Technology + Relationships · 2018. 10. 30. · Positive Engagement: Uses caring relationships,...
Transcript of Technology + Relationships · 2018. 10. 30. · Positive Engagement: Uses caring relationships,...
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Technology + Relationships =
July 25, 2018 Grade Level Reading Week, Philadelphia www.attendanceworks.org
Reducing Chronic Absence
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What is Chronic Absence?
Unexcused
absences
Chronic
Absence
Chronic absence is different from truancy (unexcused absences only) or
average daily attendance (how many students show up to school each day).
Chronic absence is missing so much school
for any reason that a student is academically
at risk. Attendance Works recommends
defining it as missing 10% or more of
school for any reason.
Excused
absencesSuspensions
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Requires Quickly
Advancing A New
Paradigm on Attendance
Truancy• Counts unexcused
absences
• Emphasizes individual
compliance with
school rules
• Uses legal, typically
more punitive
solutions
Chronic Absence• Counts all
absences
• Emphasizes
academic impact
of missed days
• Uses preventive
problem solving,
relationship
building strategies
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Multiple Years of Chronic
Absenteeism = High Risk for
low 3rd Grade Reading Skills
Note: ***Indicates that scores are significantly different from scores of students who are never chronically absent, at p<.001 level. + In the DIBELS 6th Edition Assessment and Scoring Guide (Good & Kaminksi, 2002), these are labeled as “Some Risk,” indicating the need for additional intervention and “At Risk,” indicating the need for substantial interventions.
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Chronic Early Absence
Connected to Poor Long-
Term Academic Outcomes
A Rhode Island Data Hub analysis found that compared to kindergartners who attend regularly, those chronically absent:
• Scored 20% lower in reading and math in later grades and gap grows.
• 2X as likely to be retained in grade.
• 2X likely to be suspended by the end of 7th grade.
• Likely to continue being chronically absent.
Chronic absence in
kindergarten
Lower levels of
literacy in first grade
Lower achievement as
far out as fifth grade
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Reducing Chronic
Absence Can Help Close
Equity Gaps
• Vulnerable children, especially those living in poverty, are 2-3
times more likely to experience chronic absence at earlier
ages.
• Vulnerable children are much less likely to have the resources
to make up for lost learning time in the classroom.
• Vulnerable children are more likely to experience multiple
years of chronic absence
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36 states + DC adopted chronic absence as a metric in their ESSA plans.
The vast majority adopted the definition recommended by Attendance Works.
Who's In: Chronic Absenteeism Under the Every Student Succeeds ActFutureEd, Georgetown University, September 2017.
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ESSA Implementation
Offers Unprecedented
Opportunities and
Challenges
Spring 2018
• States establish business rules to ensure attendance data is accurate, consistent and reliable
Summer 2018 – Fall 2018
• States establish rating systems and targets for school accountability.
• States develop their school report cards
• LEAs create ESSA plans
Winter 2019
• The bottom 5% of low performing schools will be identified and will be required to conduct a needs assessment
Spring 2019
• Schools build chronic absence into school improvement plans
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Factors That Contribute to
Chronic Absence
Barriers
• Illness, both chronic and acute
• Lack of health, mental health, vision, or dental care
• Trauma
• Unsafe path to/from school
• Poor Transportation
• Frequent moves or school changes
• Involvement with child welfare or juvenile justice systems
Negative School Experiences
• Struggling academically or socially
• Bullying
• Suspensions and expulsions
• Negative attitudes of parents due to their own school experience
• Undiagnosed disability
• Lack of appropriate accommodations for disability
Lack of Engagement
• Lack of culturally relevant, engaging instruction
• No meaningful relationships with adults in school
• Stronger ties with peers out of school than in school
• Unwelcoming school climate
• Failure to earn credits / no future plans
• Many teacher absences or long-term substitutes
Misconceptions
• Absences are only a problem if they are unexcused
• Missing 2 days per month doesn’t affect learning
• Sporadic absences aren’t a problem
• Attendance only matters in the older grades
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Invest in Prevention and
Early Intervention
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Attendance Improves
When Families Have…
Capacity
Resources, skills, and knowledge
to get services in schools
Hope
for a better future
Faith
that school will help you or your
child succeed
Relationships are key to all of
these elements. Technology can
help accelerate and enhance the
ability of relationships to put
them in place.
