tools for understanding chronic absenteeismtools for understanding chronic absenteeism amber humm...
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ToolsforUnderstandingChronicAbsenteeism
AmberHumm Brundage [email protected]
Jose M. [email protected]
Facebook:flpsrtiTwitter:@flpsrti
http://floridarti.usf.edu/resources/presentations/index.html
Advance Organizer & Objectives
• Chronic Absenteeism Overview
• RCA & RCA-P Findings • Implications for Practice• Questions
• Participantswill:• Understandchronicabsenteeism
• Howitismeasuredandcontributors• UnderstandthefeaturesandfindingsofRCAsurveystudies
• Understandhowthesetoolsmaybeusedindistricts/schools
Chronic Absenteeism
ChronicAbsenteeism(CA)
• No standard definition• Often based on total number of
days missed• Does not differentiate reasons for
absences• Includes: excused, unexcused and
suspensions• Frequently defined as:
• Missing 10% or more of instructional days
• HB7069 K-8 EWS• FL reports students missing 21 or
more days per year• Missing 15 or more days of
school per year
• Important Differences -• Truancy =unexcusedabsences(s.1003.26(b),F.S.)
• AverageDailyAttendance=howmanystudentsshowupeachday
• ChronicAbsence=missingsomuchschoolforanyreasonthatastudentisacademicallyat-risk-missing10%ormoreofschool
AverageDailyAttendanceandCA
PrevalenceofChronicAbsenteeism• Based on national research, conservative estimates:
• 10% of US students miss 21+ days of school per year• 14-15% of US students miss 18+ days of school per year
5-7.5 million students each year!!
• 13/14 OCR data found 6.8 million students missed 15+ days of school
Balfanz&Byrnes,2012;U.S.DepartmentofEducation,OfficeforCivilRights,2016
EasytoOverlookPatternsofChronicAbsenceinIndividualStudents
GetSchooledInteractivewebpage:
https://getschooled.com/dashboard/tool/343-attendance-counts?type=tool
MakeAPrediction….
• HowmanyFLstudentsmissed21+daysofschoolduringthe15/16schoolyear?1. 50,000orfewer2. 50,000- 100,0003. 100,000-200,0004. 200,000-250,0005. 250,000-300,0006. 300,000-350,000
Prevalence ofCAinFL
• AccordingtodatareportedtoFLDOEduringthe2015/2016schoolyear,10.10%ofK-12studentswereabsent21+days
318,787 students- anincreasefrom304,060studentsin14/15
2015-16District21+AbsenceRates
Source:EducationInformationandAccountabilityServices,FloridaDepartmentofEducation
0 – 9.9%
10% – 14.9%
15% – 19.9%
20% – 30+%
Statewide Average 10.10%
Whatdoes318,787studentslooklike?
82,300
88,548-90,000+ 65,657
76,100
PatternsinChronicAbsence AcrossGradeLevels
• RatestypicallydropafterKindergartenthrough5th
• Risesignificantlyinmiddleandhighschool
Balfanz&Byrnes,2012
ChronicAbsenteeismbyDemographics
Balfanz &Byrnes,2012
2015-16SWDChronicAbsenteeismRates
Source:EducationInformationandAccountabilityServices,FloridaDepartmentofEducation
0 – 9.9%
10% – 14.9%
15% – 19.9%
20% – 30+%
Statewide Average 15.05%
What are the Implications of CA?
Missing10percentormoreofinstructionaldayshassignificantimpactonstudentoutcomes.Chronic
absenteeismisassociatedwith:
Decreasedreadinglevelsandoverallacademic
performance
Decreasedon-timegraduationratesandpost-secondaryenrollment
Increaseddropoutrates
(Balfanz&Byrnes,2012;Chang&Romero,2008)
Problem Solving Chronic Absenteeism
Missing 10% or more of instructional days
RCA: aggregate and individual
Intervention based on reasons for absences
Use EWS to monitor attendance
ProposedReasonsforChronicAbsenteeism
Balfanz & Byrnes (2012)
Barriers/Can’t Aversions/Won’t Disengagement/Don’t
Something prevents them from attending
(illness, transportation,
child care or family obligations)
Avoidance of interactions or
events at school (affective or perceptions
physical/psychological safety issues,
school climate, stress)
Would rather be somewhere else, do not make the effort to attend
school and/or do not see the value
in school
Toolstounpackchronicabsenteeism:RCA&RCA-P
ReasonsforChronicAbsenteeism(RCA)
• Self-reportsurveyforchronicallyabsent6th-12th
• Completedonline• Measuresthereasonsforchronicabsenteeism
• Designedforuseattheaggregateorindividualleveltoinformdata-basedproblemsolvingandinterventiondevelopment
ReasonsforChronic Parent(RCA-P)
• Self-reportsurveyforparents*ofchronicallyabsentPreK-12students
• Completedonline• Measuresreasonsforchronicabsenteeism
• Parent&studentfocuseditems• Designedforuseattheaggregateorindividualleveltoinformdata-basedproblemsolvingandinterventiondevelopment
WhyTheseInstruments?
