assessment for the absent...

October 7, 2014 By: Shayne, Kery, Emma, Dustin

ASSESSMENT FOR THE ABSENT STUDENT Excused vs. Unexcused

Absences Enabling teachers for proper and fair assessment strategies

1

A student who misses class time for a certain period of time, either for a limited or an extended time, which may affect their own personal learning and/or development.

2

“Once attendance becomes an issue, disengagement is heightened and once a student is disengaged from their learning then the student struggles with the purpose of their education” (Alberta Education (1), p. 1)

1

Any student will be absent in a teacher’s class from one time or another. This may be caused by a variety of reasons that are out of the teacher’s control, and teachers will need multiple strategies for assessing a child who will be absent from the class. Alberta has one of the highest dropout rates from high school at 74.9%, which means almost ¼ of the student

2

population will not receive a high school diploma (Alberta Education 3). Various factors may be considered for absent students that may include brief or prolonged absences. So as educators, teachers need to have multiple strategies and skills to deal with fair assessment practices.

Why is this topic an assessment issue?

Assignment 2

What is an absent student?

Absence: 1. State of being away or not being present 2. Period of being away 3. Failure to attend or appear when expected. 4. lack; deficiency 5. Inattentiveness; preoccupation; absent-mindedness (dictionary.com)

Absenteeism: a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation. Traditionally, absenteeism has been viewed as an indicator of poor individual performance, as well as a breach of an implicit contract between employee and employer; it was seen as a management problem, and framed in economic or quasi-economic terms

(Wikipedia)

October 7, 2014

2

Excused absence: A student is excused from attending school on a day on which the school is open if:

a) The student is unable to attend by reason of sickness or other unavoidable cause,

b) The day is recognized as a religious holiday by the religious denomination to which the student belongs,

c) The principal of the school has suspended the student from school and the suspension is still in effect,

d) The student has been expelled from a school and has not been given permission to enroll in another school,

e) The board or, if the student is enrolled in a private school or resides in an unorganized territory, the Minister

i) Determines the parent of the student has shown sufficient cause as to why the student should not be required to attend school, and

ii) Excuses the student from attending school for a prescribed period time

Adapted from Alberta School Act, Province of Alberta

What constitutes an excused absence?

An unexcused absence is when a student does not provide notification to the teacher or principal about their absence, nor provide a reason for their absence.

Purposely missing class or failing to submit an excuse statement signed by guardian may fall under this category.

Every student in the province of Alberta is required to attend school up to the age of sixteen, which is required by law. (Alberta Education (2))

What is an unexcused absence?

Prevention is Key

The best way to address chronic absenteeism is before it becomes an issue. Create safe, supportive and engaging environments where students feel welcome and valued. Tips to address attendance issues at a large scale:

• Communicate with students • Strengthen after school programs • Develop new attendance goals • Communicate with parents

October 7, 2014

3

Addressing Student Absenteeism

Parents have a duty to ensure that a child who is of compulsory age is enrolled and attend school everyday, which is required by law, unless they have a reasonable excuse. Parents ultimately have the responsibility to ensure their children attend school. As teachers, they should identify absences quickly, follow-up promptly, and send clear messages to students that attendance is vital (Queensland Government). The Queensland Government imposes a five step approach in order to avoid student absenteeism:

1. Develop a positive school culture

o Employ safe and supportive environments that promote positive relationships amongst the students, teachers and administrators. Also, this may include developing programs along with assistance outside of the school.

2. Communicate high expectations of attendance

o Develop a clear attendance message that promotes high expectations of not only the students, but parents as well. Message should be consistent through a variety of mediums.

3. Record and Follow-up student absences

o Very important to follow up for unexplained absences, which will reduce absenteeism. If this goes undetected, students will think it is easy to miss classes on purpose. Also, makes parents accountable for their child and prompt them to take action.

4. Monitor student non-attendance

o Analyze data or trends in student behavior based on exam times, workload, days of the week, assemblies, etc.

5. Provide intervention and support

o If chronic absenteeism continues, consider employing support systems in order to combat absenteeism.

October 7, 2014

4

Possible Causes of Student Absences Please note! This is not a complete list of reasons for absences. For example: Cultural/religious practices, extra-curricular activities, and family events (such as holidays)

A student may miss some class time due to circumstances out of their control. Some situations are out of the teacher’s control, but we need to ensure that we are able to deliver material to the student, as they may be gone for a sufficient amount of class time, and effectively assess them.

