Reducing Chronic Student
Absence –
A Leading Indicator for
Planning, Action & Monitoring
Success
1
April 26, 2011
_______________________________________
In collaboration with Oakland Unified School District
Contacts: Hedy Chang (hnchang@earthlink.net), Steve Spiker (SteveS@urbanstrategies.org), Jean
Wing (Jean.Wing@ousd.k12.ca.us)
2
PART I:
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What is Chronic
Absence?
• Refers to missing 10% or more of school in an
academic year for any reason—excused or
unexcused. It is based on research.
• Different from truancy. Defined in CA as absent
from school without a valid excuse for 3 full days or
tardy or absent more than 30-minutes during the
school day on three occasions in one school year.
• Different from chronic truancy - missing 10% of
school due to unexcused absences.
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Poor Attendance: When 90% ≠ A
Student Attendance Rate
Chronic Absence
(=> 10% absence)
Warning Signs
(<10% but > 5% absence)
Satisfactory
Attendance
(=<5% absence)
Emergency: => 20% absence
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Myths to Dispel
#1: Attendance in Kindergarten doesn’t
really matter.
#2: Missing school isn’t a big problem
until middle or high school.
#3: Most educators monitor chronic
absence.
#4: Because attendance is a family
responsibility, we cannot do anything
to address chronic absence.
6
Chronic K absence can predict lower 5th
grade achievement for poor students
Among poor children, chronic absence in kindergarten
predicted lower 5th grade achievement.
Source: ECLS-K data analyzed by National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP)
Note: Average academic performance reflects results of direct cognitive assessments developed & conducted
specifically for this national study
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Chronic early absence
esp. challenging for poor children
• Poor children are 4 X more likely to be
chronically absent in K than their highest income
peers. (Romero & Lee 2007)
• The negative impact of absences on literacy is
75% larger for low-income children whose
families often lack resources to make up for time
lost on task. (Ready 2010 )
• Only 17% of low-income children in the United
States read proficiently by 4th grade. (Annie E.
Casey Foundation 2010)
8
Chronically absent 6th
graders have lower graduation rates.
Dropout Rates by Sixth Grade Attendance
(Baltimore City Public Schools, 1990-00 Sixth Grade Cohort)
Severely
Chronically
Absent
Chronically
Absent
Not
Chronically
Absent
Source: Baltimore Education Research Consortium SY 2009-2010
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By 9th Grade, Attendance Can Predict
Graduation Better than Test Scores
On Time Graduation Correlation to 9th Grade Attendance
Chronic Absence
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Source: Allensworth & Easton, What Matters for Staying On-Track and Graduating in Chicago Public Schools,
Consortium on Chicago School Research at U of C, July 2007
10
Chronic absence
can reach high levels
New York City Schools
COMPARING CHRONIC ABSENCE MEASURES PK-12
A 407 alert is issued when student misses 10 consecutive days or 20 days over a 40
day period. The 407 alert misses more sporadic absences which chronic absence
captures.
Source: Nauer K et al, Strengthening Schools by Strengthening Families,
Center for New York City Affair,s New School, Oct 2008
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Most Do Not Monitor
Chronic Absence
Most schools only track average daily
attendance and truancy. Both can mask
chronic absence.
Variation in Chronic Absence for Schools with
95% ADA in Oakland, CA
20.0%
18.0%
17.3%
16.0%
14.0%
14.2%
12.0%
12.4%
12.5%
3
4
10.0%
9.3%
8.0%
6.0%
4.0%
5.8%
2.0%
0.0%
1
2
5
6
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Most Do Not Monitor
Chronic Absence
• Data rarely used to examine problematic
attendance patterns (e.g. by classroom,
grade, school, neighborhood or subpopulation.
• Individual student attendance is not
required by current federal laws (e.g.
NCLB, RTT).
• CA is one of 5 states who does not include
attendance in its longitudinal student data
base.
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Schools + Communities
CAN Make a Difference
Partner with community agencies to help parents get
their children to school.
Make chronic absence a priority, set attendance
targets and monitor progress.
Learn about the major factors contributing to
chronic absence by examining data and drawing
upon student and parent perspectives
Clearly communicate expectations to parents
Begin early, ideally in Pre-K
Combine universal and targeted strategies
Offer positive supports before punitive action.
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Improving attendance needs
3-tiered approach to student support
This level targets:
Students who are chronically
absent & habitually truant
Students at-risk for
poor attendance
and/or with rising
absence rates
All Students
in the school
Optimal distribution:
Recovery
Programs
5-15%
of a school’s
students
Intervention
Programs
15-20%
of a school’s
students
Universal/Preventative
Initiatives and Programs
65-100%
of a school’s
students
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A 3-tiered Approach Universal Attendance Supports
• Safe and supportive school environment
•Inviting and engaging classroom environment
•Intentional family involvement and participation
• Accurate taking of roll every day in a caring manner
•Rapid parent contact for unexplained absences
(including truancy notification).
