The Changing Role of Attendance Officers in Israel : Beyond Attendance to School Adjustment and Wellbeing

Author(s):

Ruth Baruj-Kovarsky(presenting / submitting)

Conference:

ECER 2017

Network:

05. Children and Youth at Risk and Urban Education

Format:

Paper

Session Information

05 SES 02 A,

Paper Session

Time:

2017-08-22

15:15-16:45

Room:

W2.11

Chair:

Ruth Baruj-Kovarsky

Contribution

For most adolescents, school is the principal framework where they acquire scholastic skills and enjoy social relationships with their contemporaries. Leaving school before completion of studies (dropping out) is a complex social problem with considerable social and economic implications for the students themselves and society as a whole. These often include low income in the future, employment difficulties, health problems and low self-esteem (Theunissen et al., 2012; Sum et al., 2011; Carlson & Martinez, 2011; Bloom et al., 2010)

In the past, preventing student dropout was the main concern of policymakers in education, and ensuring full attendance was a primary concern. Many countries have community Attendance Officers (AOs) who work with students who have dropped out of school, often in the context of compulsory education laws, and with students with poor attendance. However, in recent decades, attention has increasingly turned to students who are physically at school but disengaged from meaningful study (Sultana, 2006). In most cases, this happens gradually and is not a sudden event, with studies showing that signs of school disengagement may appear during students' early school years (Ross, 2009; Lloyd-Jones et al., 2010; Stehlik, 2013, Butler et al., 2005; Balfanz, Herzog & MacIver, 2007).

The AO's role is defined differently in various places and the officer is not always part of the education system. In the USA, some states employ AOs as part of the education system (White & Kelly, 2010), and others define a similar role as part of truancy-specific programs working within the juvenile justice system (Mogulescu & Heidi, 2002). In the UK the AO's role is part of the education welfare service, and is called the educational welfare officer (EWO). In some local authorities, the EWOs are based in schools, in others, they are not (Reid, 2006a).

Worldwide, the role continues to change (Sheldon, 2007; Tyack & Berkowitz, 1977; Henderson et al., 2016). In the UK the service once focused on school attendance, emphasizing law enforcement vis-à-vis the parents. Over the years, the role has grown considerably to include a broad range of complex tasks relating to the student's school performance (Reid, 2006a). They see their primary role as helping disengaged students get back on a normative study track in an appropriate educational framework. In addition to dealing with attendance and providing evidence in court when necessary, the EWO's role includes student behavior, under-achievement, health and wellbeing (Reid, 2008; White & Kelly, 2010). EWOs work with parents, teachers, educational psychologists, police, social services and other external agencies (Reid, 2006b).

The study that we will present was conducted as part of a comprehensive process of professional development for AO's in Israel. The AOs are employed by local authorities and formally charged with enforcing the Compulsory Education Law vis-à-vis the parents (Sheldon, 2007). In 2015, the Israeli educational system employed 708 AOs who treated 62,635 students in class 1-12 – 2.6% of students of that class in the education system in Israel (and 4.3% of the students' class 10-12).

The study sought the way that AOs carry out their role today, with special focus on the balance achieved between their role in authoritative law enforcement in preventing truancy, versus their role in providing guidance to help students cope with school disengagement and other problems. Key study topics include characteristics of students referred to AOs in Israel; and AO practices and the balance between the authoritative and guidance roles

Method

The study has three sources of information: 1. In-depth interviews. To learn about the characteristics of the AO, qualitative methodology was utilized, focusing on the description by four AOs of their work and perception of their task. We conducted in-depth interviews of four AOs with 8-20 years of experience, who also serve as AO coaches and thus are considered to have a broad overall perspective of the job. Each interview lasted 1.5-2 hours. The analysis was conducted by grouping the texts into principal categories (themes) from which we could learn about defined areas noted in interview. The categories were organized using the Naralyzer program for qualitative data. 2. Analysis of administrative data. To supplement the qualitative data, we analyzed data from Ministry of Education national administrative files used for routine documentation of students in the care of AOs, the work conducted and outcomes achieved during the years 2005-2015. The data were linked to other MOE administrative files that included demographic information and information about scholastic achievements. The analysis focused on the characteristics of the students in the care of AOs, the problems causing truancy identified by the AOs, the AOs' relationship with other agencies and the main steps taken. 3. National survey of all AOs in Israel. The survey addresses topics including Personal characteristics, key work methods, partnerships with other organizations and professionals working with students, special training for the profession, and other needs. The survey is now in its final development stages, and initial findings will be presented.