Adapted from Stanford Education (2012)

1. Divorce

During a divorce, the process may be dragged out over a long period of time and the student may be subject to distress. The student may have to move locations, miss class time, or be mentally exhausted from this traumatic time. Teachers need to be able to identify how the student may react and identify possible assessment strategies to benefit their learning. It is essential to identify issues before they become out of the teachers control. Characteristics of the student

• As teachers we will need to identify many life situations for the students. § Some students may lack sleep § The student will begin to show signs of unwillingness to learn, homework

incompletion § A child may change his/her personality in the classroom and may respond

differently than before § A child may snap back at the people around them, distance themselves away from

others, or even become defensive when talking about relationships § All of these are potential signs for divorce, but this is only a limited list.

Continued on Page 5…

October 7, 2014

5

Implications in the classroom

• Students will show lack of interest, responding negatively to others, etc. that will change the way we are able to provide lessons to students. If student is absent, teacher needs to be open to many different forms of assigning homework or presentations.

Reasons why this needs to be recognized by teachers • This is important for teachers to understand in order to give a student proper assessment in

the classroom. The situation may cause a student to be absent from the class, and we need the necessary material/tools to allow for teachers to handle and deal with this situation to still provide learning for the student.

Assessing students going through Divorce

• Provide students with a basic structure of examinations and ask them to make some practice test questions that could potentially be on their tests.

• Allow students to have a choice in how they want to complete their assessments (Ex: in class, computer, written).

• Allow students to redo assignments.

• Incorporate their interests into the work to get their attention away from stressful situations.

• When giving feedback, make sure it is given in the right way or form. • Stay away from Summative assessments as this could lead to negative outcomes, focus more

on formative to assess students work 2. Chronic Absenteeism Characteristics of the student

o Constantly absent o Does not seem to care for schooling or learning o Does not participate in school events o Not concerned about failing or dropping out of school depending on external factors


o Students that are chronically absent tend to miss enough course subject material that it affects their grades drastically.

o Students will notice the chronic absenteeism and may gossip about the student, which promotes prejudices/judgment.

o Try to get other students to join them in skipping or missing class time which ultimately affects learning.

o May be purposely disruptive towards classmates or adults in school in order to be dismissed from class

Reasons why this needs to be recognized by teachers o Teachers have more difficulty assessing chronically absent students because assessment

generally requires consistent feedback, communication, and time. o Every student is different and has different needs because maybe they do not excel in a

classroom environment o Every student has to be engaged and has different learning styles o No student left behind no matter who they are or how they present themselves


October 7, 2014

6

Assessing students that are chronically absent o Adapting the course in a way that provides students to participate outside of class, more

likely in a self-directed study, would allow absent students to finish coursework on their own time.

o Providing prompt feedback as students submit questions or assignments. o Being flexible in student expectations. o Provide material that they will find interesting and relevant to peak their interest in order to

perform o Get to know the students and their abilities or interests from personal inventory checklists or

another form to find what they want to learn o Get them to write journals or personal blogs on what they learned o Try to assess students in a non-traditional way

“Chronic absenteeism has numerous negative implications. Far reaching, these implications touch everyone and include academic and social difficulties, dropping out of school, delinquency leading to justice system involvement, and lower financial earnings in adulthood.” (Bickelhaupt, 2011, p. 60) 3. Loss of significant person

In the case where a student may lose one of their friends, family members, or someone close to them, students may not be willing to participate in class or be absent from class. A student may need time to heal from this traumatic experience and teachers need to keep the student up to date on lessons in the classroom. Characteristics of the student

o Begin to act out or act on impulse to the people around them o Depressed o Less confident in their actions, choices, or decisions o Distance themselves from others o Develop absenteeism, not care for class time o Shock and disbelief, sadness, guilt, anger, fear, and physical symptoms (sickness)

Implications in the classroom o Students may miss class repeatedly, not

hand in assignments, do the bare minimum for homework, start quarrels with other students, not participate in activities. Every one will grieve differently and recover at different rates, so it is a teacher’s duty to identify this.

Five Stages of Grief (helpguide.org):

1.Denial: This can’t be happening to me.” 2.Anger: “Why is this happening? Who is to

blame?” 3.Bargaining: “Make this not happen, and in

return I will ( )” 4.Depression: “I’m too sad to do anything” 5.Acceptance: “I’m at peace with what

Reasons why this needs to be recognized by teachers

o This is a very important topic as teachers need to be able to provide support to the student, and direct them to what we believe is necessary. Working with support groups or the administrators, teachers have to ensure the student works through this difficult time. Also, if the student is to return at a later date, teachers need to be able to catch the student up on homework assignments or work in class in order to assess them for future classes.


