Perfect attendance awards are intended to be an effective way to help reduce absenteeism and promote academic success. A secondary benefit is to help ensure that all students have equal opportunities to reach their full potential. Awards, prizes, and grade boosts are typically given to students with perfect attendance throughout the school year. They can be used as an incentive for hard work, dedication, and commitment to attending every class.
Such awards might initially appear helpful and effective. However, there is a growing sentiment among school leaders, parents, academics, and other observers that these awards are outdated, and not serving the best interests of children.
Perfect Attendance Awards Not Having the Intended Effects
Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, many flaws and inequities have surfaced around making winners and losers out of children based on their attendance records. There are mixed messages with rewarding children for attending school while encouraging them to stay home if experiencing flu symptoms.
It has long been established that chronic absenteeism leads to poor academic performance and high dropout rates. In many US school districts, student attendance is directly tied to funding and quality ratings. As a result, schools have been using tools like perfect attendance awards as an incentive to discourage would-be skippers from missing school.
However, new studies show that they may in fact be having the opposite effect. Recent research from Harvard shows that attendance awards are not more likely to incentivize students to maintain or improve attendance.
Another criticism is that district rating systems are often tied to socioeconomic status and race. Schools with higher attendance records (among other factors) tend to be ranked higher in the system. In Chicago, for example, these schools also tend to be majority white, while lower ranked schools tend to be majority Black and Latino.
Alternatives to Perfect Attendance Awards
Instead of a focus on “perfect” attendance, schools should focus on addressing the root causes of chronic absenteeism. It’s important to also provide students with support systems and resources that will help them attend school regularly. This could include providing students with mental health services, creating flexible learning environments, and engaging parents in the process. By taking these steps, schools can ensure that their students have the support they need to attend school regularly and succeed academically.
Some leaders suggest that schools should shift their attendance goals from “perfection” to simply being in the classroom as much as possible. This will help prevent students from showing up when they are unwell.
Positive reinforcement is another effective way to encourage punctuality and promote better attendance in the classroom. This can have a powerful effect on student motivation and the desire to learn. By rewarding students every time they show up to class, rather than punishing them when they don’t, teachers can create an environment of support and engagement that encourages learning.
Regular notifications of student absence can keep families informed about their children’s attendance, allowing them to take necessary corrective action when needed. With regular updates about attendance, parents and guardians can ensure that their children do not skip school. This could significantly impact overall school attendance rates and improve educational outcomes for students.
The Award is an Education
The true award is a good education. Historically educators awarded attendance in the hope of increasing education. If current research is correct, this plan is faulty in its basic assumptions. If we’ve learned anything from the Covid pandemic, it’s that the way we live our lives can change in a matter of days. Educators went from in-class learning to virtual learning and back to in-class but with many new fears.
The old method of attendance awards does not seem as important today, especially where health is concerned. Due to this, educators need to rethink the attendance award and place education as the priority for students.