Culturally Responsive Attendance Practices

National data has highlighted how chronic absenteeism has risen since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. But even before the pandemic, students from historically marginalized groups were more likely to miss school.

American Enterprise Institute statistics say that chronic absenteeism surged to 29 percent among all students in 2022, led by higher rates among Black (39 percent) and Hispanic/Latino (36 percent) students.

Students—especially younger students—often miss school because of out-of-school factors beyond their control such as lack of transportation, housing and food insecurity, and illness. School leaders work tirelessly to get students to attend classes and create meaningful learning opportunities, and since COVID-19, schools have taken on more responsibilities to respond to student and community needs.

Many schools provide services that go beyond traditional teaching and learning such as mental and physical health services, housing and food assistance, job placement, and childcare. Now, more schools are partnering with community organizations to provide educational and noneducational services alike.

School leaders must implement equity-focused practices and policies that remove barriers to school attendance and offer a positive learning environment for students. Students who attend school regularly are less likely to disengage from school or drop out. Below are three areas for school leaders to focus on when it comes to supporting students, families, and communities around school attendance.

1. Build a culturally responsive approach.

According to Attendance Works, school leaders should develop messaging that indicates attendance matters and that students are wanted at school every day. Students and families should see, hear, and experience the ways in which the school community invests in their daily attendance.
And every educator in a building should see themselves as part of an overall attendance solution and feel empowered to support students in school attendance.

What’s more, leaders should implement culturally responsive practices that acknowledge and respect the values, norms, and traditions of different groups, considering their experiences and interactions with schooling, including:

Selecting a curriculum that reflects the student population and employing
teaching practices and strategies that affirm cultural identities. When diverse cultural and social backgrounds are recognized, students are more likely to feel connected to the learning environment and more likely to attend school.

Creating school communities that invite students, families, and educators to participate in attendance initiatives and interventions. Cultivating relationships between chronically absent students and trusting adults inside the school can help students feel connected and encouraged to attend school regularly. Incentives such as groceries, gas cards, and extended lunch or recess time can promote positive behavior and motivate students to attend school.

2. Leverage data to inform targeted early interventions.

School leaders can use data as a tool to identify individual and collective chronic absenteeism patterns. If principals look only at average daily attendance—the total days of attendance for all students in a school divided by the total days of school—chronically absent students may get overlooked. For example, a 95 percent average daily attendance rate might hide the 20 students who have missed a month of school.

Disaggregated data can inform resource allocation to target interventions and support students and families. Educators should be able to access, interpret, and analyze attendance data, and professional development should be offered to support ongoing learning on data use and early warning systems. Attendance data can also be used to help identify patterns, build positive school and family partnerships, improve teaching and learning activities, and identify underlying factors that are contributing to absences.

Attendance data should be communicated consistently to students and families. School leaders can also use data to help allocate resources such as staff, time, funding, and support services toward the grades and student populations that display the highest rates of absenteeism. Finally, school leaders can use data as evidence for policy development and advocacy efforts.

Schools can also use attendance data to detect and prevent chronic absenteeism early. By using a multitiered system of supports, school leaders might quickly identify students who are trending toward chronic absenteeism and inform the early interventions implemented. Collaborative partnerships can identify potential barriers to attendance and develop strategies to support students’ regular school attendance.

3. Foster high-leverage relationships.

Students are more likely to attend school if trusting relationships exist with educators and peers. Mentoring programs can play a role: Students who are paired with one or multiple educators who understand their experiences and can offer guidance and support are more likely to attend school regularly. Hiring more teachers of color has been shown to reduce absenteeism rates, particularly
among students of color. Peer mentorship programs among students can also help create relationships that encourage students to attend school regularly.

School leaders play an important role in fostering a culture of attendance, equity, and success in schools. In the aftermath of COVID-19, leaders have the responsibility and opportunity to develop, implement, and support efforts to address chronic absenteeism and provide rich learning environments for students and families.

Implementing targeted interventions, fostering relationships with families and communities, and creating supportive environments that prioritize student well-being are just a few ways that school leaders can promote school attendance.

Chronic absenteeism affects disadvantaged students disproportionately. Social disparities in areas such as housing, transportation, and food security also affect attendance. Leaders who address chronic absenteeism through a variety of approaches are not only promoting equity, but also ensuring that all students have access to the resources, support, and opportunities they need to succeed.

Joshua Childs is an assistant professor in the Educational Policy and Planning program in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas at Austin.

Ain A. Grooms is an assistant professor in the Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.