Schools in Ohio, like other schools throughout the countryare struggling to scale back chronic absenteeism, increased dramatically in the course of the pandemicBut Ohio could have a head start on solving the issue, due to a 2018 state law that encourages a positive approach to discipline.
Six years ago, Ohio lawmakers passed Bill 318The law, often called the Supporting Alternatives for Fair Education Act, was a comprehensive approach to discipline. It set standards for varsity safety officers and limited using suspensions for youngsters within the early grades. It also encouraged districts to implement so-called “positive behavioral interventions and support.”
This positive approach seeks to enhance student behavior and the varsity environment by prioritizing prevention over punishment. The idea is to stop problems before they occur, reward good behavior, and supply extra help to students who need it most. At its simplest, an intervention might involve a teacher using proximity to students to maintain them on task, or praising students who behave well. A small number of scholars may have more comprehensive support, resembling counseling and make contact with with the scholar's family.
Studies have shown that school-wide use of those positive interventions improve children's concentration, improve student performance And increase student engagement.
Under the Law of 2018The Ohio Board of Education must establish standards for implementing the positive discipline approach. These standards, in turn, have to be included in grades K-5 as a part of teacher training. The law also requires training for teachers and administrators on the way to use the positive approach as a part of their skilled development and continuing education. Districts that implement the positive discipline method will receive additional points on their report card from the state.
Positive approach, fewer absences
According to an unpublished report by a team of researchers at Miami University, the state's efforts to look on the brilliant side of discipline had a joyful side effect. Chronic absenteeism – when students miss 10% or more of college days, no matter the rationale – was greater than 4 percentage points lower in schools that implemented the positive behavior approach than in schools that didn’t. A 4% difference can equate to 1000’s of kids nationwide.
Constant absences may end up in reduced academic performance and graduation rates.
As Professor and researcher I actually have studied using positive behavior interventions and co-led the Miami University research team whose efforts demonstrated that policy changes combined with practical assist in implementing the brand new program can lead to raised outcomes for college kids. Our evaluation shows that Ohio's approach also can function a model for states combating school attendance.
Funded by a Grant for the transformation of the varsity climate from the U.S. Department of Education, we sought to find out whether the positive approach reduces chronic absenteeism, one among eight areas where the state expects improvements. To achieve this, we examined the grant's impact from school years 2018 to 2023, collecting data directly from school personnel who participated in training on positive behavioral methods. We also reviewed data from Ohio's Education Management Information Systema group of statistics on primary and secondary education.
In Ohio's schools that implemented a positive discipline approach, student absence rates were lower than those who didn’t in three out of 4 school years—aside from the 2021-22 school yr. According to data from the 2022-23 school yr, the typical chronic absentee rate in schools that implemented positive discipline was 27.93%. In the identical yr, schools that didn’t use the positive discipline approach reported a rate of 33.33%. While 5.38% may not sound like much, this discrepancy equates to 1000’s of kids, which has significant implications for Ohio cities.
Chronic absenteeism has been a persistent problem in Ohio’s Student numbers from grades K-12 before the pandemic. Months of online instruction and repeated disruptions to in-person classes caused rates to skyrocket. In the 2018-19 school yr, the baseline yr, schools that had implemented positive discipline had a chronic absentee rate of just 16.67%, the Miami University team reported. By 2022-23, that rate had risen to 27.93%, a rise of 68%. Schools that had not implemented this approach saw their chronic absentee rate rise from a median of 19.52% within the 2018-19 school yr to 33.33% within the 2022-23 school yr, a rise of 71%.
Positive discipline is simply a part of the answer
From the 2021-22 school yr to the next school yr, Ohio’s overall chronic absenteeism rate decreased barely, to national average of 26.8%Nevertheless, it stays a critical problem.
The Ohio Department of Education has recognized the seriousness of the issue and is increasing its efforts to scale back chronic absenteeism in schools and districts in 2022-23. The initiative, the indicator for improving chronic absencecompares a district's chronic absenteeism rate to benchmarks set for annual improvement. This is all a part of the brand new Star rating system.
The passage of the SAFE Act in Ohio and a positive approach to managing student behavior are first steps toward its goal of improving the educational environment and increasing student engagement at school.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story could have overstated the 4% difference in absenteeism.
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