Students with chronic absences tend to struggle academically and may not benefit fully from all school has to offer. A positive school climate has been shown to reduce absenteeism and promote academic success. In this study, we explored how a positive school climate and high satisfaction with school may influence absences and academic performance.
METHODS:We used mediated path analysis to describe relationships involving school climate, school satisfaction, absences, and grades among 6839 middle school (49% female, 82% white) and 7470 high school (51% female, 85.0% white) students from 26 West Virginia schools.
RESULTS:In the middle and high school samples, we found that a positive school climate and high satisfaction with school reduces school absenteeism. Findings also suggest students with more absences tend to perform less well academically; a positive school climate and school satisfaction may promote good grades.
CONCLUSIONS:Missing a substantial amount of school days for any reason may hinder students academic success, but “skipping” may require added attention. Improving school climate and student satisfaction with school may contribute to better attendance and grades.
Keywords: adolescence, adolescents, school contentment, truancy, school absenteeism, mediation analysis
Chronic absenteeism in schools has been highlighted as a national concern in the United States.1 Although high school graduation rates he steadily climbed in the United States, reducing the achievement gap continues to be a national priority.2 According to the US Department of Education, 1 in 7 students will miss ≥15 days of school annually.3 Students who miss a substantial number of school days tend to struggle more academically and be at greater risk of falling behind their peers.4,5 Students with a high number of absences also are more likely to drop out of school, which is linked to poorer life and health outcomes in adulthood.6,7
A review of the scientific literature related to school absenteeism suggests no easy solution has been identified.8 Students miss school due to a myriad of complex social factors such as poverty and family dysfunction.9,10 Social ecological theories suggest complex pathways among student absenteeism, health, and academic behiors.11,12 For example, social ecological models suggest that student perceptions of key characteristics in the school environment, such as the relevance of the curriculum or the existence of a culture of learning, may influence whether or not they choose to attend school.13
Clearly, a student who is deciding whether or not to attend school makes their decision based on a number of factors, not all of which are related to school or their school experience. However, understanding what schools can do to increase the likelihood of students choosing to attend school remains important, especially because doing so may contribute directly to: (1) helping school personnel make purposeful changes in the school environment likely to maximize student attendance and academic performance, and (2) reducing education and health disparities likely to persist into adulthood and contribute to reduced opportunity and wellbeing.14,15
From the social ecological perspective, school climate represents a good starting point from which to think about how to improve student attendance and grades. School climate is often described as student perceptions of the cultural norms, values, practices, and relationships associated with school life.16 For students, school climate is often based on: (1) interpersonal connections such as bonding with school staff and friends; (2) school safety such as admiration and compliance to school rules; (3) academic equity such as a sense of fair treatment and accomplishment in school; (4) school satisfaction such as personal contentment with studies and experiences; and (5) school connection such as social bonding or identifying with the school environment.17 A school climate can be considered “positive” when students reliably describe the elements listed above in positive terms. For example, a positive description of school climate might include student perceptions of school as a friendly and safe place in which the student feels proud of their accomplishments and connected to their community.
