Chapter+2

This section will discuss about absenteeism issue such as the categories of truants, causes of absenteeism and suggestion to prevent absenteeism. **2.1 The types or the categories of truants **  A useful categorization of non-attendance has been made by Carlen et al.(1992) It states that the attention to the possibility that schools and teachers may officially disapprove of absence but yet unofficially condone it, for instance, where pupils are disruptive in class. It distinguishes between absence from school and absence from lessons (post-registration truancy), and acknowledges the role of parents in condoning absence, currently a major issue in the UK, where the Audit Commission in 1999 estimated that at least 50,000 of the pupils who officially missed school did so with the knowledge and support of their parents.  One national survey of non-attendance (O’Keeffe, 1994) quantified large-scale non-attendance, with particular emphasis on non-attendance at particular lessons while actually attending school. A survey of 250 young people in Sunderland established that in the previous two years, almost a quarter had stayed away from school ‘a lot of the time’ and five per cent claimed to have done so ‘all the time’ (Wilkinson, 1995: 24).  “Three categories of truants have been found to emerge. Each of these three categories can be easily identified. The usage of these categories can be especially helpful as we develop our knowledge of successful treatment strategies. It is highly likely that in the future we will be able to propose different reintegration strategies for each of the three categories. These findings were first published in Truancy and School Absenteeism.” (Reid 1985; pp. 48 and 50). As Reid (1985) points out, “As each truant is unique, a victim of his or her social, psychological, familial and educational circumstances, it is unlikely that we will ever be able to develop re-integration strategies to the point that will satisfy every individual set of circumstances. However, it is extremely probable that the three categories can be sufficiently refined and amended to highlight possible different treatment approaches, by group, for the different caring professionals who interact with truants. These include teachers, education welfare officers, educational psychologists, social workers and educational social workers, childcare agencies, psychiatrists and possibly, the police.” Reid (1985) also states that the first type of truants is the traditional truant who tend to be isolates who come from an unsupportive home background, possibly with a tendency to be shy. The traditional or typical truant follows the earlier description of the truant offered by Tyerman (1968). The second one is the psychological truant. This type of truant could be the school phobic (school refusal) case, but more than this psychological truants miss school mainly for psychological or psychological-related factors such as illness, psychosomatic complaints, laziness, a fear of attending school for any reason or because of other physical or temperamental disadvantages. The next and third one is the institutional truants. Institutional truants miss school purely for educational reasons, usually related to his or her school. Technically, there is a fourth category of truant. The generic truant is one. Therefore, at the age of 11, she or he may be a traditional truant, whereas by the age of 14 she or he could have become either a psychological or institutional truant. Some truants manifest symptoms from all three categories because of the makeup of their social, psychological and educational backgrounds. **2.2 Causes of absenteeism ** Absenteeism has become a common problem in most school and university. Each students have their own reason for their absent and most of this reason differ one from the other. Among the reason for absenteeism are behavior problem, family problem, don’t have a book, the teacher is too strict, difficult situation and psychologically distressed.  The most common reasons are behavior problem such as “sending out a signal that they need help or are, in some other way…”(Reid,1999) or “I do not attend the course because I have difficulty waking up in the mornings…”( Alyildiz and Hayri Kuguoglu,2010). It is clearly shown by both sources that behavior problems are indeed a serious problem as these problems involve one’s internal conflict within themselves. Reid also stated that “The majority of truants emanate from the lowest social class groupings. However, as only a minority of pupils from the lower social class groupings become truants…” by which this itself show that the student have behavior problems.  Secondly, absenteeism is caused by family problem. These problem are usually unavoidable problem as shown by Alyildiz and Hayri Kuguoglu(2010) research by which “I do not attend the courses in order to resolve my family missing” show a high scale of reliability to absenteeism. These problems are also similar with the reason for playing truancy as cited “Overwhelmed by their home or social circumstances” (Reid, 1999).  Thirdly, typical reasons for absenteeism which occurs in the university is do not have a book. This is shown by Alyildiz and Hayri Kuguoglu (2010) research by which “I don’t have a book, I don’t attend the courses which require book” answer for absenteeism show a high scale of reliability to absenteeism but lower than the second reason.  Next, the reason for absenteeism could also be affected by the people they are dealing with the most, in this case the teacher or lecturer. The teacher being too strict could also cause student to be seriously disenchanted with school, a teacher or fellow pupil(Reid,1999) and thus they do not attend the courses which are delivered by strict lecturer(Alyildiz and Hayri Kuguoglu,2010). “Should any teacher show negative attitude, having negative relationship or conflict with students” (Fortin, Lessard and Marcotte,2010) could lead to absenteeism.  Last but not least, psychologically distressed also lead to absenteeism. Every student will encounter a stressful time or work until at a point of no return, perhaps at the end of their tether(Reid,1999) until they couldn’t cope with the stress anymore and decided to run away from it(Reid,1999). Research done by Alyildiz and Hayri Kuguoglu (2010) show that student do not attend class because they are not motivated enough to come to class. Fortin, Lessard and Marcotte (2010) also stated that psychologically distressed such as lower level of cooperation and self control could lead to absenteeism. **2.3 Suggestions to prevent absenteeism ** There are many suggestion to provide improve attendance problems, the main way to improve attendance is to recognize and reward students for academic achievement and attendance as you do for athletics. Reward and recognize good attendance, not just perfect attendance. Post large signs giving the daily attendance for the day. Reward individuals, classes, and the school for increased attendance <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Second, when a student is absent, immediately talk to the parent or guardian to make a personal phone call in the evening or call parents or guardians at work during the day each and every time a student has an unexcused absence. Empower and expect classroom teachers to call parents when they think a student may be truant. Encourage teachers to explain to parents that work was missed when their child was absent. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Third, talk with students about their reasons for being absent and address the contributing factors .It is important to let students know that you’re aware of their absences and that you care that they’re in school. Find out why they missed school, and enlist pupil services staff to help address the wide variety of health, social, personal, and practical reasons that can lead to student absence. Pupil services staff can address these causes with direct help and links to community resources for students and families. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"> According to the Search Institute, parental support is vital in building a student's connectedness to school. The Search Institute reports that research found that “family or parent involvement has a significant impact on students' well-being and success in school. When parents are involved in school, students tend to have higher levels of commitment to their own education. A recent analysis of parent involvement by the Search Institute for the General Mills Foundation found that 6th-12th grade students with involved parents tend to be more motivated in school and more committed to continuing education beyond high school. Similarly, a Child Trends report found that 6th-12th grade students whose parents are highly involved in their education are less likely to experience various problems at school (Running in Place: How American Families Are Faring in a Changing Economy and an Individualistic Society, 1994).
 * <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">2.0 Literature Review **