Can School Climate Lead to Improved Student Attendance? Evidence From New York City

• In Event: The Benefits and Consequences of Educational Data Systems

Abstract

Chronic student absenteeism is associated with academic underperformance, low educational attainment, and adverse life outcomes. With the aim of reducing absenteeism, many states have made student attendance a key component of their accountability plans. Fostering a positive school climate is widely considered a way to promote student attendance, but empirical support for this idea has been limited. In this study, the relationship between four indicators of school climate and student attendance are investigated using a student survey (N = 824,322) from New York City. Results indicated small positive associations between the four indicators of school climate and student attendance. Furthermore, for ninth grade students, changes in school climate between middle and high school were marginally associated with student attendance.

Author

• Daniel Hamlin, University of Oklahoma