From absenteeism to School abandon is just a little step Mirela Moaghen - school counsellor School number 103, Bucharest, Romania

Absenteeism Causes that lead to absenteeism: The lack of one parent; The lack of implication both parents ; The divorce of parents; The lack of financial resources; The lack of moral and social values; Cultural, educational, social, pecuniary, ethnic differences (rroma/gipsy people).

Absenteeism Children start to miss school at the age of ; Generally the boys have a bigger number of absences than girls. The balance show that the boys give up school out of different causes; These children are not motivated to study, to come to school, to learn, because they do not have a model/pattern in their family.

"The five steps" used in my work My question is: “How can I bring these children and their parents to school?”; The distribution made is in order to make my work easier: I have files with every child in situation of absenteeism or abandon (everything that can help me know more about them, including positive things that they like to do or how they like to spend their free time). E.g.: For example at my school a child found as an alternative of free time to play an instrument.

First step Collect information about these children and their families (parents); Contact the parents to come to school (usually I call them); Counselling the whole family or the single parent; Giving and offering information that can help both sides; Setting the objectives of the problem with the family (sometimes the parents do not know what their children are doing at school); There are situations when the children have just one parent (that is alive) and they do not have a real support.

Second step General valuation of the children and their families; Setting meetings with the parents; Permanent valuation; Monitoring (weekly) children’s school attendance; Mutual contact between parents, teachers, child and counsellor; Counselling the family (once a week); Discussions with the parents and teachers.

Third step Work individually or in group with these children and their parents; Permanent valuation; Observing the behaviour of children in the classroom; Observing the relationships established by the children; Questioning the classmates about his behaviour; Parents are involved in some activities in my school office.

Fourth step Permanent valuation of children; Permanent valuation of family.

Fifth step Final valuation of the child and his family; The outcomes are efficient when the parents get involved in the education of their children; Sometimes parents must be educated in many fields (e.g.: offering tutorials for parents).

Obstacles in my work Contact the single parent who avoids coming to school (out of different reasons); The irresponsibility of parents; Inconsequent education of parents; Parents offer to their children too many things (material incentives); Inconsequent behaviour of the parents (they say a thing and do other or nothing).

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