How Long Before It Hits PrimeTime?

[Joe Wordsworth]

Real situation from a friend of mine who teaches at a high school around here:

Currently, there's some debate over the issue of attendance of a girl who goes to a high school near where I live--it was brought up by some teachers (my friend is the gifted program and math teacher). Apparently, what's on the table is her missing two days of school, putting her over the maximum allowance for days of school missed (20, and she's got 21, now).

The school is saying she fails and must take summer school or repeat the grade. The girl is contending that she took a religious holiday from school in accordance with her spiritual beliefs. She took a Thursday and Friday off a month ago, unexcused, because she had a religiously prescribed sacred occasion. She claims that her and her friends are Wiccan, and this is part and parcel with their beliefs.

The parents appear to have not known the girl had missed the days in question (and were suprised to find she'd missed as many as she had, knowing only about roughly half of that time). It's causing quite a stink at the school--as the school doesn't feel obligated to do anything about it. They're stand, so far, is "you missed the days, the days are missed, the rules are clear".

I just wonder how long it'll take before the news gets wind of it. It really is kind of exciting.

 

[arienette]

Well I would say that it would be excusable if her parents knew about the time missed and not just half of it; that alone makes it a little shady. However, the 20 day rule is despised by me, having gotten kicked out of high school my Senior year without the option of repeating or summer school because I was over 18 (by a month) because I had missed about 30-some days of school within three months, but still managed to hold an above average GPA. I guess I had it coming, but I still hate the 20 day rule.

 

[English Lady]

If it's a celebration that is known and agreed between wiccans thn surely a note to the school saying that days "x,y and z" I'll be off for religious beliefs would have done the trick. The fact the parents didn't know and the young lady just didn't go to school does seem to look to me as she's just thought up an excuse after the event, though.

 

[Liar]

It's not that she skipped school days. It's that she skipped those school days unnanounced and unexcused. I don't see what she's whining about. She don't like the "max 20 days" rule? Fine, she should focus on that. That she's wiccan is irrelevant.

By the way, the other 19 days of absence...what were they about? Does sick leave add to those days, or is it 20 days of cutting class?

 

[gauchecritic]

Good job that rule doesn't apply to university over here. They're lucky if they attend twenty days, never mind miss 20.

Do exams count for nothing?

Up in the morning and out to school
Mother says there'll be no work next year
Qualifications once the Golden Rule
Are now just pieces of paper

At twenty one you're on to of the scrapheap
At sixteen you were top of the class
All they taught you at school
Was how to be a good worker
The system has failed you, don't fail yourself

Just because you're better than me
Doesn't mean I'm lazy
Just because I dress like this
Doesn't mean I'm a communist

Billy Bragg

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Real situation from a friend of mine who teaches at a high school around here:

Currently, there's some debate over the issue of attendance of a girl who goes to a high school near where I live--it was brought up by some teachers (my friend is the gifted program and math teacher). Apparently, what's on the table is her missing two days of school, putting her over the maximum allowance for days of school missed (20, and she's got 21, now).

The school is saying she fails and must take summer school or repeat the grade. The girl is contending that she took a religious holiday from school in accordance with her spiritual beliefs. She took a Thursday and Friday off a month ago, unexcused, because she had a religiously prescribed sacred occasion. She claims that her and her friends are Wiccan, and this is part and parcel with their beliefs.

The parents appear to have not known the girl had missed the days in question (and were suprised to find she'd missed as many as she had, knowing only about roughly half of that time). It's causing quite a stink at the school--as the school doesn't feel obligated to do anything about it. They're stand, so far, is "you missed the days, the days are missed, the rules are clear".

I just wonder how long it'll take before the news gets wind of it. It really is kind of exciting.

I worked in a high school where the rules were similar... I was the one in charge of printing out the kids' stats and giving them to the AP to make his assessment on whether they passed or failed based on attendance.

most of the time, unless it was an EXCUSED absence (i.e. parent excused it at the TIME of the absence--within 3-5 days of the day missed--OR a doctor's note or similar document was provided) it counted, period.

Now, don't get me started on school attendance or schools in general...

 

[R. Richard]

Real situation from a friend of mine who teaches at a high school around here:

Currently, there's some debate over the issue of attendance of a girl who goes to a high school near where I live--it was brought up by some teachers (my friend is the gifted program and math teacher). Apparently, what's on the table is her missing two days of school, putting her over the maximum allowance for days of school missed (20, and she's got 21, now).

The school is saying she fails and must take summer school or repeat the grade. The girl is contending that she took a religious holiday from school in accordance with her spiritual beliefs. She took a Thursday and Friday off a month ago, unexcused, because she had a religiously prescribed sacred occasion. She claims that her and her friends are Wiccan, and this is part and parcel with their beliefs.

The parents appear to have not known the girl had missed the days in question (and were suprised to find she'd missed as many as she had, knowing only about roughly half of that time). It's causing quite a stink at the school--as the school doesn't feel obligated to do anything about it. They're stand, so far, is "you missed the days, the days are missed, the rules are clear".

