This is an exploratory study that tries to isolate those factors that specifically relate to the
poor attendance levels of Aboriginal primary age children. The study took place in the
North-West Region of the NSW Department of Education. It was conducted by a member
of the Home/School Liaison Team which had been set up to address the problem of
non-attendance in NSW schools.
After considering both overseas and Australian studies relating to non-attendance at
school individual, family and school-based factors were looked at. One school was
targeted as a case study and students from other schools in the North-West Region were
randomly chosen to participate to attempt to broaden the results.
The student and a care provider were interviewed individually and each student's teacher
completed a questionnaire and student profile sheet. Where possible, interviewing was
performed by an Aboriginal person to allow the interviewee to feel more comfortable.
To get further details of school-based factors, all Public Schools in the North-West Region
with Aboriginal enrolments were sent questionnaires to be filled in by a staff member
in a promotions position and classroom teachers within that school.
The major finding of the study was the significance of the previous attendance history of
the student, thus indicating the necessity for early intervention if prevention of poor
attendance patterns is to occur. The targeting of the beginning years of schooling and
the introduction of parent education programs about the importance of these early years
are recommended.
Other areas found in this study to be related significantly to poor attendance were a
competitive class climate, the socio-economic background of parents, parent employment
history, parent educational background, single parent families, overcrowding and peer
group influences.
The study confirmed what many researchers had found: that school absenteeism is a
problem with many contributory factors and each student needs to be looked at
individually. Each case needs to be dealt with on its own merits.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/218979 |
| Date | January 1990 |
| Creators | Gunn, Sheena, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Education |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Sheena Gunn |
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