Measures of school climate also may provide a window into adolescent life and help explain key determinants of student academic and life success rooted in student experiences in the school environment.18 Previous studies he shown that a positive school climate may promote healthy psychosocial development and wellbeing, while buffering negative effects from poverty and social distress.19 These studies he also shown that school climate may contribute to reduced rates of student absences and school suspensions.20 Additionally, research suggests that when students are engaged in a positive school climate, such as hing good relationships with teachers and peers, they are less likely to choose delinquent or deviant behiors both inside and outside of school.21
A study by Hendron and Kearney22 helps illustrate this idea. Their research examined the relationships between school climate, absenteeism, and the severity and symptoms of psychopathology. Findings from their study suggested a positive school climate helped reduce school absenteeism and improve student mental health. This work reinforces the idea that when schools intentionally improve school climate by shaping key elements of school climate, such as positive interactions between students, teachers, families, and the broader community, they are likely creating conditions that also lead to higher rates of student attendance, as well as the likelihood of greater academic success and wellbeing.23,24
One element of school climate that may be especially relevant to student attendance is school satisfaction. School satisfaction can be thought of as student perceptions of their contentment or “happiness” with school life, as well as their sense of connection to their school.25,26 Studies on students’ satisfaction with school he mostly come out of the field of positive psychology and he earned a cross-disciplinary spotlight in education and school health.27 This research suggests school satisfaction can be an important indicator of adolescent mental and emotional health.28 Students who bond with their school appear to he more positive perceptions of school climate and are less likely to engage in delinquent or deviant behior.29 To date, studies that examine the associations among the broader elements of school climate, their influence on school satisfaction, and the subsequent impact on student absences and grades he been limited. That is unfortunate as these school climate and school satisfaction are intuitively connected and he demonstrated an impact on school absences and grades.30 To fill this gap in the literature, researchers he called for more complex research designs that clarify the relationships among school climate, school satisfaction, student absences, and grades.17
Therefore, our purpose was to explore the relationships among 3 common measures of school climate: school satisfaction, 2 types of absence, and academic grades, using independent samples of middle and high school students. Due to the exploratory nature, 5 hypotheses guided this study: (1) students’ absences would demonstrate a negative relationship with academic grades; (2) school climate and school satisfaction would show a positive relationship with academic grades; (3) school climate would demonstrate a positive relationship with school satisfaction; (4) school climate and school satisfaction would demonstrate a negative relationship with absences; and (5) study findings would vary between the middle and high school samples.
Answering questions related to school climate, school satisfaction, student attendance, and grades are particularly relevant today, as school-based policy frameworks such as the Whole School, Whole Child, Whole Community Model (WSCC) and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) advocate the use of comprehensive assessments that include measuring student absences and school climate.31,32 Better understanding of how students experience school life and how those experiences inform student decisions to miss school seem important in the current policy environment. Hopefully, providing a more comprehensive understanding of how school climate contributes to school satisfaction and student performance will help policymakers, administrators, and teachers make decisions that lead to higher rates of student attendance and success in school and life.33
METHODS Participants, Procedures, and Data ManagementWe used a prospective clustered sample of 6839 middle school (response rate = 82.3%, 48.5% female, 81.8% white) and 7470 high school students (response rate = 72.9%, 50.9% female, 85.0% white) students located in 26 regional schools from 3 West Virginia counties. Students from each area signify a spectrum of diverse characteristics from families living in severe isolation/poverty to modest privilege/affluence.34 We used passive consent by sending a letter home to caregivers to provide an opportunity for exclusion of their children (parental opt out rate < 1%).35 Surveys were administered by classroom teachers with supervision by a school contact agent to ensure confidentiality of responses. Participation was voluntary and made ailable to all students. Students were free to answer all or part of the survey and elect to opt-out of participation at any time. Data cleaning procedures removed 236 observations. Missing data were handled using full information maximum likelihood estimation.36 Kristjansson et al.37 provide further details on data collection procedures.
Measures Academic grades.Self-reported grades were captured using a single question: “What were your FINAL grades in the following subjects LAST year?” for Mathematics and English. Responses were combined to represent students’ overall grades.38 Academic grades were then pooled into ordered categories, Mostly As/Bs (coded 2), Mostly Cs (coded 1), and Mostly Ds/Fs (coded 0). Mostly As/Bs indicated higher academic performance.
School absences.Days absent were assessed with: “How many days he you been absent from school during the last 30 days?” with 2 sub-questions: “skipped class” or “illness.” Response options included: “none” to “7 or more days.” Based on a preliminary tests of over-dispersion,39 absence variables were dichotomized to “never” absent (coded 0) and absent due to “skipped class” or “illness” (coded 1).
School satisfaction.Five items assessed school satisfaction using a 5-point Likert type scale.40 Response options ranged from “applies almost always to me” (coded 1) to “applies almost never to me” (coded 5) with higher scores indicating more school satisfaction. Items were combined and used as a continuous mediator.
School climate.Three sub-scales (positive student-teacher relationships, order and safety, and opportunities for student engagement) and 20-items were selected from the School Climate Measure developed by Zullig et al.41 School climate questions use a 5-point Likert type scale with response options “strongly disagree” (coded 1) to “strongly agree” (coded 5). Higher scores indicate a positive perception of school climate. Zullig et al.41,42 provide further details on SCM items and instrument validity.
