INCREASING SCHOOL ATTENDANCE OF NINTH GRADERS USING PARENT
Statement and Primary Evidence of the Problem
Evidence suggests that the ninth graders at Thomas Jefferson High School have a student attendance problem; this evidence is comprehensively reported (as data) in the "Problem Definition and Evidence Section" of this chapter; however, it can be summarized here as follows:
1) The overall attendance rate of ninth grade students during the 1995-1996 school term was significantly lower than the rate observed for the school as a whole during that same term; in other words, the ninth grade had more student absences than the school as a whole.
2) The ninth grade class for the 1995-1996 school term had the highest school-wide rate of grade failure, and grade failure is positively correlated with elevated levels of student absence (Rohrman, 1993);
3) The ninth grade class for the 1995-1996 school term had higher rates of school suspension than any of the other classes and school suspension is positively correlated with school absence in much of the existing research on school absence, and truancy (Rohrman, 1993);
4) Of the 500 students comprising the ninth grade for the 1995-1996 school term, almost one-half of the students failed at least one class and class failure is positively correlated with school absence in much of the existing research on school absence and truancy (Rohrman, 1993);
5. Analyses of school data collected for the ninth grade class during the 1995-1996 school term indicated that number of class failures for the ninth grade class were systematically and positively associated with number of school absences;
6. Analyses of school data collected for the ninth grade class during the 1995-19996 school term indicated that average number of school suspensions observed for the ninth grade class were systematically and positively associated with number of school absences.
This proposal pr...