Attendance

School absence has an impact on student outcomes, so being aware of attendance rates for your class, year group, or whole school, and understanding the reasons behind the absence is important. With this information to hand, what will make a difference? That’s the topic of Dr Kirsten Hancock’s research.

In this episode from our Global Education podcast series, we’re venturing to New Zealand’s South Island, to find out about the Central Otago Youth Employment Program, which is keeping Year 11 program in high school while setting them up for job success.

‘[The start of the school year can] mean a challenging transition for those who struggle with stressors about returning to the classroom.’ Dr Tom Brunzell, Director of Education at Victoria’s Berry Street School, discusses lessons learned on student re-engagement and attendance that could be helpful to other schools.

Participation in physical activity is important for all students. However, traditional team sports at school aren’t for everyone. In this article, we speak to teacher Travis McKenzie, who has offered students the opportunity find their passion in physical activity through his program, Swords Club.

When students experience prolonged absences from school due to serious illness, it can bring up unique emotional, social and educational challenges for the student, their teacher and classmates. In this article, Year 5 teacher at Waverly College, Jennifer Hoare, shares some strategies the school uses to support students experiencing illness.

Student welfare has come sharply into focus over the past few years as the pandemic poses unprecedented challenges for students and teachers alike. There’s a lot to explore around student welfare in the Teacher archives, and this month we’re bringing you some recent examples.

School closures have undoubtedly affected all students. However, some impacts have been more pronounced for students experiencing disadvantage. A recent study looks at the unequal impacts of COVID-19 school closures on the attendance rates of high-SES and low-SES secondary students in a quasi-experimental analysis.

Most schools will have students who experience some level of menstrual pain during their schooling years. So, how well are teachers prepared to deliver menstrual health education, and how can they better support students whose education may be impacted by menstrual pain?

Students miss school for a whole range of different reasons, such as illness, suspension, or family holidays. Today, we’ll be speaking with Kirsten Hancock, Honorary Research Associate from Telethon Kids Institute in Western Australia about how different types of absences affect student outcomes, and what families and schools can do to tailor their support to students who are missing school.

Back in 2018, we brought you the story of a new intervention program for disengaged male students at Cherrybrook Technology High School in New South Wales. Nearly four years later, in today’s article, we hear how the program has evolved over the years and the impact it’s had on student learning and wellbeing.