Investigating Various Stakeholders Perceptions of Strategies That May Be Used To Improve Attendance Among Secondary High School Students

Student attendance is one of the most important factors leading to a student’s achievement academically. Chronic absenteeism can lead to a variety of issues for a secondary high school student, including not graduating. Students who miss school on a regular and consistent basis are identified as being chronically absent. Graduation rates and dropout percentages among America’s high school students are negatively impacted by the number of school days they miss each year. The purpose of this study was to investigate high school principals and assistant principals, teachers, and truancy officers’ perceptions of strategies that may be used to improve attendance among secondary school students who are at-risk for dropping out. This research study explored the significant percentages of students in the state of Texas who are at-risk for dropping out of high school each year, due to high rates of absenteeism.
Findings revealed administrators, teachers, and truancy officers involved parents in their efforts to increase attendance among students who are at risk through on-going communication and other various methods of exchange. Barriers were revealed, administrators, teachers, and truancy officers did not provide on-going communication for students parents who’s English is a second language. Parental involvement and incentives were deemed a top priority by administrators and teachers but solutions to engage parents of students that are socioeconomically disadvantaged was not addressed.
Recommended future studies should examine measures taken to communicate with at-risk students with parents whose English is a second language and greater insight into what specific incentives are most effective for the socioeconomically disadvantaged population of students and parents. The findings would provide districts with a better understanding the needs to improve student attendance among secondary high school students.