Category: Policies for Attendance

A guide to planning transitions to school – Transition Attendance Analysis Tool

“If you have a plan, the results can serve as a checklist to make sure you’ve addressed inequities, haven’t missed a critical ingredient and anticipated what might happen during the next school year. “

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Districts Pivot Their Strategies to Reduce Chronic Absenteeism During Distance Learning by Wade Tyler Millward

“Hedy Chang, executive director and founder of Attendance Works, says that when the new school year resumes, school officials may well find more students at risk for chronic absenteeism due to economic or housing instability. Parents may have lost their jobs, students may need to work to support the family, family members may have died due to COVID-19. And students may be unwilling to return to school in person if they have a health condition or live with someone who is more vulnerable to the virus.”

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Tracking Student Attendance Under Remote Learning Is a Complicated Mess

“Tracking student attendance under remote learning this spring was complicated and oftentimes ad hoc, a messy process that could continue to be a big problem if schools return to full-time virtual learning anytime this school year or do some combination of in-person and online education.”

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Attendance Considerations for Remote Learning Plans: an example from Ohio Department of Education

“It is likely that Ohio’s most underserved students will be disproportionately affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, increasing their risk of absences.”

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Showing up matters!

This year more than ever before, there is a great need to invest in the transition back to school for both students and families. Every student and family experienced some level of stress, while others have experienced deep trauma from family illness, death and loss of income. During the 2020-2021 school year, education may occur in classrooms, virtually or as a combination. School transitions in and out of classrooms may occur more than once. New research shows that many students could begin the new school year significantly behind in their academic learning. As protests over racism demonstrate, our public institutions, including schools have not adequately addressed the systemic barriers that limit access and equitable opportunities.

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Attendance Playbook: Smart Strategies for reducing chronic absenteeism in the Covid Era from Attendance Works

“Over the past decade, a growing body of knowledge of what works to improve attendance for groups of students with disproportionately high rates of chronic absence has emerged due to the hard work of a practitioners and researchers across the country. With nearly eight million students chronically absent nationwide, we can’t afford to waste time and resources doing business as usual. Our students and families deserve better.”

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US data on COVID-19 and its impact on schools helpful for planning for September

Delivering distance learning
Inequity across schools
Anticipating what’s next

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Additional terms for “Attendance” during distance learning from Attendanceworks.org CONTACT CONNECTIVITY ENGAGEMENT PARTICIPATION

In a time of distance learning, focus on health and meaningful connections

“Targeted and quality outreach toward students and families, particularly those facing economic, health and academic hardships, will lead to more engagement in the shift to distance learning. “You want to make sure your families feel supported, not bothered, in a time of crisis,” Hedy Chang, Attendance Works

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Measuring online student engagement or taking attendance? Is it worth it?

“Virtual schools that have quantified attendance as “one interaction per week” fall well short of ensuring students are engaged,.”

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