• To develop interventions aimed at reducing absences:• Accurate understanding of why students are not coming to school• Need comprehensive and efficient tools
• PreK Parents• K-12 Parent• 6th-12th Students
ContentDomains
Barriers• Health• Transportation• Housing/MaterialInstability
• AdultResponsibilities
• Suspensions• Court/DJJ
Aversions• Bullying/Harassment
• PersonalStress• SchoolStress• SchoolClimate• Safety/Conflict
Disengagement• ValueofSchool
ScoringRubricFor each survey item, students or parents rate the item as:
0 ------------- 1 ------------- 2 ------------- 3Never Rarely Sometimes Usually
This is never a reason
you/your student
have/has missed school.
This is not very often a reason
you/your student
have/has missed school.
This is a reason
you/your student
have/has missed school
more than 3 times.
This is oftenthe reason you/your student
have/has missed school.
RCA&RCA-PSamples
RCASample RCA-PSample
8 states
21 district
s91
schools
5,790 students
2 states
5 Grantees
& 1 district
67 schools
1,124 Parents
Student/ParentResponseDataQuantitative Responses• Within each category (Heath Related, etc.), the
percentage of students/parents who endorsed items as “Sometimes” or “Usually” was totaled:
• Overall• By State• By District• By School
Qualitative Responses• For each open-ended item, student/parent
responses were coded into themes and the instances of a theme were totaled
QuantitativeResponsesbyCategory
StudentVersusParent PreK/HeadStartversusHighSchoolParent
1 123
45
2
34
5
1 12
3
4
5
2345
Overallvs SWDReportedReasonsforCA
Reason OverallPercentage SWD PercentageHealthRelated 92.6 91.4Transportation 53.0 57.7PersonalStress 41.8 42.6PreferredActivityOutsideofSchool 41.0 49.1ValueofSchool 38.8 46.4SchoolStress 34.8 44.7SchoolClimate 32.2 40.8Safety/Conflict 21.2 30.4AdultResponsibility 17.0 25.3LegalSystemInvolvement 15.6 26.2Housing/MaterialInstability 13.6 18.8Suspension 10.5 15.0
AccuratelyRecalled/ReportedAbsences
43.0%36.9% 36.2%
53.1%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Students Parents HS/PreKParents HighSchoolParents
Percen
tageofR
espo
nses
MESSAGING
PerceptionsofAbsences:ComparedtoPeers
23.9%15.3%
31.3%40.9%44.8% 43.8%
0102030405060708090
100
Students Parents
Percen
tageofR
espo
nses
Fewer
Same
More
Perception of Typical Numbers of Absences
Average Absences Per Year Parent Percentage
0-5 days 26.96-10 days 41.011-15 days 19.416-20 days 6.221+ days 6.5
68% of parents perceived average absence rates to be consistent with “good” attendance
GOODNEWS!
ParentLevelofConcernRelatedtoAbsences
49.5%
34.3%
16.3%
0102030405060708090
100
NotConcerned Somewhat Very
Percen
tageofR
espo
nses
LeveofConcernBADNEWS!
Student Reported Supports to Improve Attendance - 4525 ResponsesTop Responses
Supports Instances Mentioned
Level of Difficulty/ Strictness (Less homework, more fair rules, lenient dress code)
501
Illness Prevention 467Engaging Environment (More interesting/ fun, more hands-on) 462Improved Climate/Relationships (Nicer peers/adults, less drama, less bullying)
400
School schedule (Later start time, shorter classes, more time to pass between classes)
359
Academic Support (Tutoring, better teachers, help from teachers) 289
Unsure (I don’t know, not sure) 288
Parent Reported Supports to Improve Attendance - 639 Responses
Top Responses
Supports Instances Mentioned
Illness Prevention 135Transportation 114School Schedule (Later start time, shorter classes, more time to pass between classes)
29
Parent Support (Parentsupportforschoolattendance,persistenceintakingchildtoschool,supportfromfamilymembers,improvestimemanagement,utilizingafter-schoolhoursforchildren’smedicalappointments)
19
Unsure (I don’t know, not sure) 214
High School Parent Reported Supports to Improve Attendance - 118 Responses
Top Responses
Supports Instances Mentioned
School Schedule (Later school start time) 11Academic Support (Help from a teacher, individual attention) 9Engaging Environment (More interesting, fun, or hands-on instruction)
7
Tougher Consequences (Punishments for skipping school, misbehavior)
7
Climate/Relationships (Nicer peers/adults, more friends, less bullying)
5
HowDoWeAddressCA?
