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Cause and Effect of Absenteeism in Lower

Mainit Elementary School Pupils

S.Y. 2018-2019

An Action Research

Ceferina S. Gulada
Elenita A. Suizo
Action Research on Pupil Absenteeism in School
The Problem of Student Absenteeism

One of the most annoying experiences for teachers like me is when pupils are absent. We
prepare lesson plans with the objective that 100% of the class will learn from the day’s
classroom activities, and it is most satisfying when all students are present on that day and the
days thereafter to ensure maximum learning.

Sadly, it is very difficult to achieve perfect attendance. No matter how interesting and well-
prepared my lessons and teaching materials are, there are bound to be pupils who miss out on
the day’s activities—willingly or unwillingly.

I would like to minimize this problem, if not eradicate it completely. That is why I conducted
an action research to understand them better. I wanted a more accurate analysis of why some
of my pupils are perennial absentees, so I could formulate plans, projects, and programs to
minimize their absences. I hope that it also enlightens you. Even if you are not an educator,
you may be able to help a pupil to stay in school.

Causes of Absenteeism

Grade II Pupils of Lower Mainit Elementary School, School Year 2018-2019

According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, absenteeism is "chronic absence." In the context of


school, it is the habitual or intentional failure to attend school. While every student may miss
some school activities now and then, absence becomes a problem when the student is away
from school for many days.

Going to school regularly is crucially important for a pupil’s educatiSon and social skills.
Chronically absent students are at a disadvantage both socially and academically. They miss
out on critical stages of social interaction and development with their peers, while
simultaneously limiting their academic progress. This can result in low self-esteem, social
isolation, and dissatisfaction that could well have precipitated non-attendance in the first place.

School absenteeism is an alarming problem for administrators, teachers, parents, society in


general, and pupils in particular. Unaccepted absences have a negative effect on peer
relationships, which can cause further absences. According to Malcolm, Wilson, Davidson and
Kirk (2003) teachers identified the effects of absenteeism on children as:

 academic under-achievement.
 difficulty in making friends which could lead to boredom and loss of confidence.
 prolonged absence can have deleterious effects for the child in later life.
 students who are absent from school are at the greatest risk of dropping out of school early.

Absenteeism also affects the teacher’s ability to present classwork in a sequential and organized
way. This can have an effect on the progress of all the students in the class.
Families of habitually absent students can also suffer. For a poverty-stricken family, it may
mean a continuation of the poverty and unemployment cycle that may run in the family. This
also contributes to family conflicts.

Society also suffers when school-age children are not in school. These children may hang out
on the streets. Since they have nothing to do, they resort to petty crimes like stealing other
people’s belongings and property. Others may become addicted to drugs or engage in other
destructive behavior. Thus, if a student keeps away from school for too long, he may grow up
to be a liability to his community and his country as a whole.

It is the aim of every school to lessen, if not eradicate, absenteeism among its students. One
way of addressing this problem is to identify the causes of truancy. Once they are singled out,
understood, and analyzed, these issues may be addressed with specific actions and measures.
This will eventually result in the better performance of the students, teachers, and the school in
general.

It is in this context that this action research was undertaken, that is, to identify the causes why
the grade II pupils in this school absent themselves from their classes.

This action research examined the causes of absenteeism among grade II students of Lower
Mainit Elementary School during the 2018-2019 school year. This class had the most daily
absences while in grade II. This data was gathered from the daily attendance record that is kept
by the teacher-leader’s office every day and regularly filled out by grade level teachers.

Once the pupils entered grade II, some of them were still frequent absentees. It is for this reason
that this research was undertaken. It has the goal of understanding and correcting such
undesirable pupil behavior. Based on the findings, methods and strategies were recommended
to minimize, if not eradicate absenteeism or truancy.

Scope and Methodology

All of the twenty-eight grade II pupils were asked to complete a questionnaire. They rated
various situations, reasons, and causes for being absent from school.

All the the data was then organized, tallied, tabulated, and presented in a series of tables and
graphs. Frequency counts, percentage weight values and weighted mean were used in the
analysis and interpretation of data.

