In recent times classroom education has been replaced by online learning to keep up with changing times and bring greater inclusivity while still maintaining social distancing regulations. While there are several advantages to online learning as a form of education on its own, there can also be certain flaws that can bring down the entire system and all its complementary services such as school management software. Most of the time these disadvantages can crop up due to a lack of discipline or desire to take part in the learning process from the side of the students.
Hence arguably, attending classes and showing your participation is one of the most important steps to making sure students get the best education possible. Not only will it help them have access to all the resources provided in the course but will also teach them to navigate through them using the benefit of contextual clues. Maybe even more important than that is that regular participation provides opportunities to indulge in small talk and create relationships with classmates as well as teachers which can go on to become long-lasting friendships and provide a support system in times of need.
While the above is easily said there can often be certain individuals who find it difficult to bring about a change in that existing routine and so implement it. Keeping in mind the above we thus present 7 tried and tested tactics to raise students’ level of attendance and ensure a brighter tomorrow:
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Provide incentives in the form of rewards:
One of the basic strategies for improving performance in any workplace is to provide an incentive for those who are doing better work or showing improved results than before. This method of recognizing someone’s effort and adequately rewarding them for it can also be used in the classroom environment. As for the reward in itself, it can be dependent upon the student’s age and general preferences.
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Student profiling:
Student profiling is a relatively new strategy being included in the classroom based on the assumption of existing peer pressure. Teachers can profile students into groups of a certain number based upon complementary characteristics and this group now acts as an independent body in itself where students look into each other’s reasons for absenteeism. Not only does profiling provide an easier method to keep a check on a larger classroom but also helps develop a meaningful friendships based on mutual benefit.
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Ask for feedback:
Many a time a student may not be attending class because they do not think it to be worth the effort. In such cases taking their opinion on how class hours can be better utilized can be a good step toward improving their attendance. Anonymous feedback sheets or even those provided through the school management system can help gather insight and does implement better practices.
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Use on the go attendance management:
Usually, those platforms which fit the ERP full form are also inbuilt with real-time attendance tracking applications. These can be used to automatically notify students about their attendance rates and allow them to improve them as soon as possible.
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Include parents:
Most students act out with the knowledge that no information about the incident will be relayed to the parents or local guardians. While complaining to parents is not a good measure to take for every small problem, when the situation of low attendance gets too threatening for the overall well being of the student it is better to increase parental involvement either through regular updates or a scheduled meeting so that reasons for absenteeism can be discussed at its core.
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Include personalized content:
Another way of making sure students feel included in the class is to make sure there is something unique for everyone. While it might be harder to implement using the basic LMS full form that is a learning management system, being personalized can be introduced through the assignments given. Not only does it boost interest but also allows for previously undiscussed thought processes.
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Provide channels for communication:
Being absent for course work is a common side effect of the student having personal issues which take up their time of day. Oftentimes in such situations, the best solution is to offer a shoulder and listen to their problems. However, teachers can only manage this if they provide more private channels of communication such as direct messaging.