CollectDatatoAnalyzethe“Why”ofCA-forGroupsofStudents
PrioritizeResourcesImplementInterventionstoAddressthe“Why”:Health,
Transportation,Social/Emotional,SchoolClimateMonitorEffectivenessofInterventions(EWS:Attendance,
Grades,Graduation)
Attendance/CAGoalsConsistentAttendanceCollection(ClassroomProcedures)andMonitoring(EWS)
MessagingtoAllStakeholdersRe:Absences/AttendanceGoalsPolicy/PracticeAnalysis
Recognition/CelebrationofGood/ImprovedAttendanceHealthPromotionStrategies
ALL
SOME
FEW
CollectDatatoAnalyzethe“Why”ofCA-forIndividualStudentsImplementInterventionstoAddressthe“Why”:Health,Transportation,Social/Emotional,SchoolClimateConsiderWrap-AroundSupportsMonitorEffectivenessofInterventions(EWS:Attendance,Grades,Graduation
Implicationsforuse
• Howhavethesetoolsbeenusedinyourdistrict/school?• Howcanyouseethembeingusedinyourdistrictschool?
Howdidwedo?
• Participantswill:• Understandchronicabsenteeism
• Howitismeasuredandcontributors• UnderstandthefeaturesandfindingsofRCAsurveystudies• Understandhowthesetoolsmaybeusedindistricts/schools
Reflections
• Whataresometake-awaysfromtheparentandstudentsurveys?• Whatquestionsdoyouhave?• Whatareideasfornextsteps?
“Every problem has in it the seeds of it’s own solution”- Norman Vincent Peale
RESOURCES
ToolsforSelf-Reflection
School-Level• http://www.attendanceworks.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/School-Self-Assessment-Tool-revised-August-2014.pdf
District-Level• http://www.attendanceworks.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Community-Self-Assess-1-pager-April-15-Revised-2013-.pdf
ToolsforAnalyzingYourData
• http://www.attendanceworks.org/tools/tools-for-calculating-chronic-absence/
• http://www.attendanceworks.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/DATT-and-SATT-flyer-8.16.16Final.pdf
ToolsforAnalyzingYourData:RCA
• http://www.floridarti.usf.edu/resources/topic/chronic_absenteeism/index.html
ToolsforMessaging:AttendanceWorks&NudgeLetters
http://awareness.attendanceworks.org/resources/count-us-toolkit-2017/
https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/absent-students-schools-attendance-nudge-letters/
ContactInformation
AmberBrundageCoordinatorResearch&[email protected]
Facebook:flpsrtiTwitter:@flpsrtihttp://floridarti.usf.edu/resources/presentations/index.html
AdditionalReadings
Allensworth,E.M.,&Easton,J.Q.(2005).Theon-trackindicatorasapredictorofhighschoolgraduation.ConsortiumonChicagoSchoolResearch,UniversityofChicago.Retrievedfromhttp://ccsr.uchicago.edu/publications/p78.pdf
Allensworth,E.M.,&Easton,J.Q.(2007).WhatmattersforstayingontrackandgraduatinginChicagopublichighschools. ConsortiumonChicagoSchoolResearch,UniversityofChicago.Retrievedfromhttp://ccsr.uchicago.edu/publications/07%20What%20Matters%20Final.pdf
Allesnworth,E.M.,Gwynne,J.A.,Moore,P.,&delaTorre,M.(2014).LookingforwardtohighschoolandcollegeMiddlegradesindicatorsofreadinessinChicagopublicschools.ConsortiumonChicagoSchoolResearch,UniversityofChicago.Retrievedfromhttps://ccsr.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/publications/Middle%20Grades%20Report.pdf
Balfanz,R.,&Byrnes,V.(2012).ChronicAbsenteeism:SummarizingWhatWeKnowFromNationallyAvailableData. Baltimore:JohnsHopkinsUniversityCenterforSocialOrganizationofSchools.
Balfanz,R.,Herzog,L.,MacIver,D.,(2007).Preventingstudentdisengagementandkeepingstudentsonthegraduationpathinurbanmiddle-gradesschools:Earlyidentificationandeffectiveinterventions. EducationalPsychologist,42(4),223-235.
AdditionalReadingsContinuedChang,Hedy N.&Romero,Mariajosé 2008.Present,engagedandaccountedforthe
criticalimportanceofaddressingchronicabsenceintheearlygrades.NationalCenterforChildreninPoverty(NCCP):TheMailmanSchoolofPublicHealthatColumbiaUniversity.
Connolly,F.&Olson,L.S.2012.EarlyelementaryperformanceandattendanceinBaltimoreCitySchools’pre-kindergartenandkindergarten.BaltimoreEducationResearchConsortium,Baltimore,MD.
Henderson,T.,Hill,C.&Norton,K.2014.Theconnectionbetweenmissingschoolandhealth:AreviewofchronicabsenteeismandstudenthealthinOregon.UpstreamPublicHealth.
Olson,L.S.,2014.WhySeptembermatters:Improvingstudentattendance.BaltimoreEducationResearchConsortium,Baltimore,MD.Retrievedfrom:http://baltimore-berc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/SeptemberAttendanceBriefJuly2014.pdf
Chang,H.,&Balfanz,R.,(2016).Preventingmissedopportunity:Takingcollectiveactiontoconfrontchronicabsence.AttendanceWorksandEveryoneGraduatesCenter.