October 7, 2014

7

Assessing students with a sudden loss of significant other o Observe and monitor students’ behavior, attitudes, mood to ensure student is not feeling

overwhelmed by school work

o Provide student with a basic structure of examinations and ask them to make some practice test questions that could potentially be on their tests.

o Allow student to have a choice in how they want to complete their assessments (Ex: in class, computer, written).

o Allow student to redo assignments.

o Incorporate their interests into the work to get their attention away from stressful situations.

o When giving feedback, make sure it is given in the right way or form. o Stay away from Summative assessments as this could lead to negative outcomes, focus more

on formative to assess students work o Chat with student often to get a feel for them as an individual

4. Illness

Characteristics of the student o Unable to attend classes o May be fatigued/weakened with multiple symptoms o Onset of symptoms are usually unpredictable (when a student becomes ill)


o This can affect group work that the student is involved in because it would be more difficult for the ill student to provide constructive input.

o Possible for ill students to miss handing in assignments or complete quizzes/examinations. o Sick students that attend class have the possibility of passing on their illnesses to others.


o Illnesses are out of student’s control. o Minor illnesses such as a cold can prevent students from attending class for one or two days. o Other illnesses, such as a flu, can cause a student to be absent for more than two days, but in

general not longer than a week. Assessing students that are ill and unable to attend class

o Usually teachers can hold onto assignments and handouts and work with the student on their return from absence to help them catch up with the rest of the class. This is effective for short-term absences such as one or two days.

o Teachers can work with the parents so that the absent student will not be missing too much of subject course matter. Parents may be able to ensure that the students are aware of what they are missing during the duration of their absences.

o If the student is able to, perhaps the student can work on assignments from home. If so, the student is likely able to communicate with the teacher via email, which allows the teacher to give feedback and assessment.

October 7, 2014

8

5. Child Abuse/Neglect

Teachers need to be aware of situations that may happen outside of our control. Teachers need to have the resources and ability to distinguish when a student is in need of help. In certain cases, homework will be missed and it will be difficult for a teacher to effectively assess a student. What does it look like?

o Acts of commission- things like hurting a child o Acts of Omission- not providing for the child o As a teacher, we must be looking for signs of abuse, because these must be reported

immediately. “The outward signs are hazy, indistinct and confused.” (Morgan) These signs go unnoticed, so it can be tough for teachers to see the abuse. A student may miss days at a time because the parents are neglecting to simply bring them to school. Teachers must work to make sure these students receive extra support in the classroom, and support if the student is unable to attend.

Implications

o Students could be missing time for a variety of reasons. Teachers must establish reliable ways of contact with the student if possible, in order to provide the resources to stay with the class. Student may be afraid to commit to work or work in groups when designated in class. Homework, assignments or projects may not be completed at home.

Teacher Applications

o Allow for flexibility in the deliverables within your classroom. Understand that your students may be missing class time due to circumstances they cannot prevent. In child abuse cases, these students are difficult to assess even when attending class. Outside influences can make assessment tricky. Allow assessment to occur in a variety of ways. Make for allowances in due dates, and make sure to maintain steady dialogue with the student. The main point in cases of child abuse though is that if a child provides you with proof of abuse, you must in good faith act for the child, so hopefully the situation is resolved.

6. Bullying (adapted from Media Smarts) Characteristics of the student

o One-third of students who were bullied online reported symptoms of depression. o Cyber Bullying can occur at anytime, anywhere, and can have countless witnesses, which can make

it more dangerous than offline bullying. o Students often are quiet and reserved, and are embarrassed to talk about their problem. o Students can feel frustrated, because it can be difficult to tell someone you are being bullied if the

bully is anonymous, or the scars left of the mental variety. o Offline, or in person bullying, is much more traceable. The student may have physical scars because

the bullying often takes place face to face. Bruises, cuts, bone breaks, etc. are all signs of bullying. The students also may appear to be mentally shaken. Words can cut deep at any age. Look for students who are experiencing different metal states than usual. If a student seems more reserved or flustered, inquire as to the reasons.


