Research Paper on:
Proposed Study/Absenteeism in Elementary Grades

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
the elementary grades? 3. How does illness affect absenteeism and can this factor be addressed through interventions? 4. Does the literature offer recommendations and strategies for addressing this problem  that are empirically proven? Definitions of Terms Chronic Absenteeism - Being absent from school in excess of 18 days (Breaoen, 2007). Excused absence - When an absence is  due to illness, injury, a death in the family, or another legitimate reason acknowledged by school policy for being absent from school. A note from a parent/guardian or a doctor  is typically required for these absences and missed work must be made up by the student. Unexcused absence - When an absence from school does not meet one of  the above criteria. Literature Review Research on absenteeism and truancy in regards to middle and high school students has long established the negative effect that school absences have on  academic performance and achievement; however, there has been relatively little research conducted in regards to absenteeism in the early school years (Romero and Lee, 2007). However, there is significant evidence  that in the elementary grades, as in later grades, absenteeism has a negative effect on learning that can be correlated with later absenteeism as well. The "National Portrait of Chronic  Absenteeism in the Early Grades," compiled by Romero and Lee (2007) for the Columbia Universitys National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) reports that "14% of kindergartners, 12% of first  graders, 11% of third graders and 10% of fifth graders" could be considered at risk for absenteeism and that "one-quarter of all kindergarten children were either at-risk or chronic absentees"  (Romero and Lee, 2007). In general, at all grade levels, there is an inverse relationship between family income levels and absentee rates, as children from low-income and poor families