Expected Outcomes

In the interviews, respondents described their work as far more oriented to a guidance role than law enforcement. They described a figurative triangle with three focal points: the student, the school and the parents. They consider each point as critical in its own right but also emphasized the importance of the lines connecting them. The administrative data in 2015 support the interview findings that the AOs' work does not focus on law enforcement: only 1% of the cases of the students who were identified and follow up were brought to court. The administrative data also support the student-school-parents triangle: A significant proportion of the AOs' work is with the parents: discussions were held with parents of 45% of the students referred to them. Discussions and meetings were held with the school staff of 56% of the students. In this triangle it seems possible that the least work of the AO's was done with the students themselves, and this issue will also be addressed in the survey. Discussions, counselling or guidance were directly provided to only 28% of the students. In addition, part of the AOs' task involves referrals to other agencies – community psychological and welfare services – for 28% of the students. Our preliminary findings show that the role of the AO has indeed evolved in Israel and, similar to many other western countries, these professionals are increasingly engaging in guidance directly with students and schools, rather than their original law-enforcement function of working with parents. This requires new policy for AO job descriptions, entry-level training and especially professional development efforts so that AOs can perform well. Another critical issue, is to developed shared understandings and expectation with other school staff, and to develop a division of labor among various professionals in the community working with troubled youth.

References

Balfanze, R., Herzog, L., Mac-Iver, D.J. 2007. "Preventing students disengagement and keeping students on the graduation path in urban middle-grade schools: Early identification and effective interventions". Educational Psychologist 42(4), 223-235. Butler, H. Bond, L. Drew, S. Krelle, A. Seal., I. 2005. "Doing it differently: Improving young people’s engagement with school". Brotherhood of St Laurence: Melbourne. Carlson, P., Martinez, R. 2011. "Student disengagement: A national concern from local perspective". National Social Science Proceedings. Vol. 48, 54-70. Hendersom, M., Cheung, S.Y., Sharland, E., Scourfield, J. 2016. "The outcomes of educational welfare officer contact in England". British Educational Research Journal, 42(3), 399-416. Lloyd-Jones, S., Bowen, R., Holton, D., Griffin, T., Sims, J. 2010. "A qualitative research study to explore young people's disengagement from learning". Welsh Assembly Government Social Research. Mogulescu, S., Heidi, J. 2002. Approaches to truancy prevention. Vera institute of justice. Reid, K. 2006a. "Education Welfare: at the crossroads?" Practical research for education 35, 13-19. Reid, K. 2006b. The professional development needs of education welfare officers on the management of school attendance. Journal of In-service education, 32(2), 237-254. Reid, K. 2008. "The education welfare service: the case for a review in England". Educational Studies, 34(3), 175-189 Ross, A. 2009. "Disengagement from education among 14-16 year old". National Centre for Social Research. Sheldon, N. 2007. "The school Attendance Officer 1900-1939: Policeman to Welfare Worker?" History of Education 36(6), 735-746. Sultana, R.G. 2006. "Facing the hidden drop-out challenge in Albania. Evaluation report of hidden drop-out project pilot in basic education in 6 prefectures of Albania, 2001-2005". UNICEF Sum, A., Khatiwada, I., McLaughlin, J., Palma, S. 2011. "High school dropouts in Chicago and Illinois: The growing labor market, income, civic, social and fiscal costs of dropping out of high school". Center for Labor Market Studies publications. Theunissen, M.J., Van, I.G., Verdonk, P, Feron, F., Bosma, H. 2012. "The early identification of risk factors on the pathway to school dropout in the SIODO study: a sequential mixed-methods study". BMC Public Health. Tyack, D., Berkowitz, M. 1977. The man nobody liked: Toward a social history of the truant officer, 1840-1940. American quarterly, 29(1), 331-54. Wardhaugh, J. 1990. Regulating truancy: the role of the education welfare service. The sociological review 38(4), 735-764 White, S.W., Kelly, F.D. 2010. "The school counselor's role in school dropout prevention". Journal of counseling and development, 88(2), 227-235.

Author Information

Ruth Baruj-Kovarsky (presenting / submitting)

MYERS-JDC-BROOKDALE INSTITUTE

CHILDREN & YOUTH- EDUCATION

Jerusalem

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