An Exploration Of Chronic Absenteeism From The Perspective Of Students In An Urban Public High School

Abstract

School attendance is a critical issue facing schools today. Many studies have been conducted nationally and internationally concerning poor school attendance. Findings from these studies have revealed that poor school attendance not only hinders academic achievement but also contributes to a poorly educated society. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine chronic absenteeism from the student perspective. Nine participants who were 18 years old, from urban communities in Washington, D.C., and attend an urban public high school were recruited for this study, using snowballing techniques. The targeted pool of students consisted of those who missed school at least two days per week. Participants' experiences were examined through the lenses of Schlechty's (2001) levels of student engagement and HSSSE's (2009) dimensions of engagement. Instruments for this study included a set of open-ended interview questions and a demographic questionnaire. Findings emerging from this study are (1) all nine of the participants fell into one or more of Schlechty's levels of engagement and HSSSEs dimensions of engagement. (2) teacher attitudes, peer relationships, and the school environment affect students' experiences in school, (3) peer relationships can influence students' decision to miss or attend school, (4) connectedness to the school environment is significant in students' decision to attend or miss school, and (5) students' who lack self-efficacy will not engage in the classroom