Attendance is an important contributor to students’ academic achievement. Every school day matters.
Attendance at school, especially primary school, gives children the opportunity to develop the basic building blocks for learning and educational attainment, as well as social and emotional skills such as good communication, resilience and teamwork.
Here at Girls Grammar we reinforce the research that states regular school attendance is crucial to successful student outcomes and can impact further educational and future employment opportunities.
It can be surprising how quickly the ‘occasional day off’ adds up. Missing just one day of school each week means that a student misses out on approximately two weeks of lessons every term. Research shows that in Queensland higher student attendance at school is associated, on average, with higher student achievement.
The impact of non-attendance not only affects students academically but also socially. Absenteeism can increase social isolation, poor engagement with peers and disconnect with teaching staff and the school community. These factors can significantly increase stress and anxiety as well as add to pre-existing social-emotional difficulties within students.
We understand that at times it can be difficult to get your daughter to school for a number of reasons including difficulty getting out of bed, getting to bed too late the night before, trouble finding uniforms, books, school bag, shoes, or they may be experiencing some anxiety about an assessment or task that is due. While many reasons are acceptable for being absent, we should remain mindful of unacceptable reasons for being absent.
Some suggestions to help with attendance and arriving to school on time include:
Having a set time to go to bed
Having a set time to get out of bed
Having a uniform, school bag and shoes ready the night before
Making lunch the night before
Having a set time for when breakfast is to be finished, teeth brushed and hair done
Set up a schedule for completing homework and subject specific tasks
Talk about school positively
Listen to their concerns but be firm around expectations on attending school including birthdays and the last day/s of term.
Implementing some of these strategies will not only keep your daughter’s absenteeism to a minimum, it will assist in preparing her time management and organisational skills which will provide various positive benefits throughout her future.
Addressing attendance requires a holistic approach to engagement that targets individual circumstances both within and outside the classroom. Our individualised approach to support and maximise the learning and development of every girl reflects the recommendations to address student attendance. At Girls Grammar we value the importance of students feeling a sense of belonging to their school and fostering a ‘whole-of-school-community’ approach to engage our girls in their educational journey from Prep through to Year 12.
Kara Krehlik
Deputy Principal - Students