Attention, all you minders of little witches and ghouls out there this Halloween.
In addition to the dangers of 鈥淪quid Game鈥� costumes, too much candy corn (yuck!), and scary clowns, there鈥檚 another thing to watch out for: High number of students tend to do a little ghosting the day after trick-or-treating.
In Los Angeles, Nov. 1 is often the day with the district鈥檚 second-highest count of absent students鈥攂ested only by the day before winter break, said Michael Romero, the regional superintendent of Local District South, which serves more than 85,000 students.
鈥淜ids are out later, they鈥檙e eating a heck of a lot of candy, and there is a likelihood that if a kid is struggling or griping about going to school, that maybe the family says, 鈥楬ey, stay home today,鈥欌�� Romero said. 鈥淎nd if it is a kid who struggles with attendance, with chronic absenteeism, it鈥檚 just more likely that they don鈥檛 come back.鈥�
One day out is not typically a major cause for concern, but meant large numbers of students didn鈥檛 make as much academic progress last year as expected.
And heading off a day out is especially important for those students who鈥檝e already had spotty attendance this fall.
Here鈥檚 what we know about holiday absenteeism and some ways to counter it.
Absenteeism fluctuates in seasonal ways
Absenteeism is still a relatively new focus for educators and researchers, but gradually they鈥檙e learning more about what kinds of seasonal patterns and schedules seem to influence it.
Using school year 2018-19 data from the Detroit district, Wayne State University researchers the day before Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks, and in the final week of the school year. (The day after Halloween wasn鈥檛 particularly high鈥攂ut that year, it fell midweek, when absences in general tend to be lower.)
Generally, research also shows that absenteeism rates vary by and . In Romero鈥檚 region, it is highest for kindergartners and 9th graders, and that U-shaped pattern tends to show up in national data too.
Not all absenteeism is the same. There鈥檚 some indication that for students who miss a lot of school.
But for those who are already in danger of being chronically absent鈥攇enerally defined as missing 10 percent or more out of the school year鈥攊t鈥檚 critical to avoid any interruption in learning, said Sarah Lenhoff, an associate professor of educational leadership and policy at Wayne State University, who co-wrote the Detroit study.
鈥淎 regular kid who鈥檚 not missing a lot of days and is absent Halloween or Thanksgiving, that鈥檚 probably not going to make much of a difference. But for a kid who is on the borderline of being chronically absent, or has a lot of scattered absences throughout the school year, having a culture of missing around a holiday can really add up,鈥� she said.
While there doesn鈥檛 appear to be research specifically focused on the day after Halloween, observers say they鈥檝e seen the same pattern as in Los Angeles.
And a teacher in the Oakland district said she used to routinely schedule parent-teacher conferences on Nov. 1, since so many students were likely to be absent.
How to prevent students from 鈥榞hosting鈥�
The good news is that districts don鈥檛 have to invent a lot of new strategies to head off absences on Nov. 1. And they don鈥檛 have to get in the way of some fun holiday cheer. They鈥檒l just want to lean into their strategies a little bit more this week.
Romero鈥檚 region uses a three-pronged strategy to address absenteeism: Calling attention to the importance of coming to school in most communiqu茅s, phone calls, and outreach to parents whenever a child is absent, and a tailored subset of approaches to students who have racked up numerous absences. Administrators amplify those, especially the first one, around Halloween.
鈥淲hat we鈥檝e done for the last couple of years鈥攁nd it鈥檚 helped a bit, but it doesn鈥檛 solve the problem鈥攊s consistent messaging to parents, like a drumbeat,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e send flyers, we send reminders, we send messages through Blackboard Connect,鈥� a course-management software.
Here are some other strategies to try.
- Start communicating with families now. It鈥檚 generally best to get ahead of a holiday and remind families through multiple communications鈥攆lyers, emails, text 鈥渘udges鈥濃�攖hat attendance is expected on Nov. 1. The most effective approaches tend to be personalized by principals, rather than from the central office. (Romero cites one of his principals, who actually visits each classroom in her building to remind students to bring their flyers home.)
- Don鈥檛 send mixed signals about attendance. If you plan assemblies, parties or other non-academic events in the school day鈥攁s often happens around a holiday鈥攊t can send a signal that it鈥檚 OK to skip. 鈥淚f kids or families get the message you鈥檙e not going to be doing academic work, or it鈥檚 going to be kind of an informal day, they will do something else with their time,鈥� said Lenhoff.
- Create incentives for attending Nov. 1. Generally, Romero said, carrots work better than sticks. Try making Nov. 1 a spirit day in which kids get to wear their favorite jerseys, or launch a contest awarding a small prize to the classroom that has perfect attendance.
- Use it as a professional development or other day. Districts can choose to use the day for PD or parent-teacher conferences if they feel high student absences are unavoidable.
