Addressing Attendance: State Overview & Resources for Schools Krissy johnson, attendance program supervisor system & school Improvement, OSPI OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Workshop Content Introductions Why focus on attendance? Best practice overview Resources Question and answer OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Definitions 10% of school days A student is considered chronically absent if they miss 10% or more of their school days for any reason: excused & unexcused. 10% of school days Chronic Absenteeism Excused Unexcused What is absence? Attendance? As I mentioned briefly, chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% of more of school days. Keep in mind different states, agencies, and OSPI arrive at that 10% in different ways. [click] Chronic absenteeism is not the same as truancy, which is an indicator that only looks at unexcused absences. It is not the same as truancy, which only includes unexcused absences.

Do you know your district or school chronic absenteeism rate? Fist to 5 Check In Do you know your district or school chronic absenteeism rate? No- Not sure Yes- Absolutely What has been the trend?

Chronic Absence Inverted How does Washington School Improvement Framework report Chronic Absenteeism? 90% Regular Attendance Chronic Absence Inverted Regular Attendance Missing 10% = Chronically Absent OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Turn and Talk Partner 1: What is the definition of chronic absence? Partner 2: How is it different than the state’s definition of regular attendance? Call on people or define OSPI’s definition 2 MINUTES

Why is Attendance Important? OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Education only teaches those in attendance. ~ Arthur Truman So why do we care?? OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

What does the research say? When students miss out on instruction, they are much more likely to fall behind. Chronic absence in preschool, kindergarten and first grade are much less likely to read at grade level by 3rd grade. Students who cannot read at grade level by the end of third grade are four times more likely than proficient readers to not graduate. A student that is chronically absent in any two years between 8th and 12th grade has a > 50% chance of not finishing high school. Research has demonstrated a clear link between attendance and student learning. Intuitively, we know that when students miss out on instruction, for any reason, they are much more likely to fall behind. Research bears this out. [click] Specifically, students in preschool and early grades that are chronically absent are significantly less likely to read at grade level by the 3rd grade. [click] Which is important, as we also know that students who cannot read at grade level by the end of third grade are four times more likely than their proficient peers to not graduate. [click] Additionally, students that are chronically absent are less likely to graduate. One piece of research shows that if a student is chronically absent in any two years between 8th & 12th grade, there is a greater than 50% chance they will not finish high school. OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

The Importance of School Attendance http://absencesaddup.org/importance-of-school-attendance/

The Bottom Line One of the most important levers for maximizing student learning. While many of the factors that contribute to student’s absences are out of our control, there is much that we can do to influence it and provide support. Requires 1) ownership of how we are possibly contributing and 2) support and partnership from all buildings, district, and the community – “All Hands on Deck”

Culture Shift Where We’ve Been We’re used to thinking of attendance as a student and family problem We’re used to responding reactively and punitively Where We’re Going To address this issue we need be proactive and supportive We need to work with families to problem solve instead of blaming and shaming OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

2016-17 Washington Students Regular Attendance American Indian/ Alaskan Native Native Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander Students w/ Disabilities All Students 85.1% Regular Attendance 78.4% 74.7% 69.4% How are we doing? Chronic Absenteeism 30.6% 25.4% 21.6% 14.9% OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Questions? OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Turn and Talk To what extent is monitoring or addressing attendance part of your role as a school counselor? Call on people or define OSPI’s definition 2 MINUTES

COMPETING COMMITMENTS NEGATIVE SCHOOL EXPERIENCES MISPERCEPTIONS Absences are only a problem if they are unexcused Ok to miss a day here or there Attendance only matters in the older grades BARRIERS Chronic disease (asthma), lack of health/dental care, etc. Unmet basic needs: transportation, housing, food, etc. Trauma No safe path to school COMPETING COMMITMENTS Cultural Expectations Family Events or Care Work Extracurricular Activities NEGATIVE SCHOOL EXPERIENCES Academic struggles Being teased or bullied Poor school climate Parents had negative school experience LACK OF ENGAGEMENT Lack of engaging and relevant instruction No meaningful relationship with school adults Why are students absent? In order to understand how to address the problem of chronic absenteeism, we want and need to understand why an individual student or groups of students are missing school. It’s is helpful to think about the possibilities in these categories. What we know is that students can be both pushed out of school and pulled out. Every school and community has the opportunity to do its own root cause analysis for your youth. There are causes of absence that affect whole groups of students , not just individuals. Texas health data example – overlaid visits to doctor and absences – launched a flu vaccination campaign. Key is to look at who is asbent and root cause analysis to understand why. 11/12/2018

