History of IDEA
Jeannie Oakes, Founder and Former Director
Youth Voice in School Finance
NEW REPORT: Los Angeles' road to A-G for all
Without Dollars and Sense Powerpoint
Past Educational Opportunity Reports
Why tracking chronic student absenteeism is key for California
- 12-02-2009
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By Hedy N. Chang and Yolie Flores/Los Angeles Times
As California strives to hold its public schools accountable for teaching all children, the state is missing a crucial piece of data: a snapshot of how many children chronically miss class. It's not that teachers aren't taking attendance; they do that every day, because state funding depends on how many students show up. And it's not that schools aren't tracking down truants. Compulsory education requires monitoring unexcused absences. What California doesn't do in a systematic way is pay attention when students miss extended periods of school because of excused, as well as unexcused, absences. National research shows that every year, 1 in 10 kindergarten and first-grade students miss at least a month of school; in other words, they are chronically absent. These children aren't truants, because most 5- and 6-year-olds don't stay home without the knowledge of an adult who can call in an excuse. But they are missing school nonetheless. (more...)
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