Who leaked the MCPS attendance documents to the Washington Post?

[Anonymous]

My HS junior also received a warning letter about today about failing English because of unexcused absences. Luckily, DS was able to produce work done in class for all three days.

The attendance system is broken.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just received an official notice that my junior is at jeopardy of failing due to her unlawful absences the quarter. Absence #1 school sponsored field trip. Absence #2 AP exam, Absence #3 Doctors appointment, write a note, school called to confirm it, absences was marked for the day before. I am allowed to appeal using some form I can apparently find on line. I will not take the time to do that. Not being able to accurately track attendance is just as much of a problem.

+100 Being marked present when absent and being marked unexcused absent when absent was school related or a note is provided are equally problematic at our school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just received an official notice that my junior is at jeopardy of failing due to her unlawful absences the quarter. Absence #1 school sponsored field trip. Absence #2 AP exam, Absence #3 Doctors appointment, write a note, school called to confirm it, absences was marked for the day before. I am allowed to appeal using some form I can apparently find on line. I will not take the time to do that. Not being able to accurately track attendance is just as much of a problem.

I am 100% sure that all of the high schools are looking closely at their attendance marking procedures. There are all sorts of problems, but until the state started counting the chronic absences, it didn't really matter. One of the reasons why Loss of Credit isn't automatic is because schools know that there are so many mistakes with coding. On the teacher's end, we can only mark present, absent, tardy unexcused, tardy excused. A student missing more than 20 min of class is absent (arriving late or leaving early). Student arrives tardy after I took attendance, but I don't see them? Absent. Student arrives with a pass from counseling with 10 minutes left? Absent. Student athlete checks in and then leaves for an away game after 5 minutes? Absent. Pep Rally? Absent. There are dozens of legitimate reasons a student might not be in class, but if the person responsible for them during that time doesn't put documentation into the attendance office, and the attendance office doesn't code it correctly, there is nothing the teacher can do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just received an official notice that my junior is at jeopardy of failing due to her unlawful absences the quarter. Absence #1 school sponsored field trip. Absence #2 AP exam, Absence #3 Doctors appointment, write a note, school called to confirm it, absences was marked for the day before. I am allowed to appeal using some form I can apparently find on line. I will not take the time to do that. Not being able to accurately track attendance is just as much of a problem.

I am 100% sure that all of the high schools are looking closely at their attendance marking procedures. There are all sorts of problems, but until the state started counting the chronic absences, it didn't really matter. One of the reasons why Loss of Credit isn't automatic is because schools know that there are so many mistakes with coding. On the teacher's end, we can only mark present, absent, tardy unexcused, tardy excused. A student missing more than 20 min of class is absent (arriving late or leaving early). Student arrives tardy after I took attendance, but I don't see them? Absent. Student arrives with a pass from counseling with 10 minutes left? Absent. Student athlete checks in and then leaves for an away game after 5 minutes? Absent. Pep Rally? Absent. There are dozens of legitimate reasons a student might not be in class, but if the person responsible for them during that time doesn't put documentation into the attendance office, and the attendance office doesn't code it correctly, there is nothing the teacher can do.

These notices aren’t new. I get a million of them a year along with a daily notice that my child was marked absent in some of all of his classes. He has medical issues and is out of school more often than in.

[Anonymous]

According to the original WaPo article there is no longer any loss of credit for absences though. I guess that was misreporting?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure there is an issue but I also know that my kids often have unexcused absences that were entered wrong that no one bothers to correct. Sometimes we do not even know till we get the report card. Or we get an email and it is a field trip or sports.

47 times? The article isn't about mistakes in recording. It is about massive unexcused absences that show that students don't actually have to attend MCPS to graduate. The article devalues MCPS diplomas for all students.

Why kids would need to attend to graduate? If a kid is strong academically and has good grades why there is the necessity of a kid sitting at school for a whole day?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:According to the original WaPo article there is no longer any loss of credit for absences though. I guess that was misreporting?

