Final Report: Making Every Day Count: Effective strategies to improve student attendance in Queensland state schools School of Education and ISSR The University of Queensland June 2017 The Research team: Martin Mills, Angelique Howell, Matthias Kubler, Wojtek Tomaszewski, Debby Lynch, Louise Phillips, Annemaree Carroll, John Dungan, Andrea Hellens, Karen Sheppard. Acknowledgements: We would like to acknowledge the support we received from schools in the study. We would also like to thank Ady Boreham and Bronwyn Lacken for their work on the project. i Table of Contents List of Figures .................................................................................................................................. xi Executive summary ........................................................................................................................ xv The study .................................................................................................................................... xv Description of the study ............................................................................................................. xv Key findings ............................................................................................................................... xvi Implications ............................................................................................................................. xviii Chapter 1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Background ....................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 The Research .................................................................................................................... 3 1.2.1 Stage 1 ............................................................................................................................ 4 1.2.2 Stage 2 ............................................................................................................................ 4 1.2.3 Stage 3 ............................................................................................................................ 4 Chapter 2. Literature Review ...................................................................................................... 6 2.1 Introduction...................................................................................................................... 6 2.2 Definitions of absenteeism .............................................................................................. 6 2.3 Consequences of absenteeism ......................................................................................... 8 2.4 Causes of absenteeism ................................................................................................... 10 2.5 School as a contributor to absenteeism ........................................................................ 11 2.5.1 Relationships ................................................................................................................ 11 2.5.2 School climate, including student agency .................................................................... 12 2.5.3 Classroom practices ...................................................................................................... 12 2.6 Life circumstances .......................................................................................................... 13 2.6.1 Socioeconomic status ................................................................................................... 13 2.6.2 Cultural factors ............................................................................................................. 13 2.6.3 Family relationships ...................................................................................................... 13 2.6.4 Parenting responsibilities ............................................................................................. 14 2.6.5 Gender .......................................................................................................................... 14 2.7 Personal Circumstances ................................................................................................. 14 2.7.1 Academic achievement ................................................................................................ 14 2.7.2 Academic self-concept.................................................................................................. 14 ii 2.7.3 Psychological factors .................................................................................................... 15 2.8 Addressing absenteeism ................................................................................................ 15 2.8.1 Community - school partnerships ................................................................................ 15 2.8.2 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students ............................................................. 16 2.8.3 Monitoring data ............................................................................................................ 17 2.8.4 Addressing conditions that work against attendance .................................................. 17 2.8.5 Making students want to come to school .................................................................... 17 2.8.6 Alternative Education ................................................................................................... 17 2.8.7 Special programs .......................................................................................................... 18 2.8.8 Listening to students .................................................................................................... 18 2.8.9 Rewards ........................................................................................................................ 18 2.8.10 Interagency supports .................................................................................................. 19 2.8.11 Legal sanctions by governments ................................................................................ 19 2.9 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 20 Chapter 3. Attendance in Queensland State Schools ............................................................... 23 3.1 Introduction.................................................................................................................... 23 3.2 School attendance – Queensland in Australian context ................................................ 23 3.2.1 Attendance rate and attendance level ......................................................................... 24 3.2.2 School attendance and Indigenous status ................................................................... 26 3.2.3 School attendance and remoteness ............................................................................. 30 3.3 School attendance in Queensland ................................................................................. 31 3.3.1 Attendance level and attendance rate ......................................................................... 34 3.3.2 Associations with attendance in Queensland .............................................................. 34 3.3.3 Trends in attendance rates ........................................................................................... 38 3.4 Schools selected for qualitative research ...................................................................... 49 3.4.1 Representativeness of selected schools ....................................................................... 50 3.4.2 Similarities and differences among selected schools ................................................... 51 3.5 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 54 3.5.1 Queensland in the Australian context, 2015 ................................................................ 54 3.5.2 Attendance in Queensland schools .............................................................................. 54 3.5.3 Selected schools for qualitative research ..................................................................... 55 iii 3.5.4 Limitations and further research opportunities ........................................................... 55 Chapter 4. Principals’ Survey on School Attendance 2015 ...................................................... 57 4.1 Introduction.................................................................................................................... 57 4.2 Representativeness of responding schools .................................................................... 58 4.3 General perceptions about school attendance.............................................................. 59 4.4 Perceived main causes of non-attendance for students with history of poor attendance 62 4.5 Attendance strategies .................................................................................................... 66 4.5.1 The administration of attendance ................................................................................ 66 4.5.2 Target groups for attendance strategies ...................................................................... 67 4.5.3 Nature of attendance strategies .................................................................................