Improving Student Attendance

1. Improving Student Attendance Sharon Mullins, Executive Director Government Liaison and Projects Branch Learn Earn Legend Indigenous Education Forum September 2010

3. Attendance target Commence developing an evidence-based attendance strategy consultation with parents and ATSI community include targets for improved attendance reflect how the school responds to and seeks to enhance the linguistic, cultural and conceptual resources that students bring to their schooling Publish attendance strategy in 2011 Evaluate and monitor success of strategy Report annually on progress towards meeting targets

4. Every Day Counts Strategy aimed at changing parent, community and student attitudes to school attendance Provides resources for schools Website http://education.qld.gov.au/everydaycounts/ Brochures for parents and community Posters Case Studies Parent Fact Sheet

5. Attendance Improvement Plan Develop a school attendance policy Record and follow up student absences Monitor student non-attendance and patterns of non-attendance Develop a positive school culture Collaborate with other agencies

6. 1. Develop a school attendance policy Develop in collaboration with school community Clear, inclusive and simple Promote high expectations Communicated to students and school community

7. Key components of attendance policy Clearly outlined rationale School community values Responsibilities of school, students and parents Strategies to reduce absenteeism Targets and responses to absences Reporting and monitoring processes

8. Attendance Planning Tool Source: Department of Education Western Australia. Improving attendance: a resource package for schools.

9. 2. Record and follow up student absences Develop and document consistent and effective follow-up processes for unexplained absences Departmental procedures: SMS-PR-036: Roll Marking in State Schools SMS-PR-029: Managing Student Absences Other strategies: ID Attend Attendance/truancy officers

10. 3. Monitor student non-attendance and patterns of non-attendance Analyse attendance data Investigate relationships to factors such as day of the week, class/subject/year level, timetable, gender/cultural groups

11. Attendancedata Overall average attendance rate for Queensland State schools declined from 91.1% in 2008 to 90.7% in 2009 Indigenous student attendance rate was declined from 84.4% in 2008 to 83.9% in 2009

12. Attendance Rate by SDS Sector (2007 to 2009) Queensland State Schools

13. Indigenous Attendance Rate by SDS Sector (2007 to 2009)

14. Average Absences by Reason by Day (Semester 1, 2009)

15. Average Absences by Week by Reason (Semester 1, 2009) The Teacher Strike on the 19th May is included for illustrative purposes only and is excluded from rate calculations

16. Sarah’s mother was shocked when she got her daughter’s report and saw that she’d been absent in term four for 32% of days. “But Sarah goes to school every day, no problem. So I phoned the school to say they’d got it wrong, but they hadn’t. Now I can see how it all adds up.” Using attendance data to increase parents’ awareness

17. 4. Develop a positive school culture Ensure a safe and supportive school environment Develop positive home-school relationships – breakfast, attendance officer work closely with families, home visits

18. 5. Collaborate with other agencies Implement appropriate strategies/support mechanisms Liaise with Queensland Police, local government, business community including local shopping centres, youth groups and facilities and other schools

19. Further assistance Kym Turner Principal Advisor Ph: (07) 323 54232 Email: Kym.Turner@deta.qld.gov.au Attendance and Retention Team Government Liaison and Projects