This study focusses on the examination of the recorded absences of compulsory age students. The main purpose was to identify emergent patterns of school non-attendance, critical periods of absences and key factors within and beyond the school that might contribute to school non-attendance and the impact such non-attendance has on student achievement and perceptions of schooling.A review of literature on school non-attendance was undertaken and presented to highlight the number of factors that are often linked with non-attendance. As a result of the literature review a comprehensive list of factors for further investigation was distilled and a conceptual framework was developed. It was this conceptual framework, together with the research questions, that guided the research design and the subsequent collection and analysis of data.The research was undertaken in Perth, Western Australia utilising one State Government secondary school and five of its contributory (or feeder) primary schools. The research constituted a retrospective study spanning seven years (1989 to 1995 inclusive) incorporating the complete attendance records of 61 students.The first phase of the study involved the establishment of an empirical database developed from records compiled by the five feeder schools and the secondary school under study. Data derived from the schools were analysed to establish the patterns of non-attendance and trends.The second phase involved a series of case studies in which student perceptions on school non-attendance were investigated alongside the student's characteristics and attendance patterns in order to provide greater insight into key factors contributing to school non-attendance.The case studies not only provided greater insight into key factors contributing to school non-attendance but also the impact non-attendance had on the educational outcomes of the deemed ++ / 'at risk' students.Finally, the thesis provides a number of conclusions and action statements to all key stakeholders including the schools at the centre of this research, policy makers within the State Government Education Department, parents, and personnel from other schools within Western Australia, for future action and continuing research. There is a collective responsibility to ensure all students maximise their learning outcomes through the educational programs provided in the schooling system.The study also has the potential to provide a framework at both the national and international level as the outcomes of this research have potential significance for a number of interested organisations involved in providing educational and other programs for 'at risk' students.

Thesis (M.S.)--Indiana University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 42-45).

Thesis (M.S.)--Indiana University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 42-45). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the extant relationship between formal statements of attendance policy, as implemented by each school administrator. and the associated student absentee rates. Four high schools in Newport News, Virginia, each which used somewhat differing attendance policies were examined. The school which used an alternative attendance policy was compared to each of the other three schools. each of which used a variation of a traditional attendance policy. In addition, failure and dropout rates were examined to determine the relationship among the school attendance policies and these variables. A comprehensive review of the related literature revealed numerous variables which affected student attendance rates. In order to determine the comparability of the schools, it was necessary to descriptively examine and statistically test by school, selected relationships among the following variables: family income level, parental educational attainment level, the age, sex, teaching experience and educational qualifications of each school's faculty, and the sex composition and the SRA scores in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, science and use of sources of each school's student body. In general terms, it can be concluded that the school which used the alternative attendance policy differed in significant respects from the other three schools among many, though not all, of the dimensions measured. Due to these differences, it was not possible to single out the attendance policy specifically as the most important variable associated with actual attendance rates. It may be concluded, however, that given the demographic and educational characteristics generally associated with favorable (low) absentee rates as those present in the other schools and given the data presented in this study, the alternative attendance policy may well have been causing favorable effects, that is as a descriptive observation, the school which used the alternative attendance policy had, for reasons inexplicable save for the policy, lower than expected student absentee rates. It also may be concluded from the findings that perhaps, the use of the alternative attendance policy decreased the failure rates because more students attended more classes each day. Finally, the used alternative attendance policy did not influence the dropout rate among schools. / Ed. D.

This thesis examines the issue of elementary school attendance in later nineteenth century Bradford. It seeks to do this by means of a little used source: the school log book. The focus of the study is on the experiences of head teachers who faced a constant struggle to achieve and maintain an acceptable level of attendance in Bradford where child employment in the flourishing textile industry had long been an inherent feature of working class life. It investigates broader issues affecting attendance in the context of prevailing social, cultural, religious, and economic factors. While the significant and influential pressures on attendance in Bradford were to be found elsewhere (for example, parental apathy; hostility to compulsory attendance; child labour; health and welfare), this investigation discovers that the town’s problems were compounded and made difficult by its phenomenal growth and rapid emergence by the middle of the nineteenth century as the undisputed capital of the world’s worsted manufacturing trade. It concludes that in the study of Victorian elementary school attendance Bradford deserves greater recognition in consideration of the tension between the demands of the most prolific half-time system of employment in the country, and prevailing attitudes to the introduction of universal elementary education in England and Wales.

