24 TRANSFORMING ATTENDANCE IN CORNWALL Driver: Physical / mental health Activity - Class teachers, tutors building relationships: ‘I can’t wait to see you tomorrow’ - Carefully modifying language to avoid judgement - Offering soft starts / flexibility - Ensuring that pupils have strong friendships and are supported in unstructured times - Consistent, trusted adults - Ensuring pupils are given opportunities in enrichment, student leadership - Collective, rather than individual rewards - Rewards for improvement, meeting thresholds, rather than the highest - Preventative support Driver: Systemic / attitudinal Activity • Class teachers, tutors building relationships ‘I can’t wait to see you tomorrow’ • Carefully modifying language to avoid judgement: ‘we want your child in school – let’s work together • Highlighting social norms: pupil attendance compared to classmates • Highlighting wider challenges arising from poor attendance – beyond academic learning: friendships, participation in sport etc • Consistent, trusted adults • Attendance induction for families – including problems arising from short termism: messaging about valuing educational expectance, clarity over consequences, high expectations • Use of text messaging rather than letters • Reducing jargon • Rewards for improvement, meeting thresholds, rather than the highest • Requirement to speak to a person, rather than leave a message to report absence • Pre-emptive support Extrinsic rewards Extrinsic rewards can have their place as part of a wider attendance strategy. Collective, rather than individual rewards may be more effective. Whilst 100% attendance rewards are good for celebrating good attendance, they are unlikely to drive behaviour change for inconsistent attenders, as they do not address underlying drivers. Further, once pupils miss a day, they no longer have an incentive to attend. With 100% attendance awards, we also need to be wary of the ‘reward and relax effect’, where pupils / families feel they have earned a ‘day off’ school when attendance has been good over time. Rewards for consistent attendance, as well as improvements can be helpful – both in terms of a culture, and for good attenders to be ‘noticed.’
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