1. Positive influence on social development and mental and physical health 

1. Prepares youth for transition into adulthood  

1. Aids economic and social participation in society  

1. Provides access to academic, practical and social-emotional learning.  

INSA’s mission: to reduce absenteeism and promote attendance by researching and disseminating information, assessment and intervention strategies.  

INSA’s objectives: 1) to ensure all stakeholders have access to current scientific and practical developments in the field, 2) to share data and best practice, 3) to connect and mentor junior researchers and practitioners, 4) to convene annually at different international locations, 5) to document deliberations in the field.  

The paper outlines 3 key challenges, identified by INSA’s members, that hamper progress in promoting attendance and reducing absenteeism:  

Lack of consensus  

No universally agreed upon classification or definition exists. Kearney et al’s functional model of absenteeism provides meaningful classification and Heyne et al’s model suggests 4 categories of SAP (school refusal, truancy, withdrawal, exclusion) and that interventions should be differentiated in response to the type of absenteeism.  

The field lacks clarity around the attendance rate thresholds for when is best to begin initial interventions and intensive interventions and how often to measure attendance. Research recommends frequent monitoring.  

There is a lack of a shared, interdisciplinary research agenda. New interdisciplinary models for SAP research have emerged but these require efficient and effective dissemination and implementation in order to inform the creation of multi-level assessments and intervention strategies.  

Inadequate attention to the voices of all stakeholders  

In order to fully understand and address the causes of SAPs, the first-hand views of all stakeholders should be obtained to form a fully interdisciplinary approach. The extent of qualitative research required to effectively obtain these views is limited and often unreliable. The paper summarises and references examples of qualitative studies but acknowledges the limitations of the findings due to the small size and narrowed selection criteria of the samples used. The voice of parents and professionals is under-represented across studies.  

Sub-standard dissemination and implementation  

Inadequate dissemination of information and data across disciplines (i.e. education and psychology) and across countries, has resulted in inconsistent use of definitions and classifications, making it difficult to analyse attendance trends, ultimately hampering our ability to identify areas of greatest need and hindering our understanding of socio-cultural influences on attendance and root causes of SAPs. The paper acknowledges the potential of a multi-tiered implementation approach, namely the Response to Intervention Model (RtI). The paper also recommends the use of specific implementation science strategies to best support the adoption and use of complex models such as the RtI.  

The papers concludes with a statement from INSA outlining current and intended future developments. It also invites professionals involved in the field of attendance to become members of their network.  

Can we use INSA’s operational structure and improvement strategy to enhance our own strategic plan?  

How can we best make leaders at all levels aware of the three key challenges that hinder progress in promoting attendance and reducing absenteeism?