Abstract: Studies consistently show associations
between school absences and academic achievement. However, questions
remain about whether this link depends on the reason for children’s
absence. Using a sample of the Scottish Longitudinal Study (n = 4,419),
we investigated whether the association between school absenteeism and
achievement in high-stakes exams at the end of compulsory and
postcompulsory schooling varies with the reason for absence. In line
with previous research, our findings show that overall absences are
negatively associated with academic achievement at both school stages.
Likewise, all forms of absences (truancy, sickness absence, exceptional
domestic circumstances, and family holidays) are negatively associated
with achievement at the end of compulsory and postcompulsory schooling.
First difference regressions confirm these negative associations, except
for family holidays. These findings suggest that, in addition to lost
instruction, other mechanisms such as behavioral, health-related, and
psychosocial pathways may account for the association between
absenteeism and achievement. The findings have implications for
designing tailored absenteeism interventions to improve pupils’ academic
achievement.
Abstract: School absenteeism is detrimental to life
course outcomes and is known to be socioeconomically stratified.
However, the link between socioeconomic status (SES) and school absence
is complex given the multidimensional nature of both family SES (e.g.,
income, education, occupational status) and absenteeism (e.g., truancy,
sickness, suspension). Despite the vast literature on socioeconomic
inequalities in school attendance, no systematic review on SES and
school absenteeism exists. This study systematically reviewed and
provides a narrative synthesis of journal articles (n = 55) published
between 1998 to 2019 on the association between SES dimensions and forms
of absenteeism. The majority of studies from high-income contexts found
an association between SES and absenteeism in the expected direction,
albeit on average with small effect sizes. Studies largely confirmed
these findings among populations at risk of school absence and those
from low- and middle-income countries. There was greater evidence for an
association between absenteeism and SES measured at the family than the
school level. Studies using SES measures of financial resources (e.g.,
free or reduced-price lunch) provided more evidence for this association
than studies measuring sociocultural resources (e.g., parental
education). There is limited evidence that socioeconomic achievement
gaps in absenteeism vary by the reasons for absence. Research on the
mediating pathways between SES and absenteeism is sparse. A key
implication is that attempts to address inequalities in educational
outcomes must include tackling SES gaps in school attendance.
Abstract: In this article, we investigated whether
and to what extent various dimensions of socioeconomic background
(parental education, parental class, free school meal registration,
housing status, and neighbourhood deprivation) predict overall school
absences and different reasons for absenteeism (truancy, sickness,
family holidays and temporary exclusion) among 4,620 secondary school
pupils in Scotland. Students were drawn from a sample of the Scottish
Longitudinal Study comprising linked Census data and administrative
school records. Using fractional logit models and logistic regressions,
we found that all dimensions of socioeconomic background were uniquely
linked to overall absences. Multiple measures of socioeconomic
background were also associated with truancy, sickness-related absence,
and temporary exclusion. Social housing and parental education had the
most pervasive associations with school absences across all forms of
absenteeism. Our findings highlight the need to consider the
multidimensionality of socioeconomic background in policy and research
decisions on school absenteeism. A more explicit focus on narrowing the
socioeconomic gap in absenteeism is required to close the inequality gap
in educational and post-school outcomes.
Markus Klein and Edward Sosu. School attendance and academic achievement: Understanding variation across family socioeconomic status Conditional accept
Jascha Dräger, Markus Klein, Edward Sosu. The long-term consequences of school absences for educational and labour market outcomes. Under review. A preprint can be accessed here.
Markus Klein and Edward Sosu. School absences, educational achievement, and adolescents’ post-school destinations – Evidence from Scotland. In preparation for submission.
Jascha Dräger, Markus Klein, Edward Sosu.School absences trajectories and their consequences for educational achievement.In progress.
Jascha Dräger, Markus Klein, Edward Sosu. Timing of absences and academic achievement - A comparison of England and Wales. In progress.
Jascha Dräger, Markus Klein, Edward Sosu. Socioeconomic status, school absences, and academic achievement - A causal mediation analysis In progress.
Markus Klein, Edward Sosu, Kenvil Souza, and Samara Marta. A systematic review of interventions to reduce school absences. In progress.