CovariatesStudy covariates were selected and supported using citations based on a review of school- and student-based research literature.
Biological sex.Biological sex43 was assessed by asking respondents: “Are you a boy or girl?” Male (coded 0) and female (coded 1) were represented as a dichotomous covariate.
Family structure.A 19-item multi-response question: “Which of the following persons live in your home?” was used to capture family structure.44 For our analysis, the question was dichotomized into “lives with both biological parents” (coded 1) and “other arrangements” (coded 0).
Maternal education.Maternal education45 was captured by asking students to select 1 of 9 response options from a singular question: “What is the highest level of schooling your mother has completed?” Responses were pooled into categories to simplify analyses, “college graduate” (coded 3), “high school graduate” (coded 2), “less than high school” (coded 1), and “I don’t know” (coded 0).
Data AnalysisDescriptive statistics such as counts, means, standard deviations, and scale reliability were calculated in SAS 9.4.46 Mediated path analyses were used to describe direct and indirect associations between school climate, school satisfaction, absences, and academic grades were performed in Mplus 8.0.47 Additionally, students’ biological sex, family structure, and maternal education were included as covariates. The “complex” option in Mplus47 was used to handle statistical anomalies such as non-normality and non-independence of participants clustered in schools with robust standard errors.48 These options were selected because not accounting for children clustered in schools can produce inaccurate results. Lastly, Monte Carlo integration was used to handle missing values on mediator variables49 such as school satisfaction (Figure 1).
Figure 1.
Mediated Path Analysis Model for School Climate and Types of Absences
To handle the categorical characteristics of absences (binary) and academic grades (ordinal), we used binary and ordinal probit regression, signified by β^.50,51 To analyze continuous (mean scale scores) characteristics of school climate and school satisfaction, we used multiple linear regression, indicated as B. To show the practical importance of direct and indirect associations between study variables, we calculated proportional odds, shown as exp(β^), and standardized regression coefficients, indicated as β. To help select the model that best fit our sample data, we used the deviance statistic (−2LL), Akaike Information Criteria (AIC), and Bayesian Information Criteria (BIC).52 Lastly, statistical significance was determined with an alpha level of .05.
RESULTSFifty percent of middle school and 47% of high school students reported being absent from school due to illness. Absences due to skipping school were much lower with 6% of middle school and 15% of high school indicated missing school for this reason.
On erage, middle school students perceptions of school climate were slightly positive and ranged from 3.5 (SD = 0.9) for positive-teacher relationships to 3.7 (SD = 0.9) for student engagement. High school students perceptions of school climate ranged from 3.1 (SD = 0.9) for positive student-teacher relationships to 3.4 (SD = 0.9) for student engagement. All school climate sub-scales demonstrated acceptable reliability for middle and high school students (α = 0.88-0.94) and good factor analysis measurement fits (middle school: CFI = 0.98, SRMR = 0.02;high school: CFI = 0.98, SRMR = 0.02).
Similar to school climate sub-scales, on erage, middle school 3.7 (SD = 1.2) and high school students 3.4 (SD = 1.2) appear to be satisfied with school. In addition, the school satisfaction scale showed acceptable reliability for middle and high school students (α = 0.87-0.88) and excellent factor analysis measurement fits (middle: CFI = 0.99, SRMR = 0.01; high school: CFI = 0.99, SRMR = 0.02). Table 1 reports additional descriptive results.