I just wonder how long it'll take before the news gets wind of it. It really is kind of exciting.

There are several thing that are really quite clear in the case presented.
1) The girl missed more school days [apparently unexcused absences is the key here] than the rules permit. The girl clearly violated school rules and should be punished.
2) The girl is now told that she failed [apparently all of her classes] BECAUSE of her absences.
3) Apparently, the school feels that attendance is more important than learning. [Actually the foregoing sentence is a lie. The actual situation is much worse.]
3A) The school doesn't care if the girl learned anything or if she passed the tests given in her classes. The school only cares if she was in class some required amount of times. The reason for the school's concern is called Average Daily Attendance Money. The school gets paid [I think by the state] for each student who attends class for each school day. Slave girl doesn't get paid and no one gives a damn. The school doesn't get paid and slave girl gets punished. After all, the slave master has rules. [If any one of you supports slave master rules, please tell me why.]
4) The girl fails because she didn't attend class often enough. Other students attended class often enough, but didn't learn enough to pass standardized tests now required to move from at least some grades to the next grade and also to graduate. Clearly, the students who failed the standardized tests were in the classroom, but not learning enough to justify their presence in said classroom. Please tell me why is Average Daily Attendance Money paid in such cases [TIA]?

If I sound bitter, please excuse me. I rarely attended school and only at the point of a police gun. I used to break into a library at night and borrow books [without a library card.] I would study the books and then return them. I didn't have anyone to answer any questions I had as a result off the nightime books. Then again, the incompetents who "taught" in the public school I [rarely] attended couldn't/wouldn't answer my questions. The scumbags also couldn't/wouldn't answer my questions. I learned more by not attending school than I did by attending school. Learning was not an issue. Average Daily Attendance Money was an issue. Student safety was not an issue [Whi' Boy was a hazard to those about him who pissed him off. Whi' Boy got pissed off easily.] Average Daily Attendance Money was an issue. Actually, safety was an issue. When Whi Boy was in school, he was a safety issue for other students. When Whi Boy wasn't in school, he was a safety issue for the scumbags.

Here's hoping for incisive answers to my ponderings! TIA!

 

[velvetpie]

Real situation from a friend of mine who teaches at a high school around here:

Currently, there's some debate over the issue of attendance of a girl who goes to a high school near where I live--it was brought up by some teachers (my friend is the gifted program and math teacher). Apparently, what's on the table is her missing two days of school, putting her over the maximum allowance for days of school missed (20, and she's got 21, now).

The school is saying she fails and must take summer school or repeat the grade. The girl is contending that she took a religious holiday from school in accordance with her spiritual beliefs. She took a Thursday and Friday off a month ago, unexcused, because she had a religiously prescribed sacred occasion. She claims that her and her friends are Wiccan, and this is part and parcel with their beliefs.

The parents appear to have not known the girl had missed the days in question (and were suprised to find she'd missed as many as she had, knowing only about roughly half of that time). It's causing quite a stink at the school--as the school doesn't feel obligated to do anything about it. They're stand, so far, is "you missed the days, the days are missed, the rules are clear".

I just wonder how long it'll take before the news gets wind of it. It really is kind of exciting.

Two years ago, while my son was attending high school here in Daytona Beach (and the Florida school system sucks big time!), I came to pick him up for an eye appointment and was told that he was not in school. I was further informed that he had not been in school for the last two months. I was not told and was not informed. When I asked about having him arrested for truancy, I was informed (in front of him so I had no leverage!) that their hands were tied and that he could only be arrested if he committed a crime. He's a good kid; he was just bored with school and was more interested in banging his girl friend.

The schools here in Daytona Beach (and maybe I shouldn't be so broad in my scope so I will name the offending high school - Mainland High School) do not care about attendance. I was told that there were too many kids to keep up with but that doesn't explain why someone couldn't make a simple phone call and let me know.

And they talk about the "No Child Left Behind" doctrine. Keep your kids out of Florida if you want them to have a decent education!

 

[SeaCat]

When I was 16 I was almost thrown out of school for missing classes. In one year I had missed almost 200 days. The School, and the School system did not wish to hear the reasons for my missing classes. It took an act of the state courst to keep me in school. (I had been hit by a drunk driver and spent 183 days in Massachussetts General Hospital.)

Sometimes, not always, there are reasons for missing school.

Cat

 

[Liar]

When I was 16 I was almost thrown out of school for missing classes. In one year I had missed almost 200 days. The School, and the School system did not wish to hear the reasons for my missing classes. It took an act of the state courst to keep me in school. (I had been hit by a drunk driver and spent 183 days in Massachussetts General Hospital.)

Sometimes, not always, there are reasons for missing school.

Cat

Um...yeah. I would call that a viable reason.

But if I understood correctly, this case is not about that kind of missed days, but about unexcused days of absence. I'm guessing that a month in the hospital would count as force majeur there, and not eat up the 20 days.