Multi-Tiered Response to Attendance Tier 1: All Students Fewer than 10 days absent Goal: 80%   Tier 2: Some Students Between 10 – 18 days absent Goal: 15%   Tier 3: Few Students 18 days or more absent Goal: 5% If you have more than 15% of students with at-risk attendance, tier 2, then universal strategies can have a powerful impact. Because research has shown that these tier 1 universal

Elements of Success of MTSS for Attendance Monitor data daily & weekly Team structure Tiered responses (All, Some, Few) Family support & engagement Community partnerships Themes from national research and from our conversations with Washington districts Moving from a punitive, compliance approach to attendance, to partnering with families, and engaging students in a positive manner, that honors relationships and builds trust. Monitor data frequently to catch kids early – Multi tiered systems – that provide students with the services and interventions they need – Tier 1 foundation define, teach attendance expectations and recognize improved attendance Personalized early outreach for high –risk youth – at the beginning of the year, id students that were chronically absent the previous year and provide supports, Building strategic community partnerships provide a robust whole community approach to attendance.

Multi-Tiered Response to Attendance Tier 1: All Students Define and teach “good attendance” Celebrate good and improved attendance Awareness efforts that educate parents about impact of absences Absence data is monitored frequently Proactive & positive messaging for absences Address common barriers to attendance like transportation Engaging school climate & positive relationships with students and families   Tier 2: Students with At-risk Attendance Nudge letters Personalized early outreach Group skill building (attendance advisory) Action plan addresses barriers and increases engagement Check in Check Out   Tier 3: Students that are Chronically Absent Coordinated school and interagency response Home visitors, graduation & family support specialists Check & Connect Community Truancy Boards   The tier 1 are the universal efforts: and go a long way to address the upper left hand bucket of misperceptions. OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Questions? OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Does your school or district participate in any awareness raising activities about the important of attendance? Yes- Absolutely No- Not sure OSPI and Krissy has compiled resource.

Absence Rules Update OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

2018-19 Permanent Rule Absence definition   2018-19 Permanent Rule Absence definition Not physically present on school grounds; and Not participating in the following activities at an approved location: (i) Instruction; (ii) Any instruction-related activity; or (iii) Any other district or school approved activity that is regulated by an instructional/academic accountability system, such as participation in district-sponsored sports.  Tardies A school or district shall not convert or combine tardies into absences that contribute to a truancy petition. Suspensions & Expulsions Not absent if student receives educational services and student is enrolled in qualifying “course of study” activities as defined in WAC 392-121-107.  Excused absent if student does not received educational services. Excused definition New categories added (e.g., migrant, court-ordered activity, foster care/dependency status, counseling appointments or in-patient/out-patient, pregnancy, safety & bullying concerns) District can create own excused categories Definition of full day Full-day absence is 50% or more of student’s scheduled day. RCW, WAC and CEDARS Manual all align. OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

Resources OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

School Identification and Progress Study School Identification and Progress Support K-12 System Supports Serve School Improvement Across the SQSS measures we are providing these self-directed tools

OSPI Communication & Awareness Social Media Toolkit- easy to retweet or post social media messages – OSPI sends out weekly suggestions during the month of September, and strategic points throughout the year. Sign up for the Attendance Newsletter. Posters in multiple languages (hard copy) available for order through our website – we will have magnets for parents, and buttons for kids! Challenge: 200 of Washington's 295 school district Superintendents signed up for Attendance Works Superintendents Call to Action! 

More Resources OSPI Attendance Attendance Works Attendance Advisory Curriculum Scripts for Teachers Family’s Help Bank Attendance Works Get Schooled Attendance Calculator Webinars on Attendance from OSPI’s Graduation: A Team Effort (GATE) Series OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 11/12/2018

For More Information Sign up for the OSPI Attendance Newsletter Krissy Johnson Attendance Program Supervisor Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction 360-725-6045 Krissy.Johnson@k12.wa.us Sign up for the OSPI Attendance Newsletter through GovDelivery!