October 7, 2014 By: Shayne, Kery, Emma, Dustin

Implications in the classroom o Students may feel threatened to come to school by a bully present, or to speak up while in the

classroom, for fear of ridicule. o Students who are the victims of bullying need as more support in the classroom as possible, they

need to feel like it is a welcoming learning environment where they are free to pursue their individual learning goals without fear.

o Assessing students who are victims can be difficult. If the child fears coming to school, they may come up with reasons to not attend. A child may pretend to be sick for a week, when really they didn't want to come and face a bully who made fun of them all weekend. Finding ways to assess these children outside of the classroom will be important.

o Fear should never take away from a child’s learning, so teachers must come up with ways to evaluate and assess while the student is absent. Bullying can take the confidence of a student and eliminated.

o Try and use forms of assessment that encourage creativity. A creative child is one who is engaged feels more confident in their ability to learn.


o As teachers, we have to be aware that cyber bullying has no boundaries. One act online can be witnessed and subsequently transmitted to others quickly. Students are not sure who is bullying them, because the Internet can be an anonymous place with little accountability. Bullying electronically often goes unreported to adults, so as teachers we may have instances of bullying occurring between students within our classroom, without any knowledge. Bullying can come in many forms than one, and ultimately bullying may affect a students’ ability to learn and gain knowledge in schools.

7. Transportation Issues (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qmfm51xVy-c) Characteristics of the student

o Will be tardy from time to time, or most of the time o Not care if late or absent, easy going attitude or restless when in the class, as if they are

rushed o Unsure if they have a way to get to school, worried about travel o May show up in class late and show signs of messy hair or dirty clothes, as if they were in a

rush to leave house

Implications in the classroom o If a student is late, the classroom will be disrupted as the late student walks in. This may

cause a ruckus in the class, or take away the others students attention. If the student is absent due to travel issues, the student may contact the teacher for them to send the student’s notes or things they worked on in class making the teacher make handouts or extra material. Some other students may feel as if this one student is getting special attention or privileges compared to others.


o Teachers need to understand that a situation may occur in which may be out of the student’s control. That sometimes it is not the students’ fault, and may be that of a parent that drives them to school. Teachers need to know that this is a common occurrence in schools and they need to have multiple ways to address this situation or give homework when the student is absent. Teachers cannot hold this against the student, or blame them for the absences but need to address the issue quickly and effectively from talking with parents, the child, and maybe even the transportation company (school buses).


October 7, 2014

10

Assessing Students When Absent

Assessing students having transportation issues o Make sure the student has a homework buddy in order to relay the material to the absent

student o Observe and monitor students’ behavior, attitudes, mood to ensure student is not feeling

overwhelmed by school work

o Provide student with a basic structure of examinations and ask them to make some practice test questions that could potentially be on their tests.

o Incorporate their interests into the work to get their attention away from travel situations that may influence learning.

o Use summative assessments to assess the student’s knowledge, but use mainly formative assessments along the way to make sure they are on track and focused.

o Chat with student often when tardy, and give them checklists for being on time or what needs to happen. Also, chat with student to see if they feel overwhelmed with material

Teachers need to be able to assess students in a variety of absences from class. Teachers need to have multiple mediums to get the information to the student in order to successfully assess the students.

o Using technology through teacher presentations on webcasts or Youtube o Use of online quizzes either emailed or sent in a way that the student can access from

anywhere o Buddy homework system and then reflection on how it went o Get the student to write a blog on readings assigned when away, or on material learned

while being absent o Teachers may reach out to the student in this tough time and provide the student with an

email or contact number if they ever need assistance. o Teachers can provide links to websites that will deal with the material that will be discussed

in class to keep the student up to date. o Teachers can provide a conference call for the student to be in the classroom, when not at the

school via Skype or any other software. o Teacher can provide material to a close friend in order to deliver the work that needs to be

completed for class. o Webquests: Guided from the teachers that guide the activities the student’s do for a specific

topic that may be done outside of class o Develop rubrics or personal checklists for the student when absent, a sort of schedule system

of what to learn o Teachers need to be flexible and adaptable about the expectations placed on students and be

mindful of student needs o Online jigsaws for students to be actively involved outside of the class o Make the student check in at least once a week if absent for a long period of time, whether

this is through email, phone or meeting to ensure goals are being met o Give students goals and objectives to complete tasks o Provide a class website or Facebook group with updated information on what was done in

class today or further assignments o Teachers can get students to report on their learning from self-assessment. Students who self-

assess regularly may be more motivated to stay in class than be chronically absent. o Be prepared for students to be absent! Have handouts and organized material to be prepared

for situations like this to happen.

October 7, 2014

11

Why is it important to maintain an assessment practice for absent

students?

