Reasons Why Being Tardy to School Is Bad

byLeyla Norman, Demand Media

Being late to school disrupts more than your child's day.

Tardiness affects not only your childs attendance record and ability to learn, but it also impacts the school environment and you. Being
late to school can lead to legal problems for you and your child, and it also interrupts other students learning. Tardies also add up to
absences in many schools. For example, at Brier Elementary School in Brier, Wash., three tardies equal one absence. Preparing the night
before and allowing a little extra time in the morning can prevent most tardiness.
Legal Reasons
States have laws that require attendance at school, and parents who do not have their children at school on time can face legal problems.
In fact, they can be charged for having their kids late to school and face arrest and fines. Older students can also be arrested for being
truant, depending on the circumstances and state law. Tardies can add up to absences, and that can result in truancy, an offense states and
school districts take very seriously.
Your Child's Learning
When a child is late to school, she misses out on important instruction. Every minute that a child is in school is important to her learning.
When she is tardy, she faces the challenge of trying to settle in and catch up with what other students are doing. She is behind and has to
struggle to understand material the teacher has already explained. Being late is detrimental to her learning, especially if it occurs on a
consistent basis.
Other Children's Learning
Other students also suffer when a child is late to school. They have to wait to proceed with a lesson because the teacher is busy trying to
catch the late child up. The interruption of a door opening into a classroom and the teacher having to address who is coming in is
distracting and can cause students to lose their concentration as well. It wastes time to deal with and then recover from an interruption
caused by someone coming in late to class.
Preparation for Real Life
Being on time to school is preparation for the world outside of school. When parents focus on punctuality, students learn that not coming
to a meeting or event on time is disrespectful of other peoples time and that they miss out on important information. It's a priority of
which many high school students are acutely aware, writes Leslie Ford, staff writer for the Sugar Beet student newspaper at Garden City
High School in Garden City, Kan. In an April 2011 opinion piece, she notes that job interviews do not wait for people who are late and
that tardiness does not help students get ready for the world after graduation.
Ways to Prevent Tardiness
Have your child set out her clothes for the next day the night before. Her backpack should contain all her books, supplies and homework
she will need for the next day. Get all of the supplies and equipment needed for after school practices and activities ready. Have your son
make his lunch if he brings it, and ensure he is in bed at a reasonable hour. Set the alarm 10 or 15 minutes earlier than absolutely
necessary to ensure your child has enough time to get to school before the tardy bell rings.
References

ABC News: Children Late for School, Parents Charged in Virginia

KHOU.com: Honor Student Placed in Jail for Tardiness and Truancy at School
Brier Elementary School: Attendance & Tardiness Policy - The BECCA Law
Brevard County Schools Southwest Middle School: Attendance
Garden City High School Sugar Beet: Tardies Overwhelming High School
About the Author
Leyla Norman has been a writer since 2008 and is a certified English as a second language teacher. She also has a master's degree in
development studies and a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology.
The Impact of Tardiness on School Success: Students who are on time to school are more successful By Stacy Zeiger, eHow Contributor
Schools stress the need for students to get to school and class on time and with good reason. Studies conducted by the U.S. Department
of Education on truancy, which is connected with tardiness, show that school attendance is a major factor when it comes to school
success and student behavior.

Problems with Tardiness

The most crucial learning hours of a school day are the morning hours, because they are when students are most attentive. Students who
are tardy miss the beginning of their morning classes, and they also cause a distraction when they arrive late to class.
Academics and Achievement
Students who are frequently tardy have lower GPAs, lower scores on standardized assessments, and lower graduation rates. Chronic
tardiness in elementary and middle school is also linked to failure in high school.
Behavior Problems
In the National Center for Education Statistics 2007 Indicators of School Crime and Safety, teachers surveyed reported that students who
are frequently tardy have higher rates of suspension and other disciplinary measures. Tardiness causes students to feel disconnected with
school, leading to behavior problems and dropouts.
Job Performance
Students who are frequently tardy to school are also more apt to be fired from a job for showing up late.
Effect on Others
When students are tardy, they negatively impact their teachers and other students. Teachers are often required to allow tardy students to
make up work, which often requires them to restructure their lessons or re-teach missed material. Tardiness also takes other students'
attention away from a teacher's lesson, leading to more behavior problems and missed instruction.
How to Avoid Tardiness
If you have built yourself a reputation for being late all the time, whether it is with your friends, business associates, or clients, then you
will soon see why such a trait can be detrimental to these relationships. Of course there are reasons as to why you may be late now and
then, but at some point these random instances will become a bad habit if you don't do anything to change your ways. Therefore, doing
the best that you can to avoid being late should be your ultimate objective. If you have created a habit of being late and you want to
change that behavior, consider the following steps.
Steps
Give yourself enough time to get ready if you want to learn to be on time. You don't want to rush because that will likely make you forget
something. If you have an early appointment, prepare the night before by getting your clothes ready and making sure that everything you
need, such as car keys and cell phone, is ready to go.
Don't give yourself permission to be late by making excuses for it. You may think that it's just a few minutes, but tardiness is a habit that
often gets worse, and minutes will grow. Therefore, take tardiness seriously and recognize that it is a bad habit that should not be
excused.
Allow ample time for your journey. Take into consideration the time of day that you will be traveling, and always add enough time for
travel delays and other problems that could crop up, such as finding parking or getting lost if you are heading out to an unfamiliar
destination.
Avoid overextending yourself by scheduling too many appointments around the same time. By doing this, you are setting yourself up to
being late. If you do have more than one meeting at a time, then make sure that you schedule enough time in between so that you can
travel from one to another without rushing or risking being late.
Refrain from accepting invitations that you cannot realistically fit into your schedule. Not only will you be creating a stressful situation
for yourself because you will be forced to follow through on the invite, but you will most likely be late and upset the person you are
meeting. It's better to decline the invitation and risk disappointing the person, than risking offending them by being late.
Always give yourself more time than you need to get there. Better safe than sorry, and it's okay to be a little bit early. For Example, if
you have to go to a wedding that starts at 5:00 and you know it takes 20 minutes to get there,leave at 4:30. You WILL get there on time!
Tips
Set your clock forward by an odd number of minutes. (Setting back by 10 or 15 minutes is too easy to calculate instantly). For example,
if the real time is 10.10, change yours to 10.17. This way, you think you have less time than you do.

