Why good attendance is critical for student success

The mission of the Merced City School District is to ensure that every student excels academically, builds character, and is a productive member of our community. There are many ways our district works to achieve those goals, but it all begins with attendance.

I recently had a chance to sit down with our Director of Pupil Services, Brian Meisenheimer, who is passionate about this issue. He told me, “I think most parents understand that attendance is important, but some may not realize just how much missing class can impact their children. Getting students to school on time every day is the best way to help them succeed.”

Students have so much to learn every single day, and the instruction itself is increasingly rigorous. We have Common Core State Standards for English language arts and mathematics, Next Generation Science Standards, and many other 21st century learning opportunities designed to create critical thinkers.

Missing even one day can put students at a disadvantage.

In fact, research shows for every day a child is absent, they fall two to three days behind their peers because they have to play catch-up. So if a student is absent once a month, they could fall about 30 days behind by the end of the school year. School is also where children learn to socialize and practice skills such as leadership, problem-solving and goal-setting, which can help them throughout their lives.

Meisenheimer says, “There really is no good absence. There may be acceptable reasons, but with any absence a child misses vital instruction and opportunities. We understand that a student may miss a few days a year, but it is incredibly important to limit those days.”

Any child who misses 10 percent or more of the school year is considered chronically absent, and an alarmingly high number of students fall into that category nationwide.

About 15 percent of families in the United States (10 million-15 million) have at least one child with chronic absenteeism. We see this trend most often in our youngest grades, when the foundation is set for reading. We also know that if students are not reading proficiently by the end of third grade, the gap in learning grows dramatically.

A recent report by the California Attorney General’s Office found 73 percent of students who are chronically absent in kindergarten and first grade are unable to meet state standards for English language arts in third grade. Those who are not reading on grade level are four times more likely to drop out of high school, and students without a diploma are eight times more likely to be incarcerated.

I spoke to Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse about this issue.

“Dropouts, as we know, are going to earn less money,” Morse said. “They’re going to live more difficult lives, but especially for me as a district attorney, the concern that if we could keep students in school and graduating, we would substantially reduce our crime problem.”

The goal of the Merced City School District is to have 97 percent attendance, and we are also working to minimize the number of students who are chronically absent. Those efforts include several steps to educate families and create positive learning environments so students feel comfortable at school and want to be there. Many campuses even offer special rewards and incentives for attendance.

When children do struggle with absences, staff members provide outreach including phone calls, in-person meetings, and home visits. The process begins with the school sites since they have the closest relationships with their families, but we also have district resources such as nurses and counseling services, behavior supports, and a Family Resource Center. In addition, we can refer families to a number of community agencies for additional help with overcoming attendance obstacles. The district also has a School Attendance Review Board to assist with the most difficult cases. The SARB can ask the District Attorney’s Office to intervene, and parents and guardians can be prosecuted under state laws that mandate school attendance.

Of course, we hope those steps are never necessary. We encourage parents and guardians to reach out to school administrators if they are having issues that affect their child’s attendance. Schools are willing to work with families to help address those challenges so students can continue to learn and thrive in the classroom.

Read the Attorney General’s Report here: https://oag.ca.gov/truancy/2016

This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 11:46 AM with the headline "Why good attendance is critical for student success."