TABLE 1.Descriptive Counts, Scale Means, Standard Deviations, and Reliability Coefficients For Study Samples
Middle school N = 6283 High school N = 7217 Demographic variable N % N % Academic grades Mostly As/Bs 4318 88.2 5028 82.7 Mostly Cs 414 8.5 730 11.9 Mostly Ds/Fs 163 3.3 325 5.4 Skipped or cut class No/Yes 4305/280 93.9/6.1 4858/865 85.0/15.1 Illness No/Yes 2489/2469 50.2/49.8 3166/2860 52.5/47.4 Sex Female/Male 3022/3224 48.4/51.6 3636/3534 50.7/49.3 Race White/All other races 5133/1150 81.7/18.3 6115/1102 84.7/15.3 Family structure (lives with) Biological parents/Other arrangements 3553/2730 56.5/43.5 3706/3511 51.3/48.7 Maternal education College Graduate/HS Graduate 1598/1535 26.6/25.6 2242/2299 32.8/32.0 Less HS/Not Sure 371/2513 6.1/41.7 698/1768 1.0/25.2 Scale variable M (SD) α M(SD) α School satisfaction 3.7 (1.2) 0.88 3.4 (1.2) 0.87 Teacher relationships 3.5 (0.9) 0.92 3.1 (0.9) 0.94 Order and safety 3.7 (0.9) 0.88 3.2 (0.9) 0.91 Student engagement 3.7 (0.9) 0.88 3.4 (0.9) 0.91 Open in a new tabα, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient.
Missing observations due to pairwise techniques not reported.
Figure 1 depicts a conceptual model for the mediated path analyses with all results for middle school students reported in Table 2 and high school students in Table 3. For reporting simplicity, only practical findings of the direct path estimates (associations) are outlined in this section.
Table 2.Direct and Indirect Effects for Mediated Path Analysis—Middle School
Teacher Relationships(N = 4822) Order and Safety(N = 4799) Student Engagement(N = 4790) DV (Model type) β^ SE Exp(β^) β^ SE Exp(β^) β^ SE Exp(β^) Grades (OPR) Skipped→ −0.41** 0.08 0.67 −0.43** 0.08 0.65 −0.42** 0.08 0.66 SC→ SS→ Skip→> 0.04** 0.01 1.04 0.04** 0.01 1.04 0.04** 0.01 1.04 SS→ Skip→ 0.07** 0.01 1.07 0.08** 0.01 1.08 0.08** 0.01 1.09 SC→ Skip→ 0.12** 0.03 1.13 0.11** 0.03 1.12 0.10 0.02 1.10 Illness→ −0.23** 0.04 0.79 −0.23** 0.04 0.79 −0.25** 0.04 0.79 SC→ SS→ Ill→ 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — SS→ Ill→ 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — SC→ Ill→ 0.02* 0.01 1.02 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — School Sat→ 0.18** 0.02 1.19 0.18** 0.02 1.20 0.18** 0.01 1.19 SC→ SS→ 0.10** 0.01 1.10 0.09** 0.01 1.10 0.09** 0.01 1.09 SC Subscale→ 0.11** 0.03 1.12 0.08** 0.02 1.09 0.10** 0.03 1.10 Skipped (PR) School Sat→ −0.17** 0.03 0.85 −0.18** 0.03 0.84 −0.20** 0.03 0.82 SC→ SS→ −0.09** 0.02 0.91 −0.09** 0.02 0.91 −0.10** 0.02 0.90 SC Subscale→ −0.30** 0.04 0.74 −0.26** 0.04 0.77 −0.23** 0.03 0.80 Illness (PR) School Sat→ −0.02 0.03 - −0.02 0.03 - −0.02 0.03 - SC→ SS→ −0.01 0.01 - −0.01 0.01 - −0.01 0.01 - SC Subscale→ −0.06** 0.03 0.94 −0.05** 0.03 0.96 −0.04 0.03 - School Sat. (MLR) B SE β B SE β B SE β SC Subscale→ 0.54** 0.03 0.41 0.52** 0.03 0.39 0.51** 0.03 0.38 −2LL (FP) AIC/BIC 25,994.75 (27) 26,048.75/26223.46 26,008.69 (27) 26,062.69/26012.22 25,958.22 (27) 26,012.22/26186.76 Open in a new tabOPR, ordinal probit regression; PR, probit regression; MLR, multiple linear regression; SC, School Climate, school sat; SS, School Satisfaction.
Analyses includes covariate adjustment and pairwise techniques.
