SAITAMA — High schools with less academic prestige are likely to attract more students from poor families and suffer a greater degree of dropouts unless educational and economic steps are taken to reverse the trend, according to research conducted by a former high school teacher.

"It has become extremely difficult for high school dropouts to lead decent lives in the midst of the economic slump, and they are inevitably involved in a 'chain of poverty' running from their parents to their own children," said Yasushi Aoto, who taught social studies at Saitama Prefecture high schools.

In a study described in "High School Dropouts," published by Chikumashobo Ltd. in October, Aoto, now a lecturer at Kanto Gakuin University, grouped some 150 Saitama-run high schools into five categories (G1 to G5) based on their average entrance exam scores to compare dropout rates and rates of tuition reduction or exemption in each category.