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Students
& Families
Schools
Actionable
Data
Positive
Engagement
Capacity
Building
Shared
Accountability
Actionable Data:Is accurate, accessible, and regularly
reported in an understandable
format.
Capacity Building Expands ability to work together to
interpret data, engage in problem
solving, and adopt best practices to
improve attendance.
Positive Engagement: Uses caring relationships, effective
messaging and a positive school
climate to motivate daily
attendance.
Shared Accountability:
Ensures chronic absence is
monitored & reinforced by policy.
Strategic partnerships between district and community partners
address specific attendance barriers and
mobilize support for all ingredients.
Take a Data Driven Systemic Approach
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Panelists
How can technology and relationships be used to:
Strengthen Family Engagement?
Ken Smythe-Leistico, Faculty and Field Coordinator,
Social Work Program, Seton Hill University
Build Capacity?
Angela Duran, Campaign Director,
Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
Allocate resources, analyze causes and identify needed partnerships?
Cecelia Leong, Associate Director for Programs,
Attendance Works
Leveraging Technology to Improve Attendance
Ken Smythe-Leistico, Ed.D.
Assistant Professor,
Seton Hill University
President & CEO,
RISE Educational Consulting
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Parent Engagement – Attendance – Child Outcomes
Interventions to increase parent’s awareness of
absenteeism can be effective in increasing
student attendance (Helm & Burkett, 1989; Licht, Gard, & Guardino, 1991; Roderick et al., 1997)
Providing parents with written feedback about
how many days their child had missed school
was linked to a 10 percent drop in chronic
absence (Rogers & Feller, 2016)
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Linking Parental Attitudes to Student Attendance
Mail-based communications to parents of at-
risk attenders to:
Emphasize the importance of regular school
attendance and
Provide accurate reporting of how many days their
child missed in relation to their peers
Mailings vs. Mailings + Social Support
Robinson et al. (2017)
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Technology Interventions
More than 80% of American adults have
a cell phone with unlimited text service
which has been used as an effective and
efficient strategy to engage parents.(Mayer, Kalil, Oreopoulos, & Gallegos, 2015; York & Loeb, 2014)
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Connect-Text
The goal of Attendance Texting was to improve
kindergarten attendance by using a two-way text
messaging platform to increase parent
understanding of attendance and identify and
reduce family barriers
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Not just a text…a targeted message
Ready4K! – an eight-month-long text messaging
program for parents of preschoolers designed to help
them support their children’s literacy development
– York & Loeb, 2014
1) FACT – text designed to generate buy-in from parents
2) TIP – text that aimed to enhance parents’ self-efficacy
2) GROWTH – text which provided parents with encouragement and reinforcement
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Connect-Text: Targeted Messaging
[Utility]. Messaging system provides families with
important school information and related family/child
opportunities such as out of school time offerings
[Individualization]. Provides families with feedback on
their child’s attendance and motivation on why
regular school attendance is critical to their child’s
educational success
[Support]. Focuses on positive messages regarding the
importance of the current school year and tips for
developmental opportunities to strengthen learning
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Connect-Text: Sample by Type
Utility message: Reminder Parent-Teacher
Conference Week: No Classes Thursday (10/15-
10/16). Message me to reserve a slot with your
teacher.
Individualization message: Hi [PARENT NAME], we
really missed [CHILD NAME] today. Hope he feels
better tomorrow. The field trip to the zoo will be
great.
Support message: Reading Rocks! Does your child
have a favorite book? Text back and we’ll share
your fav with your teacher.
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Procedures
One AmeriCorps member to work with PreK-1st
in one school (6 classrooms)
Implement Connect-Text
Approximately 30 minutes of time per week
Classroom assistance
Lunch duties
Assist with daily school dismissal
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Procedures-Using Data to Inform
Review in 20-day cycles comparing
“year-to-date” and ”last 20 days”
Good attendance (absent fewer than 5% of days)
At-risk attendance (absent between 6%-9% of days)
Chronically absent (absent more than 10% of days)
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Connecting Families to Needed Resources
Before- and after-school care/enrichment
Transportation
Shelter/housing
Basic resources (clothing)
Household items (washing machine)
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Comparing Basic Trends
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Figure 3. Trends in kindergarten chronic
absenteeism for Bridges K-5 and synthetic
control school
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Ke
ep
ing
in
To
uc
h
Ken Smythe-Leistico, Ed.D.