**p ≤ .01
*p ≤ .05
Table 3.Direct and Indirect Effects for Mediated Path Analysis—High School
Teacher Relationships(N = 5917) Order and Safety(N = 5917) Student Engagement(N = 5920) DV (Model Type) β^ SE exp(β^) β^ SE exp(β^) β^ SE exp(β^) Grades (PR) Skipped→ −0.44** 0.05 0.64 −0.46** 0.05 0.63 −0.45** 0.05 0.64 SC→ SS→ Skip→ 0.05** 0.01 1.05 0.04** 0.01 1.04 0.05** 0.01 1.05 SS→ Skip→ 0.09** 0.01 1.09 0.09** 0.01 1.10 0.09** 0.01 1.09 SC→ Skip→ 0.06** 0.03 1.06 0.07** 0.02 1.07 0.05** 0.01 1.05 Illness→ −0.26** 0.04 0.77 −0.27** 0.04 0.76 −0.27** 0.04 0.77 SC→ SS→ Ill→ 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — SS→ Ill→ 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — 0.01 0.01 — SC→ Ill→ 0.03** 0.02 1.03 0.02* 0.02 0.88 0.02 0.01 — School Sat.→ 0.16** 0.02 1.18 0.18** 0.02 1.20 0.16** 0.02 1.18 SC→ SS→ 0.09** 0.01 1.09 0.09** 0.01 1.09 0.09** 0.01 1.09 SC Subscale→ 0.11** 0.02 1.12 0.06* 0.02 1.06 0.11** 0.02 1.12 Skipped (PR) School Sat.→ −0.20** 0.03 0.82 −0.19** 0.03 0.83 −0.20** 0.03 0.82 SC→ SS→ −0.11** 0.02 0.90 −0.09** 0.01 0.91 −0.11** 0.01 0.90 SC Subscale→ −0.13** 0.03 0.88 −0.15** 0.02 0.86 −0.11** 0.02 0.89 Illness (PR) School Sat.→ −0.03 0.03 — −0.04 0.03 - −0.04 0.03 — SC→ SS→ −0.02 0.01 — −0.02 0.01 - −0.02 0.01 — SC Subscale→ −0.10** 0.03 0.93 −0.07** 0.02 0.94 −0.06 0.04 — School Sat. (MLR) B SE β B SE β B SE β SC Subscale→ 0.54** 0.02 0.41 0.48** 0.01 0.36 0.51** 0.01 0.38 →2LL (FP) AIC/BIC 34,590.02 (27) 34,644.02/34823.86 34,655.79 (27) 34,709.79/34889.53 34,619.18 (27) 34,673.18/34852.93 Open in a new tab **p ≤ .01
*p ≤ .05.
OPR, ordinal probit regression; PR, probit regression; MLR, multiple linear regression; SC, school climate and school sat; SS, School Satisfaction.
Analyses includes covariate adjustment and pairwise techniques.
For middle school, all 3 models found a negative relationship between skipping school and academic grades (β^=−0.41 to −0.43). Similar to skipping, we found a negative relationship between missing school due to illness and academic grades (β^=−0.23 to −0.25). In all 3 models, results showed a positive relationship between school satisfaction and academic grades (β^=0.18). All 3 school climate sub-scales also showed a positive relationship with academic grades (β^=0.08-0.11). We observed a negative association between school satisfaction and skipping school (β^=−0.17 to −0.20). Comparably, all 3 school climate sub-scales also showed a negative association to skipping (β^=−0.23 to −0.30). For missing school due to illness, only positive student-teacher relationships showed a negative association (β^=−0.06). Lastly, all 3 school climate subscales showed positive associations between school satisfaction (β = 0.38-0.41).
In high school, all analyses showed negative relationships between skipping school and academic grades (β^=−0.46 to −0.44). Missing school due to illness, like middle school, showed negative relationships with academic grades (β^=−0.27 to −0.26). In all 3 models, findings suggest positive associations between school satisfaction and academic grades a (β^=0.16-0.18). All 3 school climate sub-scales showed positive associations with academic grades (β^=0.06-0.11). A negative relationship was found between school satisfaction and skipping school (β^=−0.20 to −0.19). Similar to school satisfaction, all 3 school climate sub-scales showed negative associations with skipping school (β^=−0.15 to −0.11). We observed negative relationships between positive student-teacher relationships (β^=−0.10) and order and safety (β^=−0.07) with missing school due to illness. Finally, all 3 school climate subscales showed positive associations with school satisfaction (β = 0.36-0.41).
