Work

School Attendance and Academic Achievement: Understanding Variation across Family Socioeconomic Status

Year: 2023

Type: article

Abstract: Studies consistently show the detrimental effect of school absences on pupils’ achievement. However, due to an accumulation of multiple risks, school absenteeism may be more harmful to achievement among pupils from lower socioeconomic status (SES). Using a sample of upper-secondary students from the Scottish Longitudinal Study (n = 3,135), we investigated whether the association between absences (overall, sickness, and truancy) and achievement in high-stakes exams varied by family SES dimensions (parental education, class, free school meal registration, and housing). The findings for overall absences and truancy show no statistically significant differences across SES groups. However, sickness absences were more harmful to the achievement of lower SES students than higher SES students. Differences between the most and least disadvantaged groups were found on all SES dimensions except for parental education.

Source: Sociology of Education

DOI: 10.1177/00380407231191541

Authors: Markus Klein, Edward M. Sosu

Institution: University of Strathclyde

Language: English

Topic: Youth Substance Use and School Attendance

Subfield: Education

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Reduced inequalities, Quality education

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,250