In schools across the UK, perfect attendance certificates, pizza parties and prize draws have become common tools in the battle against absenteeism. But how effective are these incentives?
School attendance has reached crisis levels in England. The overall absence rate in state schools jumped from a pre-pandemic level of 4.7 per cent to 7.1 per cent in 2023-24, while persistent absence (missing 10 per cent or more of school sessions) nearly doubled from 10.9 per cent in 2018-19 to 20 per cent in 2023-24.
This has prompted schools to implement various incentive schemes to lure pupils back. Material rewards such as gift vouchers, stationery or electronic devices are commonly offered, alongside experience-based rewards such as school trips, pizza parties or ice cream socials.
One school in Lincolnshire even recently made headlines for announcing that pupils with 100 per cent attendance would be offered the chance to win a 40-inch smart TV.
But despite the popularity of such incentives, a recent rapid evidence assessment examining 72 studies found limited evidence that they actually increase attendance. In fact, several studies found negative effects.
For example, 2021 research demonstrated that pre-announced attendance awards had no positive effect. In fact, attendance declined after the incentives were removed. The research also revealed that retrospective surprise awards, such as perfect attendance certificates, had a similarly demotivating effect.
Incentives for good attendance
Attendance incentives can bring other unintended consequences, too. Students with chronic health conditions, for example, may feel punished for circumstances beyond their control when legitimate absences prevent them from achieving perfect attendance awards.
Similarly, students from disadvantaged backgrounds face more significant barriers to attending school regularly. Attendance incentives therefore risk widening the recognition gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students.
And from a public health standpoint, attendance awards may encourage “presenteeism” - the practice of attending school even when ill - contributing to the spread of illness throughout the school community.
But if incentives aren’t the answer to boosting attendance, what is?
Research shows that a sense of belonging has a strong correlation with good attendance. This correlation is something that we have observed first-hand throughout our trust, where we have been working to develop positive teacher-student relationships.
One secondary school within Swale Academies Trust has seen Year 11 attendance increase by 11.6 per cent and persistent absence reduce by 21.8 per cent since using this as part of a comprehensive improvement strategy for attendance.
Our approach is based on the research-backed Establish-Maintain-Restore (EMR) framework, which provides teachers with practical strategies to build connections with students.
So, what does this look like?
Phase one: establish
The establishment phase involves intentional practices to cultivate positive relationships with each student from the outset. Begin by setting aside time to genuinely learn about students’ interests, and ask open-ended questions that invite meaningful dialogue.
Explicitly reference information from previous conversations to demonstrate value in what students have shared, and validate students’ feelings to build trust and emotional safety.
Teachers can further demonstrate care and attention through the use of affirmations to acknowledge students’ efforts, and by delivering well-timed constructive feedback that focuses on development rather than deficits.
Phase two: maintain
The maintenance phase is about taking proactive steps to prevent relationship quality from diminishing over time. Research suggests aiming for a 5:1 ratio of positive to negative interactions with pupils, ensuring that challenging conversations are far outweighed by supportive ones.
Teachers can create a bridge between schools and families through sending positive notes home. Greeting students personally at the door each lesson provides a moment of individual connection. And scheduling regular relationship check-ins, even brief ones, demonstrates teachers’ ongoing commitment to each student’s wellbeing.
Phase three: restore
The restoration phase recognises that negative interactions may sometimes occur and focuses on the need to intentionally repair harm afterwards.
This requires teachers to take responsibility for their part in negative interactions, modelling accountability and emotional maturity.
This starts with delivering a statement of empathy, acknowledging the student’s experience and feelings.
Be explicit in starting fresh, avoiding reference to past issues. Express genuine care for having the student in class and engage in mutual problem-solving, allowing them to be part of the solution.
Beyond good relationships
The EMR framework provides a good starting point, but there is, of course, a lot more to this work.
We need to create classrooms that support student competence, through delivering high levels of success, and student agency, through engaging in student voice and designing lessons that relate content to their lives and interests.
We also need to place particular importance on strengthening relationships with students who are persistently absent. This involves teachers personally welcoming returning students back, creating manageable catch-up plans and holding brief one-to-one check-ins during independent work.
The evidence suggests that creating classrooms where pupils feel they belong and have positive relationships with their teachers perhaps represents a more sustainable path to improved attendance than external rewards.
By purposefully focusing on the strategies above, teachers can cultivate an environment where pupils want to attend school for the intrinsic value of being part of a learning community, where they know that they matter.
Mark Leswell is research lead at Swale Academies Trust
You can now get the UK’s most-trusted source of education news in a mobile app. Get Tes magazine on iOS and on Android
