Students Show up to School More Often When They See ‘Familiar Faces,’ New Study Finds
November 28, 2018
By: Matt Barnum
Source: Chalkbeat
By eighth grade, Shawntia Reeves had attended at least four different schools. It took a toll on the Detroit student, who told Chalkbeat about the struggle of making and then losing new friends after switching schools.
“It makes you feel like you ain’t got no one to talk to,” she said.
New research shows that the sort of social disruption Reeves experienced can affect how often students show up to school. When students have more “familiar faces” around them in class, they’re less likely to be chronically absent, the paper finds — a connection that could prove useful to schools now being held accountable for reducing absences for the first time.