Wonderful. Finally this makes sense. If kids are managing then what is the big deal? If a kid can learn outside of school then it means a kid is smart kid.

[Anonymous]

School is an educational facility not a minimum security facility, the presence is to gain education and since a kid can get it elsewhere and meet all academic needs then why such an obsession with attendance. Many of the kids have to work to support themselves, to earn for the family and for the college and yet they manage to get credits, so what is this all about ? Really Is it about ability to pass the required tests and get grades or is it about sitting at school when a kid knows stuff otherwise?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the original WaPo article there is no longer any loss of credit for absences though. I guess that was misreporting?

Wonderful. Finally this makes sense. If kids are managing then what is the big deal? If a kid can learn outside of school then it means a kid is smart kid.

It does not make sense that there is a bureaucracy notifying parents their student is in danger of failing if they do not fail students for lack of attendance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the original WaPo article there is no longer any loss of credit for absences though. I guess that was misreporting?

Wonderful. Finally this makes sense. If kids are managing then what is the big deal? If a kid can learn outside of school then it means a kid is smart kid.

It does not make sense that there is a bureaucracy notifying parents their student is in danger of failing if they do not fail students for lack of attendance.

It is indeed a bad joke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the original WaPo article there is no longer any loss of credit for absences though. I guess that was misreporting?

Wonderful. Finally this makes sense. If kids are managing then what is the big deal? If a kid can learn outside of school then it means a kid is smart kid.

+1. Our kid was sick and missed 50% of some classes. Still got As. One year in MS she missed months of school for medical reasons and just did the wirk at home. Principal forcibly tried to drop her from algebra and foreign language class. She objected, won and principal was forced to allow her to do work and take tests. She got As in both classes and probably spent less time on the work than she would have sitting thru class. Attendance is not that important for some students - and the number is bigger than you think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure there is an issue but I also know that my kids often have unexcused absences that were entered wrong that no one bothers to correct. Sometimes we do not even know till we get the report card. Or we get an email and it is a field trip or sports.

47 times? The article isn't about mistakes in recording. It is about massive unexcused absences that show that students don't actually have to attend MCPS to graduate. The article devalues MCPS diplomas for all students.

Why kids would need to attend to graduate? If a kid is strong academically and has good grades why there is the necessity of a kid sitting at school for a whole day?

Or has the curriculum been watered down to the point students don't need to attend class to pass? I think MCPS is going down the same path as PG County Public Schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure there is an issue but I also know that my kids often have unexcused absences that were entered wrong that no one bothers to correct. Sometimes we do not even know till we get the report card. Or we get an email and it is a field trip or sports.

47 times? The article isn't about mistakes in recording. It is about massive unexcused absences that show that students don't actually have to attend MCPS to graduate. The article devalues MCPS diplomas for all students.

Why kids would need to attend to graduate? If a kid is strong academically and has good grades why there is the necessity of a kid sitting at school for a whole day?

Or has the curriculum been watered down to the point students don't need to attend class to pass? I think MCPS is going down the same path as PG County Public Schools.

It depends. One course I teach has little memorization and lots of critical thinking required. A smart kid could work excel on assignments without being present daily. The other still requires a lot of factoids. Unless a smart kid was investing at home as much time as he or she was absent, it’s less likely there will be an equivalent experience to the kid present regularly. I think a chronically absent student who isn’t in the top 20% would struggle in both courses.

[Anonymous]

^Work at home and excel

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure there is an issue but I also know that my kids often have unexcused absences that were entered wrong that no one bothers to correct. Sometimes we do not even know till we get the report card. Or we get an email and it is a field trip or sports.

47 times? The article isn't about mistakes in recording. It is about massive unexcused absences that show that students don't actually have to attend MCPS to graduate. The article devalues MCPS diplomas for all students.

Why kids would need to attend to graduate? If a kid is strong academically and has good grades why there is the necessity of a kid sitting at school for a whole day?

Or has the curriculum been watered down to the point students don't need to attend class to pass? I think MCPS is going down the same path as PG County Public Schools.

I think you are just spewing nonsense.