NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION
OF SOCIAL
WORKERS IN
EDUCATION
Founded 1884
ASSOCIATION
OF SOCIAL
WORKERS IN
EDUCATION
Founded 1884
The Causes and Effects of TruancySheila Edward and Heather Malcolm summarise the findings of a literature review conducted as part of their recent DfES sponsored research looking at the causes and effects of truancy.
The lack of overall reduction in truancy levels, coupled with the evidence of effort innovation, and success at local level is puzzling: it seems possible that the initiatives have had some impact, but perhaps changes in the causes and categories of non-attendance are masked by the statistics. Below we outline the findings of a review, undertaken to inform the DfES funded project on the Causes and Effects of Truancy, in which we sought to explore both on-going debates about the meanings and measurement of non-attendance in the literature, and the impact of recent initiatives and related research on our understanding of truancy.
Truancy: Problems of definition
Stoll (1990) defines truancy as "absence from school for no legitimate reason". The key terms of this simple definition have, however, been much debated. Atkinson, Halsey, Wilkin and Kinder (2000) point to differences in the extent of absence, from avoidance of single lessons to absences of several weeks.........
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