Reducing Chronic Absence
What Will It Take?
2014
www.attendanceworks.org
What is Chronic Absence?
What is the difference from ADA and truancy?
Average
Daily
Attendance
• The % of enrolled students who attend school each day.
It is used in some states for allocating funding.
Truancy
• Typically refers only to unexcused absences and is defined
by each state under No Child Left Behind. It signals the
potential need for legal intervention under state
compulsory education laws.
Chronic
Absence
• Missing 10% or more of school for any reason -- excused,
unexcused, etc. It is an indication that a student is
academically at risk due to missing too much school
starting in Kindergarten.
2
High Levels of Average Daily Attendance
(ADA) Can Mask Chronic Absence
90% and even 95% ≠ A
Chronic Absence For 6 Elementary Schools
in Oakland, CA with @ 95% ADA in 2012
30%
30%
25%
26%
25%
20%
15%
10%
Chronic Absence for 6 Schools in New
York City with 90% ADA in 2011-12
12%
13%
13%
15%
16%
20%
20%
20%
A
B
C
21%
23%
20%
15%
7%
10%
5%
5%
0%
0%
A
B
C
D
% Chronic Absence
E
F
D
E
F
% Chronic Absence
98% ADA = little chronic absence
95% ADA = don’t know
93% ADA = significant chronic absence
3
Truancy (unexcused absences)
Can Also Mask Chronic Absence
Number of Chronically Absent
Versus Chronically Truant Students
San Francisco Unified School District
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
K
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
# chronic absentees - 2010-2011
# students missing 10 days unexcused (as of May 16th 2011)
4
Why Does Attendance Matter For
Achievement?
What we know from research around the country
Starting in PreK, More Years of Chronic Absence =
Need for Intensive Reading Support By 2nd Grade
Some risk
At risk
* Indicates that scores are significantly different from scores of students who are never chronically absent, at p<.05 level; **p<.01;
***p<.001
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Students Chronically Absent in Kindergarten and
1st Grade are Much Less Likely to Read Proficiently
in 3rd Grade
Percent Students Scoring Proficient or Advanced on 3rd Grade ELA
Based on Attendance in Kindergarten and in 1st Grade
100%
80%
64%
60%
43%
41%
40%
17%
20%
0%
No attendance risks
No risk
Small risk
Moderate risk
High risk
Small attendance risks
Moderate attendance risks
High attendance risks
Missed less than 5% of school in K & 1st
Missed 5-9% of days in both K & 1st
Missed 5-9% of days in 1 year &10 % in 1 year
Missed 10% or more in K & 1st
Source: Applied Survey Research & Attendance Works (April 2011)
7
The Long-Term Impact of Chronic Kindergarten
Absence is Most Troubling for Poor Children
5th Grade Math and Reading performance by K attendance for children living In poverty.
Academic performance was lower even if attendance had improved in 3rd grade.
Average Academic Performance
52
50
48
46
Reading
Math
44
42
40
0-3.3% in K
3.3 - 6.6% in K
6.6-10.0% in K
>=10.0% in K
Absence Rate in Kindergarten
Source: ECLS-K data analyzed by National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP)
Note: Average academic performance reflects results of direct cognitive assessments conducted
for ECLS-K.
8
Multiple Years of Elementary Chronic Absence
= Worse Middle School Outcomes
Each year of chronic absence in elementary school is associated with
a substantially higher probability of chronic absence in 6th grade
18.0x
Increase in
probability of
6th grade
chronic
absence
Chronic absence in 1st
grade is also associated
with:
7.8x
5.9x
•
•
Lower 6th grade test
scores
Higher levels of
suspension
Years of Chronic Absence in Grades 1-5
Oakland Unified School District SY 2006-2012, Analysis By Attendance Works
9
By 6th grade, chronic absence
predicts high school drop out.
60.0%
50.0%
56.3%
41.6%
40.0%
30.0%
25.7%
20.0%
10.0%
0.0%
Severely Chronically
Chronically Absent 20 to Not Chronically Absent <
Absent > 40 days absent
39 days absent
20 days absent
withdrew from school - likely dropped out
High School Outcomes by Rates of Chronic Absenteeism in Sixth Grade
(Baltimore City Public Schools, 1990-00 Sixth Grade Cohort)
Source: Baltimore Education Research Consortium
10
The Effects of Chronic Absence on
Dropout Rates Are Cumulative
With every year of
chronic
absenteeism, a
higher percentage
of students
dropped out of
school.
http://www.utahdataalliance.org/downloads/ChronicAbsenteeismResearchBrief.pdf
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Attendance Is Even More Important For
Graduation for Students In Poverty
Presentation to: The Interagency Council for Ending the Achievement
Gap November 7, 2013, CT State Dept of Education.
12
What Do We Know About Chronic
Absence in [Insert your community]?
What Does Chronic Absence Look Like
in Our District?
Sample District-wide Chronic Absence Data, Single Year
60%
50%
PLACEHOLDER
40%
33%
20%
22%
30%
If it is available, add in your district data here.
