September GATE Equity Webinar Mind the Gap Attendance
September GATE Equity Webinar Mind the Gap: Attendance Supports for Students with Disabilities Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal, State Superintendent
Vision: All students prepared for post-secondary pathways, careers, and civic engagement. Mission: Transform K– 12 education to a system that is centered on closing opportunity gaps and is characterized by high expectations for all students and educators. We achieve this by developing equity-based policies and supports that empower educators, families, and communities. Values:
Office of System & School Improvement Focus on schools identified for supports We believe we are more likely to see school improvement across multiple measures if we: Connect programming to specific needs Build the health of systems Provide professional learning on data inquiry and supportive resources and tools
Who Are We? Kefi Andersen Tania May Scott Raub Krissy Johnson Graduation Equity Program Supervisor OSPI Director of Special Education OSPI Special Education Parent & Community Liaison OSPI Attendance Program Supervisor OSPI 3/4/2021 | 4
Today’s Topics • Equity, ESSA, and IDEA • Definitions • Attendance Requirements • Research and Data • Recommendations & Strategies • Evidence-based Resources 3/4/2021 | 5
Questions & Polling What is your role? A. District Special Education Director B. District or Building Leadership C. School Psychologist D. Community E. Other (type in chat) 3/4/2021 | 6
Excerpt from OSPI’s Equity Statement Ensuring educational equity requires education leaders to develop an understanding of historical contexts; engage students, families, and community representatives as partners in decision-making; and actively dismantle systemic barriers, replacing them with policies and practices that ensure all students have access to the instruction and support they need to succeed in our schools. 3/4/2021 | 7
ESSA and IDEA ESSA Purpose is to: close achievement gaps Offer a significant opportunity To receive a fair, equitable, and high quality education. Alignment of Purpose is to: Ensure access and progress in the general education curriculum IDEA To prepare students with disabilities for further education, employment, and independent living. 3/4/2021 | 8
Setting the Stage What is chronic absence & Why are we focused on it?
What is Chronic Absenteeism? 10% of school days Excused Unexcused Chronic Absenteeism 3/4/2021 | 10
Which is Different From… Truancy Daily Average Attendance Washington: 5+ unexcused days in a month or 10+ in a year Only unexcused absences. Number of students showing up to school each day*. *Chronic Elementary Absenteeism: A Problem Hidden in Plain Sight 3/4/2021 | 11
How is our state reporting Chronic Absence? 88% Regularly Attending Regular Attendance 12% Chronically Absent Chronic Absence Inverted 3/4/2021 | 12
Why Chronic Absenteeism? Established body of research showing impacts of all absences on school success Included in ESSA as School Quality and Student Success (SQSS) measure Federal Reporting & State Reporting Legislative changes focused on prevention and intervention, not just crisis response 3/4/2021 | 13
RCW Attendance Requirements for Students with an IEP & 504 Plan RCW 28 A. 225. 018 RCW. 28 A. 225. 020 RCW 28 A. 225. 030 Elementary Only: After 5 Excused Absences in a month or 10 Excused in a year • Parent Conference and/or IEP or 504 Plan Team must convene After 1 Unexcused Absence (UA) Parents notified by phone or writing After 3 UA within any month Between 2 and 5 UA in a school year Parent & student conference to analyze After 5 UA causes for absences WARNS or other assessment (MS, HS) Convene IEP or 504 team Best practice or research-based intervention consistent with assessment Attendance agreement; Refer student to a Community Truancy Board; OR File a petition. After 7 UA in a month or 10 UA in a year File petition (automatically stayed & referral to a Community Truancy Board) 3/4/2021 | 14
Mindset Shift All absences matter! Requires moving from punitive to problem solving & support Increased expectations for attendance are an important factor in improving outcomes for students with disabilities Accountability as Continuous Improvement, not a “Gotcha” Time out of class leads to greater achievement gaps 3/4/2021 | 15