In this qualitative interview study, we conducted ten semi-structured interviews with parents of children experiencing problematic school absenteeism to understand their perception of their situation, how they believe the absenteeism has affected them, and the type of responses they have received given their circumstances. The study aims to contribute to knowledge about the parents' situations and perspectives, as there is limited prior research on the topic. The few existing studies indicate that parents of children with problematic school absenteeism are negatively affected in various parts of their lives.  The empirical evidence in our study has been processed and interpreted through thematic analysis and the results have been analyzed based on crisis theory and systems theory. The results of our study indicate that the parents are in a very strained situation, bearing significant responsibility with little support. They are experiencing guilt towards their child and are blamed by others in their surroundings. Both their professional lives and social relationships are negatively affected as they lack time and energy for anything beyond the essentials in their situation. Most experience deteriorated mental and physical health, and they are forced to suppress their own feelings and needs to manage the coordinating responsibility they must take for the child's and the family's interactions with authorities and interventions. All parents stated that they need help from professionals to take over the overall responsibility for the child's interventions and that these interventions need to be better adapted to the complex issues at hand. / I denna kvalitativa intervjustudie har vi genomfört tio semistrukturerade intervjuer med vårdnadshavare till barn med problematisk skolfrånvaro i syfte att ta reda på hur de upplever sin situation, hur de tycker att den problematiska skolfrånvaron har påverkat dem, samt vilket bemötande de har fått utifrån den situation de befinner sig i. Studien ämnar fylla på kunskap om vårdnadshavarnas situation och perspektiv, då det inte finns så mycket tidigare forskning i ämnet. De få studier som gjorts har dock givit resultat som pekar på att vårdnadshavare till barn med problematisk skolfrånvaro blir negativt påverkade i olika delar av livet. Empirin i denna studie har bearbetats genom tematisk analys och analyserats med utgångspunkt i kristeori och systemteori. Resultatet i vår studie pekar på att vårdnadshavarna har en mycket ansträngd situation och står ensamma med stort ansvar och liten hjälp. De lider av skuldkänslor gentemot barnet och skuldbeläggs även av andra i omgivningen. Både yrkeslivet och de sociala relationerna blir negativt påverkade av att vårdnadshavarna inte har tid eller ork kvar till annat än det nödvändiga i situationen. Den psykiska och fysiska hälsan blir för de flesta försämrad och de tvingas stänga av sina egna känslor och behov för att mäkta med det samordnande ansvar som de tvingas ta för barnets och familjens myndighetskontakter och insatser. Samtliga vårdnadshavare menar att de behöver hjälp från professionella att ta över helhetsansvaret för barnets insatser och att insatserna behöver vara bättre anpassade till den komplexa problematik som föreligger.

Notre thèse de doctorat décrit et analyse le retrait social au Japon (hikikomori et futōkō). Hikikomori désigne à la fois un phénomène de retrait social concernant plusieurs centaines de milliers de personnes, et la personne elle-même, qui reste enfermée dans sa chambre, généralement au domicile familial, pour une durée de plusieurs mois voire plusieurs années, sans relations sociales. Le retrait social des élèves est plutôt désigné par le terme futōkō (absentéisme scolaire).D’abord, nous envisageons le hikikomori comme problème de société, nous synthétisons les travaux en anthropologie, psychiatrie et psychologie, et nous décrivons notre enquête dans les associations à but non lucratif (NPO), ainsi que les témoignages recueillis. Nous inscrivons nos perspectives à la charnière de la psychopathologie clinique et de l’anthropologie. Ensuite, et dans la mesure où la plupart des hikikomori ont vécu une période d’absentéisme scolaire, nous menons une enquête sur l’assistance au futōkō, via des entretiens menés avec des cliniciens du département de Kyōto. Enfin, nous confrontons le retrait social aux discours sur l’identité japonaise, à travers une étude originale des textes de Doi Takeo, Kawai Hayao, et Jacques Lacan.Nos résultats soulignent que les hikikomori reçoivent surtout l’assistance des NPO au sein desquelles les psychiatres et les psychologues sont absents. En revanche, les psychologues cliniciens sont présents auprès des collégiens en difficulté, mais l’assistance des lycéens en difficulté demeure faible. L’ensemble de notre enquête démontre qu’au début du XXIème siècle, nous assistons à la naissance de la clinique infanto-juvénile nippone. / The purpose of this PhD Dissertation is to provide a review of social withdrawal in Japan (hikikomori and futōkō). Hikikomori is the phenomenon of social withdrawal that effects hundreds of thousands individuals, in which the individual shuts his/herself in their room generally at their family’s home for several months and even years without social relationships. During the period of compulsory education, students’ social withdrawal is rather coined by the term futōkō (school non-attendance).First, I consider hikikomori as a social issue and sum up previous research in Anthropology, Psychiatry and Psychology. Then, I describe my investigation in NPOs, hikikomori individuals’ accounts I collected, and draw my perspective on the intersection of Clinical Psychology and Mental Health Anthropology. Second, I investigate the support available to futōkō since many hikikomori experienced school non-attendance, using research interviews with clinical practitioners in Kyōto prefecture. Finally, I examine social withdrawal phenomenon in relation to Japanese identity discourse, towards a new approach of Doi Takeo’s, Kawai Hayao’s, and Jacques Lacan’s writings.My results reveal that hikikomori mostly receive support from caregivers working in NPOs, among which psychiatrists and psychologists are absent. However, while clinical psychologists actually support junior high school students who are classified as futōkō, the support available to high school dropouts remains low. As a whole, this dissertation shows that at the beginning of the 21st century, we are just witnessing the birth of psychological clinics in Japan, especially in the field of child and adolescent mental care.

