Tracking more than absences

The book presents 2 years of work examining truancy. The study focused on the school environment as a key factor in school disengagement and explored the impact of schools’ social bonding opportunities on chronic truancy, as perceived by middle school administrators. A cross-sectional online survey consisting of 81 items was completed by 99 Indiana public middle schools administrators. The results showed that chronic truancy was directly and indirectly influenced when students had a belief in the value of school and were involved in school activities. For many years, schools did not see meeting students’ social needs as part of their responsibility. However, as evident from this study, schools that focus on student social bonding or engagement in school have lower rates of chronic truancy. With more time in pro-social activities, students will have higher stakes in school and less time to engage in delinquency. The crux of the matter is that the school has a huge role to play in whether students value school and thereby invest in it.