On any given day, teachers across the country work tirelessly to develop lesson plans and learning targets that support students who are not always present to learn. In the years following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, student attendance has become an urgent concern for teachers and school leaders as schools have begun to focus on the closer monitoring of higher chronic absenteeism rates and the implementation of support they believe will address the problem. A Rand and CRPE analysis found that about 1 in 10 school districts had levels of chronic absenteeism (students missing at least 10% of the school year, or about 18 days) of 30% or more during the 2023-24 school year (Arundel, 2024). While 93% of the districts surveyed said they used at least one approach to combat chronic absenteeism last school year, few identified one of their approaches as the most effective at reducing absences (Arundel, 2024). Research and survey feedback from schools reflected that, in addition to identifying the root causes of chronic absenteeism (Attendance Works, 2022), the following approaches are recommended to proactively and effectively combat chronic absenteeism.
Classroom Strategies
Teachers’ focus on attendance makes a difference! The following are several prevention and intervention strategies teachers can use to demonstrate the importance of all students’ attendance.
- Monitor attendance closely. In a spirit of prevention, encourage an attitude of “You Count” and “Attendance Matters” by having a number counter near the door that each student flips over when they enter the classroom. Make note of how many students are present each day. Periodically celebrate all students being present with a small incentive. Respond quickly when attendance concerns arise. Call home if a student is absent a second day in a row, offer support, and approach absences with an attitude of curiosity about the potential barriers to attendance.
- Acknowledge students’ presence. When students are warmly and sincerely greeted by name every morning, they feel seen and wanted. In addition, when students are absent and a teacher reaches out to check on their well-being, they feel valued and know they are an important part of the class. Let students know they are missed when they are absent by putting a missed-work folder on their desk with a bold message, such as “We missed you; here’s what you missed.”
- Cultivate a sense of belonging. To foster a culture of emotional safety, connection, and acceptance, teachers who intentionally plan to invite students to access relevant content, critically think, authentically respond, and respectfully converse build a sense of belonging. Even more, if this type of experience is not isolated to one specific class, rather a part of a whole school’s culture, the student will be more likely to not only physically attend, but mentally attend to learning.
- Prioritize community-building opportunities. Ensure time is set aside to embed practices that support students’ social-emotional well-being through engagement activities, such as morning meetings, class meetings, advisory, etc. Take a look at the following community building activities: A Daily Ritual That Builds Trust and Community Among K-12 Students | Edutopia and 8 Activities for Students (and Teachers) to Create a Mindful Classroom | Edutopia
- Model enthusiastic attendance. Being present and verbalizing your enthusiasm for being with your students daily demonstrates the positive energy you want your students to embody.
Schoolwide Strategies
Ensuring that we promote positive attendance, both in the classroom and schoolwide, is important when seeking to cultivate a sense of belonging, engagement, and connectedness for students and families. Here are several schoolwide strategies that support positive engagement for all.
- Engage families in promoting school attendance. “Schools should communicate to students and families the importance of attendance for students’ long-term success. Individualized messaging to a family about their child’s attendance and the correlation with academic progress can be effective.” (Arundel, 2014) Consider how this communication can be authentic and personalized. In addition, including families on school attendance teams will increase the likelihood that attendance communication will be effective and impactful for families.
- Prioritize student and family voices. Use student and parent questionnaires early on and make time, beginning day one, to learn your students’ strengths, needs, and interests. Ascertain which subjects, activities, or sports students are interested in, participating in, or having an opportunity to explore to unlock untapped passion and interest in hidden topics.
- Take note of disparate attendance. Are certain groups of students missing school, or your class, disproportionately more than others? If so, consider collaborating with your school counselor to provide students and families opportunities to share barriers, concerns, and possible ways to work together to improve attendance.
- Offer meaningful after-school activities. Based on the NCSL study updated in 2023, “Regular participation in these (quality afterschool) programs has been linked to lower dropout rates and a narrowing of achievement gaps, particularly among low-income students.” (NCSL, 2023) Inviting every student to participate in a club and/or an organization helps to foster a sense of belonging and supports students to feel connected with other adults and peers.
- Intentionally reach out to disengaged students. Once you have reached as many students as possible, collect data to identify who is not currently engaged. What could we offer them to help them feel connected? Seek those students’ input and ask those questions in a manner that is comfortable for them, because now that you have reached the musicians, the athletes, the club participants, the members of the student government, we have to reach those kids who do not feel connected. The following video describes an activity that supports this effort: Making Sure Each Child Is Known | Edutopia
Taking a multifaceted approach when addressing school attendance is critical. Using data to identify strengths to build upon, and areas for improvement, is a first step. Following data disaggregation and problem solving, schools should decide upon a few high impact practices to implement with fidelity. Using this continuous cycle of improvement will help establish a system for addressing attendance, which will result in building positive school communities for students. In essence, reaching all students and giving them a reason to show up to school is our primary goal!
References
Arundel, K. (2024, September 3). Are chronic absenteeism interventions working? K-12 Dive. Are chronic absenteeism interventions working? | K-12 Dive
Attendance Works. (2022, September). Chronic Absence: Root Causes. Retrieved from https://www.attendanceworks.org/chronic-absence/addressing-chronic-absence/3-tiers-of-intervention/root-causes/
Barnum, M. (2019, June 19). New research shows how teachers are key to boosting student attendance. Chalkbeat. https://www.chalkbeat.org/
“Brief Supporting Student Success through Afterschool Programs.” National Conference of State Legislatures, National Conference of State Legislatures, updated 2023, www.ncsl.org/education/supporting-student-success-through-afterschool-programs.
Gratto, J. (n.d.). 10 High-Yield Actions to Improve Student Attendance. NASSP, 17. https://doi.org/https://www.nassp.org/publication/principal-leadership/volume-17-2016-2017/principal-leadership-december-2016/10-high-yield-actions-to-improve-student-attendance/
Korbey, Holly. “The Power of Being Seen.” Edutopia, George Lucas Educational Foundation, 27 Oct. 2017, www.edutopia.org/article/power-being-seen.
Making Sure Each Child Is Known, Edutopia, 27 Oct. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjZx0VdmgkE.
Teaching Attendance 2.0 Introduction. Attendance Works. (n.d.). https://www.attendanceworks.org/resources/toolkits/teaching-attendance-2-0/teaching-attendance-2-0-introduction/
YouTube. (2021, February 25). What Can Teachers Do to Improve Student Attendance?. YouTube. https://www.teachingchannel.com/k12-hub/blog/what-can-teachers-do-to-improve-student-attendance/