DISCUSSIONThe purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between school climate, school satisfaction, student attendance, and student grades among middle and high school students. Academic grades and student attendance were analyzed as outcomes, because they so often drive decision-making by school professionals and policymakers.53 The following sections he been ordered as follows: (1) the relationships between academic achievement and absences due to illness or skipping, (2) the associations between school climate and school satisfaction on absences and academic achievement, (3) the relationship between school climate and school satisfaction, and (4) the modest variation between middle and high school students regarding types of absences.
Absences and Academic AchievementBoth missing school due to illness and choosing to skip or “cut” classes reduced academic grades in both middle and high school students. These results were anticipated as studies he established absenteeism as a strong predictor of academic risk and achievement.6 A review study by Black et al.54 suggests students who miss a substantial amount of school also exhibit lower academic performance. However, in our sample, the type of absence seem to impact academic grades differently, with illness-related absences hing less of an effect. This variation may be because skipping school could be a more autonomous choice, rather than being so ill one cannot attend school. Likewise, the decision making involved with skipping-related absences may be influenced by underlying issues.55,56 For example, studies that profile students as chronically absent from school, often describe similar characteristics to those students who drop out of school. A study by Freudenberg and Ruglis57 summarizes these risks into 3 social-ecological domains (eg, intra/interpersonal, community, and school system), underscoring the complexity of the multiple risk-factors that may lead a young person to skip school. Alternatively, illness such as pediatric asthma or mental health issues like depression and anxiety, he been shown to contribute to high rates of absenteeism, but can be mitigated by school nurses to reduce the burden of such chronic diseases.58 Our findings suggest different types of absences may, in fact matter, and differentially impact academic outcomes.
School Climate and School Satisfaction as Related to Achievement and AbsencesWhereas both illness and skipping-related measures of absence reduced academic grades, school climate and school satisfaction were associated with higher grades. Research has shown that both liking school and forming strong relationships at school may help explain behiors related to academic achievement.59 In this study, school satisfaction demonstrated slightly stronger effects on academic grades than school climate. Although studies consistently show school climate is associated with academic achievement,60 school satisfaction is related to many of the underlying behiors related to academic performance such as attitude and confidence toward academic ability.61,62 For example, Heffner and Antaramian63 suggest that students’ positive perception of their life and school were predictive of good academic performance. State and Kern64 suggest that at-risk students disliked school compared to other domains of life satisfaction (eg, family) and reported lower academic achievement. Simply stated, positive school experiences support good academic performance.65 Our findings linking school satisfaction and positive school climate to academic achievement support this position.
Furthermore, in both middle and high school analyses, school climate and school satisfaction reduced the likelihood of skipping school. These results were anticipated and are supported by the literature related to a positive school climate’s impact on absences.29 Interestingly, absences due to illness were only influenced by school climate measures of student-teacher relationships and order and safety and not by student engagement or school satisfaction. Studies suggest that positive relationships with teachers and other school personnel may buffer the effects that lead to these type of illness-based absences.66 Our results reinforce the importance of teachers and school personnel to reduce the likelihood school absences.
Relationship Between School Climate and School SatisfactionSchool climate was positively associated with school satisfaction. Students with a greater positive perception of school climate are more likely to enjoy school which is consistent with the current literary base. For example, Suldo et al.67 showed positive relationships with teachers and a mutual respect for school rules were associated with positive perceptions of school. This study’s findings support the importance of creating a positive school climate to promote better satisfaction with school. When schools focus on improving their climate in a positive way, this may reinforce satisfaction with school and, in turn, reduce absenteeism.
Variation Between Middle and High School Student ResultsAlthough school climate and school satisfaction were important to middle and high school students, there were a few notable variations. In middle school, school climate sub-scales presented more robust diminishing effects on skipping. A practical explanation of our results may suggest middle school students attribute not skipping school to emotionally supportive relationships with teachers, reinforcement of school rules that promote fairness, and engagement opportunities that may bolster social inclusivity and reduce alienation.68 On the other hand, school satisfaction was slightly more supportive at reducing skipping school among high school students. Developmental difference in older adolescents is well-established and may be reflected in students’ satisfaction with their school experience.69 School satisfaction among high school student may be indicative of underlying aspects of adolescent society, wherein social and peer groups support or hinder student strategies for stress and coping.65,70 More research on the potentially different developmental needs of middle and high school students in the context of school climate, satisfaction, achievement and absences is clearly warranted.
