Composing Lives in Transition: A Narrative Inquiry into the Experiences of Early School Leavers

Composing Lives in Transition: A Narrative Inquiry into the Experiences of Early School Leavers is structured around 11 narrative accounts, each one offering glimpses into the lives of early school leavers from culturally and socially diverse backgrounds. By looking across the narrative accounts, paying attention to place, temporality, and social dimensions, the authors identified resonant threads that enabled them to reframe school leaving from a narrative vantage point. Not only are the stories about how each youth's stories shaped their leaving of school but also about how their leaving school continues to shape their lives after they have left schools. With a focus on identifies and transitions, the research team understood the lives of youth who leave schools, as being shaped by, and shaping, critical discourses on the role of schools and the place of education in young people's lives.