What happens if your absent a lot

Low-income students often miss school for other reasons too. These include issues with health care, housing and transportation. Missing school in the early grades can have a snowball effect. It sets kids up to fall behind in the fundamental reading skills they need in order to move on to more complicated work. Research shows how big the impact can be. A study in California looked at kids who were chronically absent in both kindergarten and first grade.

By the end of third grade, only one in six of them were proficient readers. But of the kids who missed less than 5 percent of school, two-thirds were proficient. See a PDF of the study. For some kids, frequent absences can become a long-term habit. And that can lead to other consequences. Being chronically absent affects high school graduation rates and the chances for success in college.

In a Rhode Island study PDF here , only 11 percent of high school students with chronic absences made it to their second year of college. But chronic absences may have an even bigger impact on kids with learning and thinking differences. It can be hard enough to master the lessons in school with the support of the teacher or aide. Trying to do it at home can make the work even harder.

Plus, each day of learning builds on the previous day. When kids miss a few days in a row, it can be hard to follow subsequent lessons. Chronic absenteeism used to be a hidden problem. As well as this, going to school helps to develop:. They do this at the beginning of morning and afternoon sessions meaning that each day your child receives two half day marks. If your child is going to be absent from school, e.

The school will then record the absence. If you fail to tell the school as to why your child has not been present then the school may record that period of absence as being unauthorised. The Education Welfare Service EWS has access to all attendance information for each pupil and if your child is missing school without good reason, schools and the EA have the authority to find out why.

Schools will advise parents of a child's attendance levels at least once a year. This will usually include a percentage attendance figure. Achieving 90 per cent in an exam or test is a fantastic result but if your child is at school for only 90 per cent of the school year then they will have missed 19 days - almost four whole weeks of school.

For primary-age children, this can mean almost guided learning hours. This is a big gap for any child to make up. If your child is a pupil at post-primary school, guided learning hours is the same as studying one full-time GCSE normally taken over two years.

By law, all children of school age aged four to sixteen must receive a suitable full-time education. For most parents, this means registering your child at a school or you may choose to make other arrangements to provide a suitable, full-time education. Once your child is registered at a school, you are legally responsible for making sure they go regularly.

The Education Authority EA is responsible for investigating if they believe your child is not getting the education they are entitled to. To avoid disrupting your child's education, you should arrange as far as possible , appointments and outings:. Term time holidays have been increasing over the last number of years. Parents should make every effort to make sure that their child does not miss school due to holiday plans.

Schools are not obliged to agree to you taking your child on holiday during term time. They are entitled to record such holidays as being an unauthorised absence. If your child starts missing school, you might not know there is a problem. When you find out, ask your child and then approach their teacher or form tutor. As a parent, if you find it hard to talk to your child about their attendance at school or other school-related matters, support is available.

As a parent or guardian, you should make sure that you adhere to the guidance provided in that policy about attendance and notifying absence. A school can refer your child to the Education Welfare Service EWS if they feel there is reason to be concerned at their level of attendance. The EWS is a specialist education support service which helps young people of school age and their families to get the best out of the education system.

By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school. Students who live in communities with high levels of poverty are four times more likely to be chronically absent than others often for reasons beyond their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation and a lack of access to health care. When students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating.

Attendance improves when schools engage students and parents in positive ways and when schools provide mentors for chronically absent students. They track how many students show up every day and how many are skipping school without an excuse, but not how many are missing so many days in excused and unexcused absence that they are headed off track academically.

Attendance Works Follow 19, 13, Attendance Works is a national and state initiative that pushes for better policy and practice to improve school attendance. Today we honor the service and sacrifice of those who have served in the military.