Chronic Absenteeism and School Avoidance: Assessment, Intervention, and Multi-Tiered Support

Explore evidence-informed approaches to understanding, assessing, and addressing chronic absenteeism and school avoidance. Designed for psychologists working in schools, this course emphasizes the psychological, behavioral, family, and environmental factors that influence attendance and provides practical strategies for prevention, intervention, consultation, and progress monitoring.

Course Overview

Chronic absenteeism is a complex educational concern that may reflect overlapping mental health needs, school climate factors, academic difficulties, family circumstances, and barriers to consistent school participation. Effective intervention requires more than tracking missed days; it requires a systematic understanding of why absences occur and which supports are most likely to improve attendance.

Using the Attendance Playbook: Smart Strategies for Reducing Student Absenteeism Post-Pandemic (FutureEd and Attendance Works, 2023), learners will examine multi-tiered attendance supports, assessment and consultation strategies, family-school collaboration, and data-based intervention planning.

Topics Covered

• Understanding chronic absenteeism and school avoidance
• Psychological, behavioral, and environmental contributors
• Identifying patterns through attendance data
• Assessment of attendance barriers and student needs
• Tier 1: Schoolwide prevention and connectedness
• Tier 2: Targeted attendance interventions
• Tier 3: Individualized and intensive supports
• Family engagement and collaborative problem-solving
• Monitoring attendance and intervention response
• Applied school psychology consultation cases

Course Format

This asynchronous, independent-study course includes:

• 10 comprehensive instructional lessons
• 30 interactive application and decision-making activities
• 3 extended consultation case studies with written responses
• 54-question final assessment
• Evidence-informed reading assignments and school-based practice applications
• 9 continuing education credits upon successful completion

Primary Reading & Credit Determination

Primary Resource: Attendance Playbook: Smart Strategies for Reducing Student Absenteeism Post-Pandemic (FutureEd and Attendance Works, 2023).

View the Free Course Reading (PDF) ↗

Credit hours are determined using the Mergener formula and the course's instructional and assessment components.