There are no simple answers to the absentee problem, but the technical guides included in this document may provide a better understanding of the problem. These guides may be useful in determining the causes and indicating the ways in which a reduction in absenteeism may be achieved. Topics covered include a definition of absenteeism; a method of…

Although college faculty often complain about class attendance, little data are available on why students miss classes and especially why absences are more common late in the semester. To explore this phenomenon, students' abilities to persevere in an academic setting and relate that to their actual attendance and performance in a college class…

Aware of the high correlation between class attendance and academic success, Vincennes University (VU) in Indiana implemented a "blue card" system to improve class attendance. The first week of class, students are asked to sign a blue card verifying their local address and allowing the release of academic information. Instructors begin…

Educational status of Indian students was found to be inferior to status of non-Indian students when measured by enrollment, attendance, dropout rate, and nonenrollment. The study found that Indian student enrollment had increased 2.3% from 1983 to 1984; average daily attendance was 4% less than for non-Indian students; dropout rates for Indian…

This paper discussed an alternative school in which the roles of teachers have been redefined to include counseling functions. The counselor is a staff developer for the teachers, a community resource person, and an advocate for students in police court procedures. The psychologist is a staff developer for special techniques, a definer of…

The principal purpose of this project was to find what, if any, early indicators exist to identify incoming students whose academic performance in high school would be high. The corollary objective was to consider what types of intervention strategies might be designed to assure that students so identified would fulfill their early promise. An…

This is a report analyzing the multiple community college attendance patterns of students from nine colleges in the Los Angeles Community College District (California) from 1990-2000. The assessment utilizes the Multiple College Index (MCI), which is a measure based on the proportion of units a student earns at different colleges. The study…

Published research on vocational interests and personality has not often assessed the characteristics of workers and the work environment in blue-collar, women-dominated industries. This study administered the Self-Directed Search (Form E) to 318 sewing machine operators in three clothing factories. Holland codes, productivity, job satisfaction,…

The present study examines the impact of the Direct Instruction (DI) program on the high school careers of the economically disadvantaged students who participated in the DI model of Project Follow Through. The study involves six sites: East St. Louis; New York City; Flint, Michigan; Williamsburg County, South Carolina; and Uvalde, Texas. A…

This press release documents the remarks made by Lauro F. Cavazos (U.S. Secretary of Education) at a press conference publicizing the 1989 edition of the "State Education Performance Chart." This chart provides comparative data for the years 1982 and 1988. It is reported that in 1988, the performance of U.S. students was stagnant.…

A voluntary quinmester plan for extending the school year was tried in five Knox County Tennessee schools. Ten University of Tennesse faculty members teamed to evaluate the program's K-12 curriculum revision, administration, public opinion, costs, student and staff morale, and student achievement. Achievement was not significantly influenced, but…

This paper describes the effectiveness of the Austin Independent School District's public school prekindergarten program during a 3-year period. In 1985-86, the program consisted of full-day classes serving low-achieving and limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in Chapter 1 schools. In 1986-87, the district implemented half-day classes in…

The issue of appropriate truancy intervention is addressed in this description of the efforts of Minneapolis, Minnesota to design a continuum of interventions that relies on the resources of both the school and juvenile court. Exigencies which precipitated a truancy pilot project are discussed: a shared belief that truancy is a signal for…

Because of the unique nature of community colleges, no single model or calculation of attrition can fit all institutions. Each college falls somewhere on the continuum between the degree-oriented junior college, in which students pursue a linear pattern of enrollment from entry to graduation, to the consumer-oriented community college, in which…

This paper examines the growing problem of high school absenteeism and presents data gathered in a study of student attendance in a large Connecticut high school. Included are graphs displaying schoolwide patterns of absenteeism and a number of statistical tables containing attendance data related to such factors as student age, class, sex, race,…