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In Collaboration with…
Fostering Positive School Attendance
David Wheeler, Ph.D.School Psychology Consultant
Student Support Services ProjectBEESS/USF
In Collaboration with…
AgendaWhy focus on school attendance?
How are comprehensive are our efforts to address attendance issues?
What can we do to engage students and foster positive school attendance?
How to identify students who off track?
How do attendance and student engagement fit in a multi-tiered system of supports?
In Collaboration with…
What is Chronic Absence?
Truancy – number or frequency of unexcused absences (15 in 90 days in FL Statutes)
Chronic absence – missing 10% or more of a school year for any reason (5 unexcused absences in a month or 10 unexcused in 90 days = pattern of nonattendance in FL).
Disciplinary removal – greater risk than students with patterns of non-attendance w/out behavior problems.Missing school/class for any reason = loss of
instruction
Chronic Absence FL 2013-14 Percent of Students Absent > 21 Days
State Chronic Absenteeism Rate for K-12 = 9.5
Range: 1.6% - 29.9%
2 districts with chronic absence rates < 5%
6 districts with chronic absence rates > 20%
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Chronic Absence FL 2011-12 Percent of Students Absent > 21 Days
PreK K-5 6-8 9-120
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State Chronic Absenteeism Rate for K-12 = 8.92
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Research on Impact of Chronic Absence
Chronic absence in kindergarten & 1st grade impacts 3rd grade reading and math proficiency.
Poor attendance in the first month of school can predict chronic absence for the entire year.
Absenteeism in middle and high school can predict dropout rates.
Impact of chronic absenteeism greater for students from low-income families.
Improving attendance is an essential strategy for reducing achievement gaps.
Absences Add Up: How school attendance influences student success
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Practices that distinguished districts with low rates
Chronic absence is part of an early warning system.
Adopted standard definition (missing > 10% of school days).
Share data on multiple attendance measures for each school, grade and NCLB sub-population.
School teams review data, set attendance targets and take action.
Educate parents and students about the importance of good attendance starting in Kindergarten & PreK.
Identifying Root Causes (Problem Analysis )
“Truancy is not the problem – it’s an indicator of other problems. When students aren’t in school, we need to understand why they stay away before we can affect solutions”.
California Safe Schools and Violence Prevention Office
Framework for Understanding Drop Out
Factor Cause Agency
Push out
School imposed as consequence for attendance or discipline
School
Pull out
Out-of-school reasons such as jobs, family, illness, pregnancy.
Student
Fall out Gradual disengagement not caused by push out or pull out factors
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Understanding Why Students Drop Out of High School
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School Connectedness
What is school connectedness?
Belief by students that adults and peers in the school care about their learning and about
them as individuals.
In Collaboration with…
Importance of school connectedness
More likely to attend school regularly, stay in school longer, and have higher grades and test scores.
Less likely to smoke, drink, or have sexual intercourse.
Less likely to carry weapons, become involved in violence, or be injured from drinking driving, or not wearing seat belts.
Less likely to have emotional problems, suffer from eating disorders, or experience suicidal thoughts or attempts.
Factors that Increase School Connectedness
Adult Support School staff dedicate time, interest, attention, and emotional support to students
Belonging to a Positive Peer Group
Stable network of peers improves student perceptions of school
Commitment to Education
Believing that school is important to their future & perceiving that adults are invested in their education
School Environment
Physical environment and psychosocial climate
Strategies to Increase School Connectedness
Create decision-making processes that facilitate student, family, and community engagement.
Provide education and opportunities to enable families to be actively involved in their children’s academic and school life.
Provide students with the academic, emotional, and social skills necessary to be actively engaged in school.
Use effective classroom management and teaching methods to foster a positive learning environment.
Provide professional development an support for teachers & other school staff to enable them to meet the diverse cognitive, emotional, and social needs of students.
Create trusting and caring relationships that promote open communication among administrators, teachers, staff, students, families, and communities.
School Climate
A school’s climate is its atmosphere for learning. It includes the feelings people have about the school and whether it is a place where learning can occur. A positive climate makes a school a place where both staff and students want to spend a substantial portion of their time; it is a good place to be.
Howard, Howell, and Brainard (1987)
In Collaboration with…
Importance of Positive School Climate
A positive school climate is an integral component of an effective school.
School environment has a strong influence on the way students develop and learn.
School climate is an alterable variable that can affect various outcomes.
Improving school climate is a preventative approach, rather than reactive or remedial.
Alliance for the Study of School Climate
Dimensions of School Climate
Safety Rules & Norms Sense of Physical Security Sense of Social-Emotional Security
Teaching & Learning Support for Learning Social & Civic Learning
Interpersonal Relationships Respect for Diversity Social Support – Adults Social Support – Students
Institutional Environment School Connectedness/Engagement Physical Surroundings
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Student Engagement
What students want from education…
Real-world application & relevance
Choice
Innovation
Teacher mentors
Interactive technology
Lifelong Learning Skills
Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, & Creativity
Self-Regulation, Conscientiousness, Mind-Sets, & Motivation
Social and Emotional Skills
Supporting and Engaging Students
MTSS for Attendance
Early Intervention is Critical!
Disengagement is a gradual process that includes impaired or reduced participation, less successful outcomes, and reduced identification and belonging.
Identifying students at first signs of disengagement significantly improves the likelihood of reengagement and successful school completion.
Shift from a focus of preventing negative outcomes, such as dropout, to promoting student competence and support.
Early Warning System Indicators
Indicator Elementary Middle School High School
Attendance Missed 10% or of instructional time
Missed 10% or more of instructional time
Missed 10% of instructional time One absences within the first 20 days in 9th
Referrals & Suspension
Two or more behavior referrals AND/OR One or more referrals with suspension
Two or more behavior referrals AND/OR One or more referrals with suspension
Two or more behavior referrals AND/OR One or more referrals with suspension
Course Failures Not proficient in reading by third grade
Failed mathematics or ELA course. Failed two courses in any subject.
In 9th grade: two failed courses or failed to progress on time to 10th.
Credits/GPAs GPA < 2.0
Retentions Retained pursuant to s.1008.25,F.S.
On Track for Success: The Use of Early Warning Indicators and Intervention Systems to Build a Grad Nation.
Power of Positive Connections – The PEOPLE Approach
Priority: Focuses on at-risk students with high levels of chronic absence.
Early: Begins with the start of school.
Outreach: Promotes preventive, supportive approaches rather than punitive responses.
Linkages: Taps the full community for support.
Engagement: Motivates showing up to class an offers students and families a role in improving attendance.
Resources Everyone Graduates Center http://new.every1graduates.org/
National High School Center – Early Warning Systems http://www.betterhighschools.org/ews.asp
Safe Supportive Learning http://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/
National Center for School Engagement http://www.schoolengagement.org/
National School Climate Center http://www.schoolclimate.org/index.php
Alliance for the Study of School Climate http://web.calstatela.edu/centers/schoolclimate/
Center for Study of School Climate http://schoolclimatesurvey.com/index.html
