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Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University / The problem to be investigated in this research is that of truancy, its possible causes and the treatment methods which have been employed in casework with the parents. The hypothesis is that children who truant are, in part, acting out their parents' conflicts around the learning process. The research question posed is: How did the caseworker treat the parent or parentc presumably unaware of a relationship between parents' attitudes toward learning and their children's attitudes and behavior toward school?

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This thesis explores the activities of education welfare officers (EWOs): local education authority employees whose work includes the investigation of pupil absence from school. EWOs have rarely been the subject of research or analysis, as writers have tended to see them as self-evident functionaries. Given the paucity of the existing literature, it was necessary to construct a research programme that would seek to describe and understand the social relationships and processes that the EWOs were engaged in and attempt to develop new frameworks and categories of analysis. To this end, a grounded qualitative research programme was pgrsued. The research data for this study was generated by a series of semistructured, in depth interviews with EWOs in three different local authorities. These interviews focused on a number of selected examples from the EWOs workloads that were discussed in detail and the case files analysed. As well as generating a grounded analysis, this data was then used as the basis for a series of case studies that were interrogated through the framework of a Foucauldian analysis of disciplinary power. The research programme produced a number of specific insights into the work of the EWO that had been absent or understated by previous analysts and writers. It also showed how the uses of care and control, as the defining analytical and antithetical categories in previous analyses, was unhelpful and at times misleading. Through a careful and detailed analysis of the EWOs work, the thesis shows how their activity is better understood in terms of processes of normalisation where strategies are deployed that utilise relations of disciplinary power as described by Foucault in Discipline and Punish. The way in which this work contributes to the development of Foucault's analysis of disciplinary society and the complications of supervisory mechanisms is discussed. However, the main achievement of this thesis is to show how the research programme led to the production of a framework for the analysis of the activities of EWOs that is able to engage effectively with questions that had apparently left previous writers baffled.

This research explores the link between pupils’ perceived control and their level of attendance in school. Whilst there is research into the link between perceived control and disaffection in pupils it has not been possible to identify any research which links school non-attendance to perceived control. Research into pupils’ reasons for non-attendance identified a range of different factors, many of which the author felt could be attributed to perceived control. Forty-one participants took part in the study. Participants were male and female year nine pupils at two secondary schools in the north west of England. Participants were grouped according to their levels of attendance as high (98%+) attenders, mid-range attenders (90-94%) and low (below 80%) levels of attendance. Participants’ levels of perceived control were measured using the Multi-dimensional Measure of Children’s Perceptions of Control (MMCPC) (Connell 1985). This research also explored the pupils’ experiences of school using appreciative inquiry. Responses on the MMCPC were analysed using a one way ANOVA and descriptive statistics. No significant differences were found between scores for each of the attendance groups and the reasons for this are discussed. Thematic analysis of focus groups with an appreciative inquiry structure identified key themes raised by pupils in regard to positive experiences in school. The findings for both parts of the research are discussed and suggestions for the implications for future research and the practice of teachers and educational psychologists supporting attendance in school are made.

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This study examines the relationship between truancy and levels of self-efficacy in adolescents. Results revealed no significant relationship between truancy and levels of self-efficacy. However, when the self-efficacy sums of the General Self-efficacy Survey and the Academic Self-efficacy Survey were analyzed individually with the dependent variable truancy, there was a statistical significant relationship in levels of academic self-efficacy in adolescents ages 12-1 7 years old who were truant versus those who were not truant.

Truancy, an unexcused absence from school, is a common, but worrisome reality for many of America’s school children. Truancy results in missed academic instruction for the student and missed state funding for schools based on average daily attendance figures. More importantly, chronic truancy can serve as one of the first indicators that a student is need of support, whether it is academic, economic, family, or personal (such as mental or physical health), before the onset of more serious delinquency. However, this early warning flag is often ignored or mismanaged, such as when truancy is criminalized and truant students and their parents receive tickets for the offense, including a large fee and early involvement with the juvenile justice system. Responses like this can further burden students and their families and cannot effectively address truancy, unless the root causes of truancy are addressed. States and school districts across the nation continue to implement programs and policies in an attempt to successfully prevent, reduce and manage truancy. Yet, information and consensus regarding the components of successful programs or policies are lacking. Without this information, jurisdictions are utilizing or attempting to implement a broad range of interventions and responses with very little attention being paid to evaluations to understand what to implement or to determine what works for youth and why. As a result, many truancy responses are just best guesses about what might work for youth, and some are even counterproductive. Failing to effectively address truancy fails youth in the short and long-term as future prospects are reduced. More information is known about what works and what does not with regard to truancy than many jurisdictions may realize. This report seeks to increase understanding of truancy and its causes, highlight the success (or lack thereof) of programs and policies, and demonstrate the wide variety of programs currently being implemented. Equipped with better information, jurisdictions can make better decisions to improve outcomes for students and their communities. / text

Currently, attendance issues are prevalent in academic settings. When students do not attend school, it has an effect on their education and on the community at large. This study looked at the issue of truancy at the Early Years level and focused on studying one possible solution: the Walking School Bus Program. In this program two Community Outreach Workers were hired to walk students with attendance issues to school on a daily basis. A qualitative study was completed to obtain the perspectives of key individuals involved in the Walking School Bus program.