CSBA Briefs and Fact Sheets
Seize the Data: Using Chronic Absence Data to Drive Student Engagement (3/24)
This brief, a joint publication of CSBA and Attendance Works, provides an overview of chronic absenteeism in California and information on the student groups it impacts most as well as questions that board members can consider when assessing the issue, ways to address it and related resources.
Seize the Data: Using Chronic Absence Data to Boost Achievement (9/18)
This brief defines chronic absence and explains why it is important, the barriers to student attendance, how to access chronic absence data for your district and schools and how to use the data to prevent chronic absence.
Sample Policies and Administrative Regulations
Additional Resources:
Chronic Absence from Attendance Works
Chronic absence — missing 10 percent or more of school days due to absence for any reason—excused, unexcused absences and suspensions—can translate into students having difficulty learning to read by the third-grade, achieving in middle school, and graduating from high school. Read this research summary for more details.
Attendance Works - Local, state, and national data tools
Attendance Works offers free quantitative data tools designed specifically for schools and school districts to track chronic absence. The tools, self-calculating Excel spreadsheets, include handbooks with guidance. Qualitative data tools, such as surveys or interviews, can shed light on the factors affecting whether students show up to school.
Attendance Works - Toolkits to address different aspects of chronic absenteeism
The Showing Up Matters for R.E.A.L. toolkit offers a memorable way to explain how being in school supports students’ social, emotional and physical well-being while providing opportunities to learn and achieve.
Past chronic absence data can help identify students most in danger of falling behind during pandemic
This blog post covers chronic absenteeism, a review of a report from Attendance Works and recommended actions to take to reduce chronic absenteeism.
National study finds text messages to parents can reduce chronic absence
This blog post covers a study, conducted by the National Center for Education Evaluation, that used targeted text messages sent to parents to reduce chronic absence in elementary school and shares key findings and additional resources.
Working Together to engage students and reduce barriers to attendance: A call for data-informed collaboration
A letter from State Superintendent of Public Instruction the importance of addressing absenteeism, resources and best practices to reduce absenteeism.
California Department of Education - Chronic absentee indicator data
This indicator, reported on the California School Dashboard, applies to districts and schools with students in grades K–8.
Addressing Absenteeism
This "policy memo" summarizes our multifaceted, multidisciplinary examination of what we have learned about how schools measure and reduce absenteeism and what we need to know going forward as California and other states hold schools and districts accountable for students’ absences.