Empathize with the person who is waiting for you. Even if it is not intentional, it is not fun to be kept waiting. If you put yourself in the
position of the person waiting for you, you will better gain a sense of urgency and try harder to avoid being tardy.
Warnings
On the flip side, your tardiness may be illustrating lack of self-esteem. Perhaps you think that your presence doesn't really matter. If that
were true, why were you included in the planning/invitations? They want you there, so don't disappoint them.
Recognize that tardiness, especially consistent tardiness, is a trait that illustrates your lack of respect for others. It also suggests that you
think that you are more important than those who are waiting for you. Ultimately this arrogant nature will eventually create feelings of
animosity from the people who you consistently keep waiting.
Employees have got their own reasons for being late but if this became habitual, excuses might no longer be acceptable. You might also
be unconsciously building up a bad reputation about punctuality so putting an end to this tardiness is necessary.
Not only that your adherence and attendance will be affected but being consistently late also shows disrespect to your manager. Tardiness
will also create a stain in your career and this means that you need to take action before everything gets worse. Here are the steps on how
you can make a change to eliminate this everyday sickness.
Sleep early
If you are having a hard time on waking up, it might be implying that you didn't have enough sleep. Figure out if waking up early is the
main reason why you are late and make some adjustments on your bed time if possible. Take enough rest and sleep and don't forget to set
up the alarm.
Be organized
One problem of employees who are always late is organization. The people behind this are those who cram when they get to office or
before they leave the house. They sometimes leave without checking everything that they need to bring and ends up coming back to the
house to search for the stuffs. This can all be prevented if you are organized with your things at home. Prepare everything you need in
one place, meet them and place them all in your bag before you go.
Give enough time to get ready
For slowpokes and for those who have a lot of activities before going to work such as preparing food for the kids, walking the dog,
routine exercise and a lot more, wake up early and give enough time for these activities. Make sure that these activities won't affect your
punctuality at work and if you won't be able to find time in the morning, there are some activities that you can entrust to someone else or
do it once you get back from work.
Adjust the time
For people who really needs a push on waking up or getting things ready, it is effective to adjust your watch or alarm 10-20 minutes
before the office clock. This guarantees you enough time to prepare and feel good that you won't be late for work.
Give enough time for travel
Traffic is the most uttered word of employees who comes in late for work. They say the word even though no one is asking why they
were late. The solution for this is very simple. If you are giving yourself enough time to prepare for work, then you must give ample time
for your journey as well. You can control your preparations at home but the same thing can't be done on the road.
Remember that it is not fun to keep someone else waiting or arrive late when everyone else arrived on time. Every time that you are late,
your manager and your colleagues are being badly affected and disrespected. Keep this all in mind to wake yourself up about the red
marks in your time card.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: KARL HINDLE
Jensen Carlyle writes for Arden Coaching, a leader in the executive coaching profession across the United States. Visit Arden Coaching's website
for more information and resources. For executive coaching help, follow this link.
Article Last Updated on: May 27, 2013
The Effects of Tardiness on Students
By Kim Fuller

eHow Contributor
Students are tardy for a variety of reasons, but being late to class can become a habit that can have a negative effect on their success in
school. Schools often establish an attendance policy that includes punishment for multiple tardies. A firm policy can help schools
promote student punctuality and accountability -- traits that students can carry with them even after they finish school.
Respect

Showing up to late to class, especially multiple times, can have the effect of other people losing respect for you. Your teacher
and student peers can see that you do not show up on time, which can often imply that you feel a sense of apathy or disregard for your
education.
Discipline

Disciplinary actions are often taken upon students who are tardy to classes. Students may be given a detention for the first
couple offenses, but then the discipline may become more severe with a suspension. Students may also lose points towards their final
grade in the class if they are late on numerous occasions.
School Work

Students who are late to classes may fall behind in their classroom work. If a student misses the first part of a lecture, for
example, he may miss the notes that he will need to study for an upcoming exam. Some teachers do not accept late homework, so they
will not permit a student to turn in a homework assignment if he is tardy. This can result in an incomplete or failing grade for the work.

Preparation

Students who are late to class are less likely to feel organized and prepared when they enter the class after a lesson is already
in session. The student may be embarrassed for his classroom disruption upon entering late and may not be able to take out his necessary
materials without causing further disruption. Also, he may not be aware of what page the classroom is reading in a textbook, for example,
or whether there will be a quiz on the material the class is studying.