In conclusion, our findings, although exploratory, are encouraging as the school climate literature specific to early adolescents remains relatively understudied.17 To date, there are limited studies that attempt to establish empirically supported correlates of school climate and satisfaction between middle and high school.17,71 Our findings suggest that school climate and satisfaction may reduce different types of absences and help keep students in school.
LimitationsFirst, this study used a relatively homogenous sample of predominantly white middle and high school students from 26 West Virginia schools. As a result, the sample may not be representative or generalizable to students in other regions of the United States. In addition, racially and ethnically diverse samples may yield alternative findings. Future studies should include nationally representative samples for more generalizable inferences. Second, analyses were conducted with cross-sectional data. Modeling longitudinal data may provide additive support for school climates relationship to the variables in this study. Third, we were unable to entirely account for potentially important confounders related to study variables. Fourth, student self-reported data may be subject to recall bias. However, our response rates for this sample were acceptable for survey research, indicating selection issues represented in the data were likely low.72 Fifth, a high over-dispersion estimate for middle school students who “ever” skipped class required the use of alternative models.73 Modeling actual number of days absent may provide useful and alternative information for educational research.74 Lastly, caution must be emphasized interpreting the small direct and indirect estimates in this complex analysis, which likely contributes little to the mediated relationships.75
ConclusionsA positive perception of school climate and school satisfaction may reduce school absences and improved grades. However, the association between students’ satisfaction with school and perceptions of school climate to reduce absences varied slightly. A positive school climate may be more beneficial during middle school, whereas higher school satisfaction was more impactful in high school. Integrating measures of school climate and school satisfaction into school-wide assessments may provide useful information that may help school administrators and practitioners strive to meet national educational and health goals. Given the descriptive variations between middle and high school students, further studies that examine the interplay between school climate and developmental timing, as well as their relationship to academic and non-academic factors is needed.
IMPLICATIONS FOR SCHOOL HEALTHMany US schools operate under challenging financial constraints and policy demands.76 As such, any opportunity to enhance positive student outcomes in a manner that meets these demands and requires little to no additional resources is a welcome proposition.77 This study provides exploratory evidence for the relationships between school climate, school satisfaction, student absences, and academic performance and presents just such an opportunity. We present 2 primary evidence-based recommendations that are well-supported by this study and the existing scientific literature.
Primary Finding 1Positive school climate and satisfaction with school reduces the likelihood of absences and promotes good grades. What can schools do? Tailored interventions to prevent absences often require substantial resources and coordination, such as full-time staff with special skills.60 Although such programs are important, improving school climate, and student satisfaction with school may be a way to improve student achievement without a substantial financial investment. For example, using school-based social supports such as encouraging positive teacher-student relationships presents an opportunity for schools to expand on their dimensions of school wellness and academic achievement.78 Additionally, finding ways to instruct students in a manner that enhances perceptions of relevance, pride, and joy in learning may increase student reports of satisfaction with school.
Primary Finding 2Students who miss a lot of school days for any reason may be at-risk for academic failure, but identifying kids who are absent because of “skipping” could be a useful intervention and/or support strategy. What can schools do? Identifying why young people are absent could provide schools with information to treat different types of absences differently. For example, a student may be flagged as “high-risk” when they miss 15 or more school days,5 but understanding the reason behind the absence presents an opportunity for the school to intervene and support students’ specific needs.10 School personnel may engage family and caregivers toward improved school connections if a student is skipping,33 whereas a school nurse or caring teacher may be identified in the case of school illness. Consequently, schools that foster and advocate shared values between students and families may be better prepared to reduce disparities among types of absences, rather than using a singular focus on academic grades alone.79,80
FootnotesHuman Subjects Approval Statement
All aspects of data collection in this study, including participant involvement based on passive parental consent, were conducted in accordance with West Virginia University’s Institutional Review Board (protocol number 1406345394R004) guidelines for the protection of research participants and no identifying information of any kind was collected or reported on.
Conflict of Interest
All authors of this article declare they he no conflicts of interesxsxbt.
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