The responses were analyzed using a five-point Likert scale with the following equivalent:

 1. never
 2. rarely
 3. sometimes
 4. very often
 5. always

It should be noted that the questionnaire was given to students in their native dialect to
increase the chance of accurate responses.
Figures were rounded signify classification of responses. The measure of central tendency,
specifically the mean, was used to determine the average value of response or response average
of the pupils.

Study Questionnaire: What Are the Most Common Causes of Absenteeism?


Personal Teacher-Related Classroom
Physical Factors Home Factors
Attitude Reasons Environment

I am not My parents told


house is too far from My teacher Our classroom is hot
interested in my me to be
school scolded me. and uncomfortable.
studies. absent.

I can't
it is unsafe to go to understand my It's noisy in our My parents
I feel lazy.
school teacher's classroom. quarreled.
lessons.

no one accompanies me My parents


My friends tell Classmates bully
to school because of don't care about
me to be absent. me.
distance my studies.

health factors
I can't I do too many
(toothache, stomach I have no friends in
concentrate on household
ache, headache, my class.
my studies chores.
fever/flu, diarrhea

I have no money
I didn't wake up
to buy snacks at
in time.
school.

I did not study or We have no


do my food. I did not
homework. eat.

I was playing
computer
games.

Findings

A. Physical Factors

Among the items cited, the distance of their house to the school and the danger posed by
walking to the school has the same response average, or a mean of 1.04. This means that both
are not reasons for them to be absent from school.

B. Health

Fever/flu is the most common reason of for being absent. It has the highest response average
of 2.4. It is followed by headache, with an average response of 1.67. Other diseases like
diarrhea come in third with 1.61 average responses. The least common reason for them for
being absent is stomach ache, with 1.39 averages.

C. Personal Attitude

That the pupils doesn’t wake up early enough is the most common reason why he/she is absent.
This account for 1.91 mean. Another reason commonly cited is that they can’t concentrate on
their studies and that they were not able to study their lessons. This resulted from 1.45 and 1.37
mean respectively. Feeling lazy and playing computer games also keep them away from school.
The former has a response average of 1.26 while the latter has 1.22.

D. Teacher-related

When the pupils are scolded for their bad behavior by the teacher, this tends to make them be
absent from their classes. It has the highest average response of 1.38 while the reason that they
can’t understand their lessons follow close behind with 1.32 mean.

E. Classroom Atmosphere

The highest mean of 1.77 was accorded to noise inside the classroom which means that this is
the primary reason why they tend to be truant. Bullying by fellow students follows with 1.39
response average.

F. Home-related

Pupils who say their parents asked them to be absent resulted in the highest mean of 1.52.
Household chores come second with a response average of 1.47. The other reasons ranged from
1.08 to 1.39, including not having money to spend for snacks and other small expenses in
school, no breakfast/food, and that their parents quarreled.

The response average or the mean was computed by multiplying the percentage of responses
by the equivalent value of each frequency and then adding them all.

Conclusions

 Among all the causes presented, health is the primary reason why students are absent from
their classes. Flu/fever is the leading culprit in this category. Oral health, which according to
the Department of Education is the main reason why pupils are absent, is just third among the
reasons cited by the responding students.
 Classroom atmosphere, personal attitude, teacher factor and home-related reasons follow in
that order. The least reason they give is related to their physical environment.

Of all the factors/categories cited, the top 10 reasons of student absenteeism are as follows:

1) Flu/fever

2) Can’t wake up early

3) Noise inside the classroom


4) Headache

5) Other diseases such as diarrhea

6) Parents asking them to be absent

7) Preoccupation with household chores

8.3) Toothache

8.3) No money to buy snacks in school

8.3) Bullied by a classmate/classmates

Frequency of Responses
Always Very Often Sometimes Rarely Never
(5) (4) (3) (2) (1)

A. Physical Factor

1. Our house is far from the school. 0 0 1 0 27

2. It is unsafe to go to school. 0 0 1 0 27

3. Nobody accompanies me in going to school


0 0 0 0 28
since it is far.