Questions & Polling 2 Is attendance routinely addressed at your IEP meetings? A. Yes - always B. Sometimes C. Only when it’s a problem D. Rarely 3/4/2021 | 16
State of the State Attendance Data: Students with Disabilities
Chronic Absenteeism 20% 18% 16% 18. 9% 16. 5% 15. 1% 14% 17. 0% 16. 3% 19. 5% 19. 3% 18. 8% 13. 8% 17. 0% 14. 7% 14. 6% 2015 2016 12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0% 2013 Total State 2014 State Non-Special Education State Special Education 3/4/2021 | 18
The State of Our State: Big Picture • Although 90% of SWDs have average or above -average intellectual functioning, only 56% spend 80 -100% of the day in general education (for students of color, only 47%). • SWDs have 5% higher rates of chronic absenteeism & 20% higher dropout rates. 3/4/2021 | 19
Questions & Polling 3 What are some common reasons you see for absenteeism among students with disabilities? A. School Climate B. Anxiety/depression C. Medical/health reasons D. Transportation E. School refusal F. Other (type in chat) 3/4/2021 | 20
Why do we think students with disabilities miss more school? trauma disconnect between needs and services family stress or circumstances anxiety and/or depression chronic health conditions and/or fatigue food and housing insecurity 3/4/2021 | 21
Frequently Asked Questions & Comments The definition is unfair – and What do you do for we’re getting dinged (one students who have a longhour of services, a day of term illness? travel) How to document shortened days in IEPs 3/4/2021 | 22
So What Can We Do? Recommendations and Strategies
Family & Student Engagement Prioritize communication with parents – early and often! Implement policies that offer incentives (earning flexible start times, open campus privileges) and avoid sanctions (dropping students). Implement proven dropout prevention programs. Community and cultural outreach (Cultural brokers, community liaisons, connections with church and social services organizations). 3/4/2021 | 24
Systems Approaches and Data • • Best practices for all students. Building a culture of attendance. Implementing attendance teams. Include attendance as part of all IEP team discussions. Develop an early warning system to alert case managers when a student reaches 3 absences. Disaggregate the data and conduct root cause analyses. Reevaluate how types of absences are tracked/coded. 3/4/2021 | 25
Utilizing the IEP Process Document early and often! Reevaluate, when necessary. Document attendance and related topics (e. g. , health conditions) in IEP discussions. Create system-wide protocols for providing services to compensate for lost instructional time. Document school supports and results of interventions. For students on a shortened school day, include a response plan for increasing total minutes per week. 3/4/2021 | 26
OSPI Priorities: Improving Outcomes for Students with Disabilities 3/4/2021 | 27
Questions & Polling 4 3 • What is one major takeaway you have from today’s webinar? • Type it in the chat box – share your thought with everyone. 3/4/2021 | 28
September is Attendance Awareness Month • Social Media Toolkit: Weekly Posts & Resources • Posters in multiple languages (hard copy) available for order through our website • Attendance Competition: Who can reduce their absences the most in September from the previous year? • Sign Up for Attendance Newsletter here. 3/4/2021 | 29
Resources OSPI Articles System Improvement Guide Chronic Absenteeism in the Nation's Schools Attendance page Showing Up: Disparities in Chronic Absenteeism Between Students With and Without Disabilities Special Education page NCEO Brief: Chronic Absenteeism & Students with Disabilities Attendance Works Webpage Webinars 3/4/2021 | 30
Survey Tell us how we’re doing: http: //bit. ly/GATEevaluation 3/4/2021 | 31
GATE Advisory September 18 9: 00 am-noon ESD 113, Tumwater Register 3/4/2021 | 32
Join ESD 105 Want to discuss GATE Equity Webinar for clock hours? Join ESD 105’s GATE PLCs! 3/4/2021 | 33
Next Month 10 a. m. – 11 a. m. Register Family Engagement & Student Discipline 1: 00 -2: 00 p. m. Register Students Who Smoke or Vape: A Red Flag for Supports 3/4/2021 | 34
Creative Commons • Except where otherwise noted, this work by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction is licensed under a Creative Commons 4. 0 International License. • Many of our images come from Canva. com and The. Noun. Project. com. 3/4/2021 | 35
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