•Incentives for good and improved attendance
•Access to school-based health supports
•Collaboration with afterschool programs and early
childhood programs to build a culture of attendance
•School plan & budget reflects attendance priorities
Improving attendance takes an
integrated approach
Individual Assessments and Intervention
•Refer chronically absent/ truant students for
intervention (includes SART & if needed, SARB)
•Identify and remove barriers
•Provide on-going support
Adapted from Baltimore Student Attendance
Work Group & Scott Perry, Attendance Audit,
Oregon
Recovery Strategies
•Interagency Staffing
•Case management and wrap-around services
•Referral as last resort for court -based
intervention
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Tailored Approaches
are Most Effective
1. When chronic absence occurs in the early
years, consider the role that schools, families
and communities each might play in
contributing to and addressing attendance.
2. As children grow older, pay more attention to
issues affecting youth as well (e.g. boredom in
school, family responsibilities, peer pressure.)
3. Key factors contributing to chronic absence can
vary by community.
4. High levels of chronic absence suggest systemic
challenges affecting the school or community.
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PART II:
Methodology
• Data sharing agreement with OUSD - 11 years of
data
• Records aggregated to schools and census tract
• Caution for partial enrollments
• Combined aggregated attendance with school
performance indicators
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Chronic Absence is
A Significant Problem
14.3% (nearly 1 in 7) are chronically absent
Percent Chronically Absent Students by Grade
in Oakland Unified School District
2006 to 2010
CHRONIC ABSENCE
25%
20%
15%
2006-2007
2007-2008
10%
2008-2009
5%
2009-2010
0%
K
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
GRADES
If the 5,421 students chronically absent in 09/10 had each attended 6 more
days, OUSD would have received more than $1,147,000 in additional ADA.
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African American and
Latino Students Most Affected
Chronic Absence by Ethnicity
For 2009-2010
25%
23%
21.3%
22.2%
20%
15%
Hispanic
13.6%
14.3%
11.9%
10%
5%
African
American
6.7%
6.0%
16.1%
13.1%
11.9%
9.5%
4.7%
14.9%
11.8%
9.6%
6.1%
3.7%
0%
Elementary
Middle
High
Asian
Other Race
White
All Students
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Levels Increase with Age
for Special Education Students and
English Language Learners
Chronic Absence for SPED & ELL
for 2009-2010
30%
25%
26%
25%
21%
20%
13%
15%
10%
ELL
8%
10%
5%
0%
Elementary
SPED
Middle
High
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More than 10% of students
are chronically absent in
majority of schools
Chronic Absences Levels for Oakland Schools 2009-10
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Chronic absence is
affected by community conditions
High correlations are found with:
 Foreclosures
 Poverty
 Single Parenthood
Association with health indicators (infant
mortality, diabetes, hospitalization for asthma)
to be explored.
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Elementary
Absenteeism
Concentrated
in West
Oakland
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By High
School
Prevalence
Shifts to East
Oakland As
Well
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Progress To Date:
Responding to Chronic Absence
• Chronic absence data for district and schools is produced
weekly.
• Chronic absence data is currently used as a leading
indicator, not just a lagging indicator.
• Data is being used to identify promising practice schools to
document which have low-levels of chronic absence despite
serving large numbers of low-income students
• Professional Development will take place re: attendance and
chronic absenteeism for principals within regional networks.
• OUSD is partnering with Oakland Housing Authority to
promote improved attendance.
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How Can the City
and District partner to reduce
chronic absence?
1. Jointly monitor chronic absence data
2. Make student attendance a community
priority
3. Nurture a culture of attendance via
public education campaign, rewarding
good & improved attendance, &
leveraging investment in afterschool &
early childhood education.
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How could the City
and District partner to reduce
chronic absence?
4. Identify and address barriers to school
attendance
5. Advocate for stronger policies and public
investment
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Key Components
of Bloomberg’s NYC Campaign
• Interagency task force
• Celebrity Wake Up Calls & PSAs
• 25 Pilot Schools
▫
▫
▫
▫
▫
Principal data dashboard
Weekly attendance review teams
Success mentors (working w/15 -20 students)
Attendance Incentives & School Wide Events
Collaboration with health dept, homeless shelters
and faith-based organizations
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In Summary:
Increased Student Absences are:
• An early warning sign of potential drop-outs
• Predictive of academic failure
• A flag for student disengagement and struggling
schools
• Costly for each school and surrounding
community.
Measures of Attendance are:
• Available
• Easily understood
• Predictor of failure in school
• A potentially powerful shared outcome that can
facilitate collaboration