Engaging Teachers: Measuring the Impact of Teachers on Student Attendance in Secondary School 

Forth Valley and West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative 

Attendance Focus: August -October 2022 

Research Summary  

 

Research reference (with link) 
Engaging Teachers: Measuring the Impact of Teachers on Student Attendance in Secondary School 

Jing Liu, Susanna Loeb. Journal of Human Resources, Volume 56, Number 2, Spring 2021, pp. 343-379 

Research methodology / Data Collection methods 
Study focuses on linking secondary teachers to class attendance and create measures of teachers’ contributions to attendance. Promoted by lack of research on teachers’ impact on reducing absence, especially in secondary school, which affects college enrolment. Even more of a lack of research on impact on at risk students.   

Looks at unexcused class level attendance and Californian standardised tests data for Maths  & ELA from 2003/4 to 2013/14 in America.  

Focuses on five core subjects – Maths, English language arts (ELA), science, social studies & foreign languages.  

Correlates with student demographic variables – race/ethnicity, gender, English learner status (EL) special education status and gifted status.  

 

Estimate teachers’ contributions to student class attendance in secondary school.  

Evaluate statistical properties of their new measure  

Link this measure with several student long-run outcomes 

Examine long-run effects of high value-added attendance teachers by students; prior absenteeism & prior achievement 

Tests variability of multidimensional teacher effects based on several student characteristics.   

5 research questions on: variance, stability, similarity, effects 

Key relevant findings  
  • Study found systematic variation in teacher effectiveness at reducing unexcused absence.  
  • Teacher effectiveness on attendance only weakly correlates with their effects on achievement  
  • High value added to attendance effective teachers have stronger impact on rates of finishing school than high value added to attainment teachers 
  • High value added to attendance teachers can motivate students to pursue higher academic goals.  
  • Positive effects of high value added to attendance teachers particularly help low-achieving and low-attendance students.  

 

Impact of low attendance – less learning, drug & alcohol use and crime 

Absenteeism among strongest predictors of long-term outcomes – school drop out rate 

Black, Hispanic and low-income students are more susceptible to absence which aggravates the achievement gaps.  

 

Factors causing absence 

Individual and family factors – student illness, residential mobility 

School factors which reduce absenteeism – positive and safe school environment along with effective, supportive and engaging teachers. 

 

Student miss 44% fewer Maths and 54% fewer English classes if have a high value added to attendance teacher.  

High value added to attendance teacher has stronger effects on a student’s opportunity to graduate from school and meaningful effects on pursuit of higher academic goals. This is particularly strong for students with lower prior achievement, lower prior attendance and high predicted probability of dropping out.   

 

Different ethnic groups have variable attendance patterns.  

Attendance varies by the timing of the class.  – most common to skip first period and then last period.  

Different grades have variable attendance patterns.  

Absence varies less by class subject 

Questions research raises 
On average, American secondary students are absent three weeks per year. How does this compare to our average?  

Are these particular groups of pupils who are more affected by absenteeism than others?  

Follow up reading suggestions  
Jackson 2018  

Gershenson 2016 – 3 to 5 graders in North Carolina. Doesn’t differentiate between excused and unexcused absence.  

 

 

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