B. Health

1. I have a toothache. 0 2 8 4 10

2. My stomach hurts. 0 0 10 4 4

3. I have a headache 0 1 14 9 4

4. I'm down with fever/flu. 0 5 22 2 2

5. I have other diseases like diarrhea, etc. 0 1 9 10 8

C. Personal Attitude

1. I am not interested in my studies. 0 0 0 0 28

2. I feel lazy. 0 0 5 6 17

3. My friends influence me to be absent from


0 0 2 1 20
my classes.

4. I can't concentrate in my studies. 0 0 9 9 10

5. I didn't wake up early. 0 5 10 8 10


Always Very Often Sometimes Rarely Never
(5) (4) (3) (2) (1)

6. I did not study/make my assignments the


0 2 5 7 10
night before.

7. I got fond of playing computer games. 0 1 5 0 22

D. Teacher-Related Factors

1. My teacher scolded me. 0 1 6 1 21

2. I can't understand my teacher's lessons. 0 0 7 5 16

3. I don't like my teacher. 0 0 0 0 28

E. Classroom atmosphere

1.Our classroom is hot and uncomfortable. 0 0 3 1 20

2. It's noisy inside our classroom. 1 2 0 1 20

3. A classmate/classmates bully me. 0 1 3 1 19

4. I have no friends in our class. 0 0 0 0 28

F. Home-Related Factors

1. My parents ask me to be absent from class. 0 0 5 6 16

2. My parents quarreled. 0 0 2 1 20

3. My parents don't care about my studies. 0 0 1 1 26

4. I'm too pre-occupied with household


1 3 5 3 16
chores.

5. I have no money to buy snacks in school. 0 1 2 2 23

6. We have no food/I did not eat. 0 0 7 2 19

What Strategies Can Minimize or Eradicate Absenteeism?

In order to limit or eliminate absenteeism, it is recommended that educators:

1. educate the pupils on how to take care of their overall well-being. Emphasis should be given
to oral health and overall body wellness. Teach them how to avoid communicable diseases.
Give them information on how to properly wash their hands, which is the main source of
germs and bacteria among children. Let them develop proper eating habits. Since most of the
children in the school come from poor families, point out to them the cheap but healthy foods.
Ask them to pass on this information to their parents.
2. ensure that classroom atmosphere is conducive to learning. Noise-reduction among students
should be a priority. Older children, like grade II pupils, tend to have louder voices so they
should be taught how to speak softly and without needing to shout. The key here is discipline.
The teacher must also see to it that the students are comfortable and have no other concerns
except the lesson at hand. There should be a lively interaction between the teacher and the
students, but the teacher should see to it that noise is modulated so as not to distract pupils
from their learning.
3. inform parents about the benefit of keeping their children in school. Emphasize to them that
if they keep on asking their children to be absent, this will set a bad example to the child. If
the parents themselves are keeping the child away from school, they must believe that
household concerns are more important than their education.
4. refrain from scolding misbehaving pupils. As much as possible, remind them of their wrong
doing in a most diplomatic manner. Self-control should be a virtue which the teacher should
practice in the course of her teaching everyday of the school week.
5. give extra attention to those who are left behind in the lessons. Tap the bright pupils to teach
their slower classmates. In other words, cooperative learning should be practiced in the
teaching-learning process. Once a slow pupils fully understands the lesson, he/she can keep
up with his/her other classmates, thus self-confidence is gained.
6. emphasize that academic success is very much dependent on student attitude towards
school. Motivate them so they will be looking forward to attending their classes regularly. For
those who wake up late, encourage them to get an alarm clock. Do not scold the pupils who
come late. Give them a time-table to change their sleeping habits and to study before bed
instead of watching TV.

Absenteeism and Dropping Out

I would like to caution all the parents out there: You may or may not know that your children
are always absent from school. One of the rules I implement in my class is to require an excuse
from a parent or guardian for every child's absence. Many of them comply, but some pupils get
other people to write an excuse letter for them. When this happens, I call on the parents and let
them know about it. It is only then that they become aware of the child’s absence from my
class. When they found out about it, some of them scold their child in front of me. This gives
me an insight into my pupils’s life at home.

But the most disturbing thing is that habitually absent students eventually drop out of my class.
This happens to all my colleagues. We do our best to prevent drop-outs, but it is beyond our
control. We can only hope that these students will come back the next year, change their ways,
and that that whatever was hindering their studies is behind them.

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