WORDS: Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
Strong communities thrive in the face of adversity and work together to achieve shared aspirations. Our region is strong, and we are not alone. We are one of 390 Grade-Level Reading (GLR) communities embracing the journey to address common obstacles impacting a child’s reading ability.
Attendance Works, an ally helping the GLR Network jump the hurdle of chronic absenteeism, is helping communities like ours with various resources for monitoring, understanding, and addressing chronic absence beginning in the early grades through secondary school.
In some communities, chronic absence affects 1 in 4 children. When we work together to monitor data, encourage a habit of regular attendance, and reduce hurdles that keep children from getting to school, chronic absenteeism will eventually wither away.
Parents, schools, and the community can work together to influence student success.
How is attendance related to school success?
- Chronic absence in kindergarten is associated with lower academic performance in 1st grade among all children and, for poor children, predicts the lowest levels of educational achievement at the end of fifth grade.
- By 6th grade, missing 20% (or two months of school) is a critical warning sign of school drop-out.
- By 9th grade, missing 20% of school can be a better predictor of drop-out than 8th-grade test scores.
What can parents do?
- Help your child get into the habit and learn the value of regular routines.
- Teach your child that attending school is non-negotiable unless they are truly sick.
- Build relationships with other families and discuss how you can help each other out (e.g., drop off or pick up children, babysit, assist with translation) in times of need or emergencies.
- Identify non-academic activities (drama, art, music, etc.) that can help motivate your child’s interest in school and learning and seek out schools that can offer those experiences.
What can schools do?
- Educate families about the adverse impact of poor attendance on school achievement.
- Inform parents about the positive incentives students receive for good attendance. Consider recognizing parents as well for their role in their child’s attendance.
- Notify parents that their child’s absence was noticed, either through a call home or an email.
- Reach out to families to find out what is happening if children begin to miss school regularly. Where appropriate, refer families to available resources in the community.
What can the community do?
- Teach parents about the importance of attendance, starting in kindergarten.
- Help parents of older students understand that excessive absence is a critical warning sign for dropping out.
- Partner with schools to provide social work and case management support to families of children with extended absences.
- Address barriers to attendance by offering services (economic supports, social services, etc.) at schools and referring families to other available resources in the community.
We know that there’s no such thing as perfect, especially when it comes to attendance. After all, life happens. So, what can we do to help our children in and out of school? Make Every Day a Learning Day!