(412) 860-8425
@RISEEdConsulting
@rise2educate
@S
eto
nh
ill
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Going to Scale in Arkansas
263 districts
479,258
students
42,664 teachers
and
administrators
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Tiered Approach to Building Capacity
Tier 1Low chronic
absence
Tier 2Modest and Significant
Tier 3 High andExtreme
Low (< than 5%)
Modest (5%-9%)Significant (10-19%)
High (20%-29%)Extreme (30%+)
• Uniform data reports• Teaching Attendance E-modules• Online access to tools/materials
• Teaching Attendance Workshops• Organizing an Attendance
Improvement Strategy Workshop • Subset data analysis and goal
setting
• Regular coaching• Onsite work with attendance
teams
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Partners for Going to Scale
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Uniform Data Analysis
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Tools and Materials
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Teaching Attendance
Curriculum Offers a
Standard Approach to…
Give school leaders and attendance teams a quick way to
equip teachers, school staff and community partners with
evidence-based strategies to improve attendance
Rally school staff to act as the first line of prevention and
early intervention and helps them think about how they can
integrate this work with existing practice and initiatives.
Helps them work smarter not harder!
Inspire better attendance practices that are positive,
proactive and problem-solving
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On-Line Learning
(AW’s Teaching
Attendance Curriculum)
http://www.attendanceworks.org/resources/teaching-attendance-curriculum/
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Why We Teach Attendance
Module 1: Why We Teach Attendance
What Is Chronic Absence?
Why Does it Matter?
How Can We Make a Difference?
Who Can Do Something?
What Are Our Next Steps?
Workshop 1: Why We Teach Attendance
Making the Case for Attendance
Current School-wide Practices
School-wide Stop-Start-Continue
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Tier 1
Prevention Strategies
Module 2: Creating a Culture of Attendance
Cultivating a Welcoming Environment
Building Positive Relationships
Using Effective Messaging
Recognizing Improvements
Combating Attendance Dips
Workshop 2: Creating a Culture of Attendance
Envisioning a School-Wide Culture of Attendance
Tier 1 Prevention Strategies School-wide
Effective Messaging
Relationship Building
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Add Tier 2
Early Intervention
Module 3: Using Data for Intervention and Support
Monitor Attendance Data
Identify Chronically Absent Students
Analyze Root Causes in Partnership with Students & Families
Match Interventions to Root Causes
Connect Students and Families with Resources As Needed
Workshop 3: Using Data for Intervention and Support
Using Data for School-wide Intervention and Support
Tier 2 and Tier 3 Supports School-Wide
Parent Teacher Conversations
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How can technology and
relationships be used to allocate
resources, analyze causes and
identify needed partnerships?
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Use Data + Technology to
Show Where Chronic
Absence is Concentrated
Developed by
UC Davis with
data released by
CA Dept of Ed
High Poverty Elementary
Districts in New York City have
the Highest Concentrations of
Chronic Absence
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In Pittsburgh, Census Block
Data Identified that a Handful of
Neighborhoods had the Highest
Absentee Rates
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Use technology to visualize levels of chronic absence and key
community characteristics.
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Chronically Absent
Students by Human
Service Program Area
Source: Allegheny County Department of Human Services for SY 2011/12
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Implications for
Partnerships
In summary, data can be used to:a) identify hot spots requiring more support
b) unpack barriers and
c) identify potential partners for the work.
But to make a difference, data needs to be combined
with relationship building to build awareness,
advocate for needed changes, and forge partnerships.
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Discussion
1. Are there other examples of how relationships
combined with technology have made a greater
difference?
2. So often, we think of technology as a magic bullet.
What is an example of how it’s not been the magic
bullet?
3. What is one take away that you would offer about
how to maximize the use of technology to reduce
chronic absence? (Panelists)
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Reflections
Turn to a partner and discuss:
What is one thing you could do to
combine technology and relationship
building to reduce chronic absence?