This thesis examines futōkō (school non-attendance) in Japan from the perspective that futōkō is a social movement. It analyses citizens’ activism in support of futōkō students over the twenty year period from 1984. Drawing upon social movement approaches the thesis examines how futōkō citizens successfully grasped political opportunities, established a network of organizations, launched a new interpretive frame for futōkō, and challenged the dominant representation of futōkō in society –that 'futōkō is an illness’. To explore in detail the ideological aspect of the futōkō movement’s framing, a content analysis of 140 editorials in the movement newspaper – the Futōkō Shimbun (School Non-attendance Newspaper) was conducted. Commencing with a critique of schooling practices that create futōkō, over the survey period Futōkō Shimbun expands its analysis to develop a critical appraisal of Japanese society that has broad implications for many different aspects of the everyday life of its citizens. Adopting the typology of movement outcomes, this thesis assesses the outcomes of futōkō movement framing through two sets of factors: first, changes in government policies and attitudes and second, cultural and ideational changes as experienced by the movement organizations, futōkō activists and children, and as represented in shifts in media representation of futōkō. Government policies in the handling of futōkō students have become more flexible although not always positive, while government interactions with the movement are suggestive of recognition that futōkō citizens are valid spokespersons with a legitimate set of interests in relation to futōkō children. Futōkō movement activists have been successful in framing their movement in terms of: expanding and increasingly sophisticated networks of futōkō movement organizations; the professional development of activists; and a more positive media discourse. The thesis concludes that the futōkō movement has influenced government policies, the media and wider social commentary about the phenomenon of and responses to futōkō. The thesis contends that the social movement perspective enables us to understand the issue of futōkō beyond the educational context, in its wider social, cultural and political contexts. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1330998 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 2008

The significance of this project was to incorporate specific tasks into a classroom setting that would be used to enhance retained student's self-regulatory efficacy. The interns hypothesized that group interventions could help children who were retained to increase their belief in themselves and their abilities.

This paper is another attempt to view one of the most topical issues of modern education – early elimination from the educational system and to try to discover effective and long-term ways to solve this problem. The paper comprises two - theoretical and empirical - parts which are separated into 8 sections and 7 subsections. In the beginning of the research the place of the comprehensive school is being discussed as well as its functions and importance in the educational system, besides, the problem of non-attending pupils is being revealed which has recently been getting more response in the society. The latter problem is highlighted through the presented and analysed scale of non-attending pupils. One of the largest sections of the theoretical part is devoted to the cause analysis of school non-attendance and early elimination from the educational system. The causes are analysed by grouping them into four essential groups – personal psychological pedagogical; family; school; societal, then, discussing each cause group in detail. The remaining sections of the theoretical part present possible school non-attendance consequences, preventive possibilities and problem solving models. The other – empirical part of the paper was performed in one Vilnius city grammer school, where the schoolteachers and pupils were questioned. The empirical research seeked to reveal the attitude of the respondents towards the questions discussed in the theoretical part –... [to full text]