Attendance is a big problem at our school. Each semester I have students who begin their classes but stop coming to school after a few days or a few weeks. Feedback from former students tells me that the teacher student relationship can be a motivating factor in students attending class. For my action research project I would like to measure whether texting students when they are absent impacts their return to school.
The article, The Voices of High School Dropouts: Implications for Research and Practice, talks about several reasons the students drop out of high school. Two of the main reasons stated by the article are skipping and poor relationships with school staff. While this article's main premise was support for keeping the GED test, the statistic on why students drop out will be useful in my project.
Meeker, S., Edmonson, S., & Fisher, A. (2009). The voices of high school dropouts: Implications for research and practice. International Journal on School Disaffection, 6(1), 40-52. Retrieved from ERIC database.
The article, Classroom Management Strategies for Difficult Students: Promoting Change Through Relationships, talks about the importance of student teacher relationships. The the article addresses middle school students and how empathy can be effective in dealing with difficult students. It also states that all students should not be treated the same when it comes to classroom management. Students have different needs and it is best if the teacher can get to know the student and respond in a way that is effective with the student's needs. Many times my students are absent due to family issues. Our attendance policy punishes them rather than shows empathy for their situation. A text message of concern could be a way to reach out to these students rather than alienating them for being absent.
The article, Log On, Don't Drop Out: Technology Trumps Truancy, on Edutopia told about a dropout prevention and recovery program in the Los Angeles unified school district. The program, My Future, My Decision uses technology such as text messaging, MySpace, and YouTube to try to reach students who have missed school or are in jeopardy of dropping out. The program has former students make YouTube videos about their journey to graduation and the importance of earning a high school diploma.
Libby, B. (n.d.). Log on, don't drop out: Technology trumps truancy | Edutopia. K-12 Education & Learning Innovations with Proven Strategies that Work | Edutopia. Retrieved October 03, 2010, from http://www.edutopia.org/los-angeles-dropout-technology
Libby, B. (n.d.). Log on, don't drop out: Technology trumps truancy | Edutopia. K-12 Education & Learning Innovations with Proven Strategies that Work | Edutopia. Retrieved October 03, 2010, from http://www.edutopia.org/los-angeles-dropout-technology
The article, Five Ways to Use Texting in the Classroom, discussing uses for cell phones within the school. Two part of the article that relate to my research are using cell phones for the home school connection and using Twitter to get updated information to students. I am still a novice when in comes to Twitter. I definitely need to do more research on this communication system and see if it is applicable to the goals of my project.
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