealed especially in the statements of teachers. However, it is still prevalent the discourse of personal and family blame among adolescents and their parents. It is evident the resulting suffering and the clinical and social consequences of school failure.
Keywords:
school failure; failure; elementary school