Excessive absenteeism is a complex and continuing secondary school problem with personal, institutional, economic, and social causes. Issues of excused or unexcused absences and age of majority are complex and largely ignored by research. Research indicates absenteeism is positively correlated with the second semester, boys, older students,…

Discusses the basic design and special features of robotic dialing systems that are programmed to make calls to parents of truant students and presents detailed information on seven currently available self-dialing attendance systems. (MBR)

Presents the institutional factors related to persistent school absenteeism uncovered in a small-scale study conducted in industrial South Wales. (MD)

This report examines how New York counties can systematically and programmatically improve approaches to managing persons in need of supervision (PINS), describing approaches to truancy prevention and diversion that have been instituted nationwide and may be applicable to the PINS operating system. Researchers surveyed truancy-specific programs…

Describes the Mercy Tutoring Services Program, which provides individualized instruction in basic academic and life skills for high school dropouts, suspended or expelled students, those assigned to the program by Juvenile Court, or students with chronic truancy or behavioral problems. Suggests ways of implementing the model elsewhere. (AYC)

The ethnographic study which examined Chicano students with extensive absences and low academic achievement indicated that student-informants reacted negatively toward the formal social sub-system (including the teachers, the curriculum and materials, and the school's organization structure) because they found little in the sociocultural…

This paper summarizes previous research findings concerning truants, then looks at a group of 22 young people who, as a result of their continued truancy, were attending an alternative education center. They were asked about their former schools, courses, and teachers and about their feelings toward the center. (Author/SJL)

Describes an attendance policy that, although initially successful in cutting absences, was widely disliked. Details the modifications that, without impeding effectiveness, made the program more respected. (JM)

The effects of Project HOLD on the behavior, truancy, suspension rate, and academic achievement of problem junior high students are discussed. The program is reported to have a positive effect on referral, suspension, and absence rates. Increased positive self awareness and goal setting are also reported. (RLV)

The effect of group counseling techniques in reducing habitual truancy among a group of high school special education students was studied. It was determined that nondirect counseling methods--especially when combined with contingency contracting--were effective in increasing school attendance. (MH)

Mean attendance and truancy rates for 879 Glamorgan pupils were 91.95 and 1.72 percent, respectively. Sex differences were insignificant, but both rates varied seasonally, with Autumn term the best attended. A 'day of the week' effect occurred, with absenteeism rising toward Friday. Other English data are compared. (Author/SJL)

From an analysis of attendance records of pupils in a comprehensive secondary school and their attendance at primary school, the authors describe weekly and daily patterns of absence. They also conclude that the potential truant from secondary school can be identified from his primary school attendance record. (Author)

This study investigated differences between high and low school attending of 38 severely emotionally disturbed adolescents. High attenders were from higher socioeconomic backgrounds, demonstrated higher mathematics skills, exhibited a superior behavioral adjustment, and were more likely to travel to school by private rather than public…

Of 135 autistic and/or mentally retarded Tokyo youngsters, 30 with pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) and 2 with nonautistic mental retardation exhibited school refusal. School refusal was significantly more frequent in other PDDs than in nonautistic mental retardation. The intellectual level was significantly higher in PDD children with…

The present study provides preliminary data concerning the efficacy of the Adolescent Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment (ADAPT) Program, a collaborative effort involving mental health and law enforcement. ADAPT is a multi-component, cognitive-behavioral outpatient intervention serving children and youth referred directly from local police…