Assessment practices for absent students are important for the learning of each individual. Assessment practices allow students to gain feedback on work submitted, ask questions of themselves and others, and think critically about a topic. By failing to maintain assessment practices for students who are absent, as a teacher we risk students falling behind. They may submit inadequate work, fail to bridge a topic to another, or work poorly with others. Assessment practices are integral for the success of our students, no matter if the student is in class of not. Take extra care to make sure to pay as much attention to assessing students outside the classroom as in it. No student should ever feel like they have been abandoned, even if they miss numerous days of school. Provide them with the opportunity to learn, whether it is in the classroom or outside. It may make a difference to a young learner, and lead them to future academic and life success.

Teacher Resources Here are a variety of sources for teachers to use for assessment in the classroom:

1. Hopkins, B., & Maines, B. (2011). The Restorative Classroom: Using Restorative Approaches to Foster Effective Learning. London: Optimus Education

2. Jenson, W. R., Masjzak, H., Phosaly, L. Evans, C., Olympia, D, Teplick, C. (2013). Functional behavior assessment of absenteeism and truancy (FBAAT). Eugene, OR: Pacific Northwest Publishing.

3. www.Attendanceworks.org. A variety of tools, research, news and webinars for teachers. 4. Cornell University has a good web page for Increasing Student Participation that can be found here:

http://www.cte.cornell.edu/teaching-ideas/engaging-students/increasing-student-participation.html 5. www.brainshark.com. For students to upload presentations or videos if absent. 6. www.edmodo.com. A way for students and teachers can connect on an online community if Facebook does not

seem functional 7. www.edublogs.com. An education website that is safe for students to blog with the teacher to view easily. 8. Alberta education has many assessment tools for teachers to access easily to implement in the classroom at

http://www.education.alberta.ca/media/678151/s2_teachers.pdf 9. http://www.lauracandler.com/strategies/management.php. Teacher resources for classroom management 10. Student Absenteeism http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhTPI5SCzuM 11. Student Tardiness, Truancy, and Absenteeism fixed here: Classroom management tips that work at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qmfm51xVy-c 12. Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training: Teaching and assessment strategies for Students

with Chronic Health Conditions http://www.adcet.edu.au/view.aspx?id=4312 13. Edutopia: Addressing Chronic Absenteeism, http://www.edutopia.org/blog/addressing-chronic-absenteeism-

anne-obrien

October 7, 2014

12

Works Cited

Alberta Education(1). (2014). Assessment for Learning. Alberta Government. Retrieved October 3, 2014 from http://education.alberta.ca/teachers/aisi/themes/assessment.aspx

Alberta Education(2). (2014). Student Engagement: Student Engagement and Attendance. Education and Government Initiatives. Web. Retrieved October 3, 2014 from http://education.alberta.ca/media/6459431/student_engagement_literature_review_2011.pdf

Alberta Education(3). (2014). Accountability Pillar Results for 3-Year Education Plans. Alberta Government, pp.59-61. Web. Retrieved October 3, 2014 from http://education.alberta.ca/media/8610462/may2014_apori_201405_province_report.pdf

Bickelhaupt, D. (2011). Here! But What About Those Who are Not? Reinforcement Among Chronically Absent Elementary Students, Its Effectiveness, and the Why Behind the Absences. Georgia School Counselors Association Journal. p. 54-61.

Helpguide.org. Coping with Grief and Loss: Understanding the Grieving Process. Web. Retrieved October

5, 2014 from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/grief-loss/coping-with-grief-and-loss.htm

Media Smarts. (2014). Digital Issues: Who Cyberbullies and Why. Web. Retrieved October 4, 2014 from http://mediasmarts.ca/cyberbullying/who-cyberbullies-and-why

Morgan, S. (1985). Children in Crisis. San Diego, California: College-hill Press. OBrien, A. (April 13, 2014). Adressing Chronic Absenteeism. School Leadership Blog. Retrieved October 3,

2014 from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/addressing-chronic-absenteeism-anne-obrien

Province of Alberta. (2014). Alberta School Act: Attendance at Schools. Alberta’s Queen Printer. Web. Retrieved October 3, 2014 from http://www.qp.alberta.ca/documents/acts/s03.pdf

Stanford Education. (2012). Collaborative Approaches to Reducing Absenteeism Among K-12 Students: Steps to Addressing Truancy and Chronic Absenteeism. Web. Retrieved October 5, 2014 from http://jgc.stanford.edu/resources/policy_fact_sheets/Absence_Interventions_PFS.pdf

assessment for the absent...

Documents