Thousands of students have disappeared from school enrollment records. Between 2023 and 2025, the dropout rate exceeded 11,000 students in an environment marked by insecurity and displacement.
South of Culiacán, in recent months, clashes and fear have disrupted the daily lives of families.
At least 11,295 students have disappeared from elementary school enrollment records between the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years in Sinaloa, according to administrative records obtained through transparency requests.
There are approximately 296,000 elementary school students in the state, which is equivalent to one out of every 26 students over the two school years.
This period coincides with the escalation of violence in various parts of the state starting in September 2024. Specialists and teachers point to this as a factor affecting school retention.
The data comes from the school records of the Ministry of Public Education and Culture (SEPyC), which allow for a comparison of enrollment at the beginning of the school year with the number of students who complete it.
However, the information does not detail the causes of this difference, so it is not possible to accurately identify how many cases correspond to school dropout, migration, or transfer to another school.
Although the SEPyC maintains that there is no school dropout rate as such at the primary level, the reality in rural communities is different. A teacher from a rural area north of Culiacán, who requested anonymity for her safety, describes a steady decline in attendance.
The teacher explains that this reduction is not due to a single cause, but rather to a combination of factors that have intensified in recent months, particularly in communities where violence has disrupted the daily lives of families and their ability to remain in the area.
Jorge Basilio Rodríguez, a pedagogue with a doctorate in psychopedagogy and director of the Faculty of Educational Sciences (FACE) at the Autonomous University of Sinaloa, points out that the phenomenon cannot be understood without considering the context of violence.
“The authorities can gloss over the situation as much as it suits their political interests, but the reality cannot be hidden because it is right in front of us,” he states.
In this context, the violence not only affects students but also school conditions. “Teachers are also absent due to violence; there are no guarantees for reaching the communities, and this ultimately affects the educational environment,” the specialist concluded.
Source: OEM
