How To Increase Attendance Of Inner City High

The single most important item for the school administration is the school head count. The number one question that the superintendent needs to know is how many students are going to be enrolled in school for the coming year. In order for the District to get funding it has to have head count to justify its expenditure.

Corresponding to this is the student count (head count) in your classroom. This information is vital to your administrators for keeping their student count in line with the District’s. Therefore, you have to be sure to get all of your students to be on time and in class. Absences are in order if there are permission slips to cover the missing time. The real enemy is not absenteeism but truancy due to missing classes (cuts).

To increase and maintain attendance you must on the first day of class get the student full attention of the class and explain to them the protocol for school attendance. Explain to them in detail how the system works and how they can help in you in keeping attendance up to par. Make these a team effort by encouraging the students to be in class. The best way to do this is with communication with the class. Students that cut classes will not be motivated by extra points on the grade scale, if that were the case they would not be cutting class in the first place. The best motivator is working personally with those students that are not showing up. Call their home, see them after school. Walk with them and get to know them better so that you can help them with any issues that may be causing the attendance problem. Above all let them know that you care and want to help them. Personal commitment to each student that you are having trouble with is the solution to the problem. Each student has separate issues so you need to tailor your approach to suite their needs. If you do this you will find no only is their attendance better but also you will be rewarded with having a student in class that wants to learn and appreciate you, which will empower you as a teacher to do better.

I was born and raised on the south side of Chicago in Hyde Park Township, near the University of Chicago. As I child I was always drawing and painting. My father owned an art supply company, Favor Ruhl & Watson, where I was able to get all that I needed to progress in my work.

I have always enjoyed portraiture and landscape painting. In High School (Naperville Central High School) I took Drafting from Mr. Pierce. I quickly grasped the principles of perspective and drafting and hence made a career with both Fine Art and Architectural Renderings.

In the mid 1970's I joined the US Navy and was stationed on board the USS Midway, CV-41. The Midway was home ported in Yokosuka, Japan (A suburb of Tokyo). While in service I traveled all over Asia including such countries as Korea, China, Philippines, Singapore, Pakistan, Hong Kong, and Japan. While in Japan I learned Japanese. I speak German and Spanish as well.

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