20%
Sharing data with stakeholders is a helpful– but not necessary-- step for designing a community
action plan. If you do not have chronic absence data available, feel free to delete this slide.
14%
10%
15%
11%
0%
2%
1%
10%
2%
11%
7%
2%
4%
1%
1%
2%
3%
27%
24%
19%
12%
6%
27%
25%
6%
Grade K Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10Grade 11Grade 12
PERCENT
severe chronic absence
PERCENT
chronic absence
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Is Chronic Absence Increasing or
Decreasing Over Time?
Sample District-wide Chronic Absence Data, 3-Year Trend
70%
58%
56%
60%
53%
50%
49% 47%
PLACEHOLDER
42%
40%
If it is available, add in your district data here.
30%
20%
10%
51%
48%
49%
44%
41%
36%
29%
Sharing data with stakeholders is a helpful– but not necessary-- step for designing a community
20% free to delete this slide.
19%
action
plan. If you do not have chronic absence data18%
available,
feel
18%
15%
9%
13%
9%
8%
13%
11%
10%
12%
6%7%
8% 9%
4%
6% 5%
5%
15% 14%
7%
5%6%
0%
Grade K Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12
2010-2011
2011-2012
2012-2013
15
Are Certain Subgroups of Students
More Affected By Chronic Absence?
Sample District-wide Data, Single Year by Gender
60%
60%
50%
50%
60%
PLACEHOLDER
50%
33%
40%
If it is available,
add in your district data here.40%
40%
39%
35%
30%designing a community
a helpful– but not necessary-- step for
30% Sharing data with stakeholders is30%
20%
19% feel free to delete this slide.
action
plan. If you do not have chronic absence data available,
16%
20%
20%
13%
10%
10%
10%
0%
0%
0%
Boys
Boys
Girls
-10%
-10%
Elementary
Moderate Chronic Absence
Boys
Girls
Girls
-10%
High
Middle
Severe Chronic Absence
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Are Certain Subgroups of Students
More Affected By Chronic Absence?
Sample Data, Percentage of Students Chronically Absent in Each Grade,
by Race/Ethnicity
30.0%
PLACEHOLDER
Hispanic/La
tino
25.0%
Percent of Students
If it is available, add in your district data here.
20.0%
African
Amer
Sharing data with stakeholders is a helpful– but not necessary-- step for designing a community
action plan. If you do not have chronic absence data available, feel free to delete this slide. White
15.0%
Asian
10.0%
Other
5.0%
0.0%
Grade K
Grade 1
Grade 2
Grade 3
Grade 4
Grade 5
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Find Out Why Students Are
Chronically Absent
Myths
Absences are only a
problem if they are
unexcused
Sporadic versus
consecutive absences
aren’t a problem
Barriers
Child struggling
academically
Chronic disease
Lack of engaging
instruction
Lack of access to
health or dental care
Poor
transportation
Attendance only
matters in the older
grades
Aversion
No safe path to school
Poor school climate
and ineffective school
discipline
Parents had negative
school experience
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Site-Level Strategies for Building a Culture of
Attendance & Identifying Barriers
19
Local Examples of Effective Practice
• If there are schools in your district that have
improved attendance and are maintaining
low levels of chronic absence, consider
asking them to share what they do
20
Increased Attendance Involves a 3-Tiered
Approach that Fits with Most Reform Efforts
Students who were chronically
absent in prior year or
starting to miss 20%
or more of school
Students at risk for
chronic absence
All students
in the school
High
Cost
Recovery
Programs
Intervention
Programs
Universal/Preventive
Programs
A small fraction
of a school’s
students
Some
of a school’s
students
All of
a school’s
students
Low
Cost
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Ingredients for System-wide
Success & Sustainability Option A
District
Community
Conveys why building a
habit of attendance is
important and what
chronic absence is
Positive
Messaging
Schools
Actionable
Data
– use
this diagram or
the version on the
next slide
Is accurate, accessible,
and regularly reported
Students
& Families
Ensures monitoring &
incentives to address
chronic absence
Shared
Accountability
Capacity
Building
Strategic partnerships between district
and community partners address
specific attendance barriers and mobilize
support for all ingredients
Expands ability to
interpret data and work
together to adopt best
practices
22
Ingredients for System-wide
Success & Sustainability Option B
Site-Level Strategies
– use
this diagram or
the version on the
previous slide
Positive
Messaging
Actionable
Data
Capacity
Building
Shared
Accountability
Conveys why
building a
habit of
attendance is
important and
what chronic
absence is
Is accurate,
accessible,
and regularly
reported
Expands ability
to interpret
data and work
together to
adopt best
practices
Ensures
monitoring and
incentives and
sets expectations
for school leaders
and teachers to
address chronic
absence
Strategic Partnerships
between schools, agencies, and community partners address attendance barriers and
mobilize support for all ingredients
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What Comes Next?
1. Take a moment to reflect and react to the
strategies discussed in this deck
2. Work through the District Self-Assessment
Exercise, individually and then as a group
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