Attendance monitoring in secondary schools

[roisin]

Aarrggghhhh....!
ds1's school - like most secondaries, keep track of attendance and have all sorts of schemes, prize draws, certificates to reward 100% attendance.

I am not the least bit interested in whether his attendance is good or very good, but he is because of the above school policies.

On ds1's interim report he had an attendance figure of 99.55%. He asked me to query this as he's been there every day and has not been late. I dropped a polite note in to school and they've told ds1 the date of the morning-only absence.

But he wasn't absent. He was there that day. He has notes in his planner of the homework he got from lessons he was in that morning!

I'm really not bothered about this, and I think it's a simple clerical error. But ds1 is bothered because it means he's not eligible for these different rewards.

It sounds like the teacher made a mistake with the register, Roisin. I'm sure if you phoned the schol, they'd change it so he doesn't lose out.

Schools are under such pressure re: attendance but all that happens is the dilegent pupils like your son end up stressing out at missing a minute, whilst others who don't give a toss ensure that the schools have to keep pressurising everybody to keep their figures up! It's a mad world we live in!

Aren't the school chasing you up to explain this 'absence'?

They do have the ability to change the code from absence to P for present.

I am sure you know that they can only be marked in the register if they are physically present in their form room when the register is taken. If they are not there for whatever reason, including things like peri music lessons when everyone knows they are 'in', they have to be marked absent. It is only later that the reason can be given - usually a 'late' if they are otherwise in school (eg pottering about in the locker room).

ds1 was told today that the absence had been confirmed - ie they phoned us or we phoned them

It's from way back in November. Do you think they can still go in and change it now? He doesn't do anything like music lessons, and he was definitely at school that day.

I'm quite anal about getting my registers right and almost always count bodies in the room as a double check. But I know not everyone does.

It is a bit worrying. Registers are legal documents - they are supposed to be right.

Was your DS definitely in registration at that time? Can he explain why the teacher marked him absent?

Occasionally his bus arrives late and he has to run to make registration, and has to check the form teacher knows he's there. It may be that this was one of these days, but he has no way of knowing - it was 4 months ago!

But at my school even if they sign in very late at the office they still get an attendance mark for that morning, as there are electronic registers done at every lesson.