Academic Monitoring System – Attendance
Date: 30/04/2020
(read in conjunction with the College Regulations)
This policy is based on the expectation that all students accept the importance of attending every lesson. The following rules explain how the College monitors attendance and the steps it will take to encourage those few students whose attendance does not meet expected norms.
Monitoring
- Attendance is monitored by subject teachers for every lesson; each teacher completes the electronic register for every lesson, recording students who have missed their classes.
- Attendance information is collated and can be viewed in the attendance section of Staff Advantage and on the student ‘MyStClares’ webpage.
- Students can view their attendance data on their ‘MyStClares’ webpage. The student should alert the relevant member of staff if the record is inaccurate.
- Personal tutors and Boarding Staff are able to access the student absence data.
- Absences, judged as justified or unjustified are included in reports to parents, on a subject by subject basis. Parents are also able to access the attendance information by logging on to the Parents’ Zone and viewing their child’s profile.
Response to missed classes – justified absences
Justified absences are supported by
- an email to the Academic Office from the Nurse
- an email to the Academic Office for a trip (from the trip organiser), University visit (from Careers), sporting match (from the CAS team) etc… Not all planned absences will be justified e.g. early departures at the end of term will not be justified.
Response to missed classes – unjustified absences
A. Subject teachers must make reasonable efforts to deal with the situation themselves e.g.
- clarifying ‘attendance expectations’ with student
- insisting that catch-up work is completed at a time and place of the teacher’s choosing.
B. If a student misses any class(es) without justification, in the previous week, then the House Parent will gate the student from 19:30 on the Saturday night.
The student will not be permitted to take a weekend away.
C. If a student misses 10 lessons without justification, whilst they are at St. Clare’s, a Personal Tutor letter of concern is sent to the parent and the Personal Tutor will place the student on subject report to them for one week. The Personal Tutor needs to discuss the importance of attendance with the student and ensure that they are aware of the sanctions for further attendance problems.
D. The Assistant Principal, Pastoral will place a student on an Assistant Principal’s report for 1 week if they incur 20 unjustified absences whilst at St. Clare’s. This will be accompanied by a letter to parents to indicate concern.
E. If the student has a further 10 unjustified absences (30 in total), then the student will be internally suspended. This will be accompanied by a letter to parents to indicate concern. The student will have a 9pm curfew and not be permitted weekends away for a period of 5 weeks following the end of the suspension.
F. If a student has failed to respond to the steps noted above, and they miss 40 lessons without justification, the Vice Principal, Pastoral will externally suspend the student. The student will have a 9pm curfew and not be permitted weekends away for a period of 10 weeks following their return to St. Clare’s.
G. Further absences indicating failure to respond sufficiently to the steps above will result in a student being required to leave St. Clare’s.
Covid 19 addition:
During online teaching all students are pre-marked for remote teaching. Staff still take a register and make contact with the Academic Office if there are students who are not present whose attendance was not previously agreed. Students in adverse time zones are not expected to attend class during the night, so they can access the lesson through recordings made. Personal tutors in conjunction with the APP and VPP follow up on any absences, with action being taken if there is repeated absence.
Notes:
- Absences from Pre-IB will not be carried over to IB.
- Absences from IB1 will be carried forward to IB2.
- Punctuality policy: if a student is marked late 2 or more times in a week, then s/he will be gated on Saturday from 19:30.
- If a Pre-IB or IB1 student’s overall attendance drops below 90% (taking both justified and unjustified absences into account), the college reserves the right to insist that the student repeats the year.
- If a student from United Kingdom Visas and Immigration is absent for 10 consecutive teaching days then St. Clare’s will notify the United Kingdom Border Agency. This may lead to cancellation of the student’s visa.
- St Clare’s does not authorise extended absence from College for sporting, musical, cultural or other such events. In exceptional circumstances, permission may be granted by the Vice Principal, Pastoral for a student to have authorised absence to participate in an event which will be of very significant educational value. The student will need to demonstrate clearly: the exceptional value of the event; that it cannot be scheduled outside term; that the student has no unjustified absences; that the student has excellent effort grades and that the student is capable of catching up on work missed by the absence. This decision is entirely at the Vice Principal’s discretion.
- Non-emergency medical appointments should be scheduled only during the holiday periods and should not impact on attendance to classes, particularly at the beginnings and ends of both terms and half-terms. Early departures at the end of term, for the purpose of attending a medical or dental appointment, will not be authorised i.e. the absences would not be justified. If such appointments need to be scheduled during term time, the request for absence should be made in advance, in writing, but absences will not be justified.
Most recent review / amendment
APP December 2020
