CHAPTER 1

The Problem and Its Background

Introduction

Absenteeism in school is the habit of staying away from school without providing a
genuine or any reason for not attending classes. It is a truant behavior that negatively affects the
performance among students. Absenteeism, according to Merriam-Webster dictionary means
chronic absence. In the context of the school it is the habitual or intentional failure from going to
school. It cannot be denied that every now and then, students may miss some school activities
and lessons. But it becomes a problem if the student will be away from school for many days [3].

Going to school regularly is crucially important for a student’s education and social skills.
Chronic absenteeism students are placed at a dis-advantage both socially and academically. They
miss out on critical stages of social interaction and development with their peers and at the same
time impacts negatively on their academic progress. This can result to low self-esteem, social
isolation and dissatisfaction that could well have precipitated non-attendance in the first place.
School absenteeism is an alarming problem for administrators, teachers, parents and the society
in general, as well as for the pupils in particular. Unaccepted absence has a negative effect on
peer relationship which could cause absence [5].

According to some researchers, teachers identified effects of absenteeism on children as'

academic under-achievement, difficulty in making friends which could lead to boredom, loss of
confidence. Also, prolonged absence can have deleterious effects for the child in later life.
Students who are absent from school are at the greatest risk of dropping out of school early
absenteeism in students affects their school performances especially when they are in a group or
teamwork for their assignments and projects. The families of habitual absentees can also suffer
for a poverty-stricken family It may mean a continuation of the poverty and unemployment cycle
that may run in the family. This also contributes to family conflicts [5].

The society also suffers as the children of school age hang around in the streets. They can
be found just gallivanting around. Since they have nothing to do, the resort to petty crimes like
1
stealing other people's belongings and properties, others may resort to drug addiction and other
behavior that is detrimental to society [23].

The researchers are determined to find out what are the common factors affecting
student’s absenteeism among selected junior high school students of Buayan National High
School for S.Y 2018-2019.

Statement of the Problem

The study aim to identify the factors of absenteeism to a student.

Specifically, the study seeks to answer the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the students respondents in terms of:

a. Gender

b. Age

c. Residence

2. What are the contributing factors of students habitual absenteeism in terms of:

a. Physical c. Personal attitude e. Classroom atmosphere

b. Health d. Teacher-related f. Home-related factors

3. What is the proposed school activity for the students who always absent?

Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study will be focuses on the factors of absenteeism among students in order to make a
comprehensive guidance program in relation to student’s absenteeism. The respondents of this
study will be the Junior high school students for S.Y 2018-2019.

Significance of the Study

This study is beneficial to the following recipients.

2
 The students knowing the impact of committing such absenteeism, students will know
negative effects in their studies specifically in their Academic Performance.

The teachers would be able to identify different motivational techniques/Strategies on

how they can influence students to lessen or eliminate act of absenteeism and to understand the
main problem, cause for it and suggestion provided will help her to bring drastic change in her
classroom and provide her hold in the class to teach qualitatively with maximum effectiveness.

The parents are the direct and the baseline in communication in relation to their child's
regular truancy. Knowing the impact of absenteeism to their child's learning performance, a
parent will be at the concerns of convincing their child to attend school and protect them from
the primary causes of their absences.

The principal this research will help her in planning her goal, to organize, administrate
and to supervise the school discipline with the help of better presence of students in the class.

CHAPTER 2

Review of Related Literature and Studies

3
Review of Related Literature

As cited by [17] , “lateness” can be defined as the “situation where an individual arrives
after the proper, scheduled or usual time [13] puts it as a term used to describe “people not
showing up on time” [1] contributed by saying that, lateness is synonymous with “tardiness”,
which implies being slow to act or slow to respond, thus not meeting up with proper or usual
timing. Lastly, [5] defined tardiness as “being late for any measurable length of time past the
stated or scheduled start time for work or school.” In most schools, a student is considered tardy
when he/she is not present when the school bells rings or when the first teacher starts to give
instructional materials for the first subject in the morning class. Success and behavior” of the
students [29]. Thus, it is a lot important to value time and practice being on time while being a
student.

In this notion, previous studies have revealed that student absenteeism is related
academic failure and academic performance [9], Previous studies noticed that there is strong
relationship between student absenteeism and school dropout [17]. In conclusion, student
absenteeism impacts not only students’ educational progress but also affects their social
development. All students, yet for one reason or another, at one time or other time want miss to a
day of school.

There had been some theories that pointed out that tardiness is caused by the personality
of a person. [7] Stated that psychological theorists considered some “personality traits, including
low self-esteem and anxiety” as triggering factors of tardiness. She also mentioned that while
some theorists considered tardiness as an “inborn quality” since our being early or late is
“partially biologically determined”, which she also agreed, other experts also believed that some
people are “chronically tardy” for the reason that they consciously and unconsciously get good
things from it. Tardiness among students has its own negative repercussions. [13] Emphasized
that lateness or tardiness is not just the problem of the late student but it affects the surrounding
people. A student coming late in class distracts the rest of the students and disrupts the flow of
the teacher’s discussion. It is even a burden to the student/s whom the late students ask for what
to catch up with. The rest of the effects given by [13] are about the welfare of the whole school,

4
its productivity and revenue. Knowing the possible effects of lateness or tardiness, it is necessary
for solutions to be executed.

According to [13] that school administrators must lead by example. They should be
punctual in their own meetings and classes to avoid students to think that being late is just alright
since even the authoritative persons are doing it. They should as well teach it and integrate it in
every lesson. The effort on the remedy on lateness or tardiness does not start and end with the
school. It must begin with the parents of the students and the government must take part as well.
Transportation must be improved in order to avoid students getting stuck in traffic or
encountering other obstacles down the street.

Review of Related Studies

One of the most recurring and the most “frustrating problem” that the schools are having
with their students nowadays is tardiness [23] According to [6] and [24] , the most essential
learning time of the day for the students lies in the morning, specifically between 8:00 to 9:30
AM. It is because the students are most mindful and observant at this time of the day. It is also
the reason why the most important lessons and subject matters are discussed during this time. So
when students are late or are not present during this time of the day, they, in effect, miss out most
of the important lessons to be noted and learned.

As cited by [9] has reported four themes, which play important role to motivate students to
attend school such as school climate, academic environment, discipline, and relationships with
teachers. According to [17] found that school absenteeism associated with internalizing and
externalizing behavior, family work and health, and school environment. In another study, Henry
has noted that parents’ education levels contribute to students’ absenteeism. [17] Found that there
are an association between absenteeism of student and unfavorable school setting conditions. In
addition, some researches argued that students’ attitude and motivation for learning was a key
factor in student absenteeism

The School Absenteeism among High School Students: Contributing Factors with
absenteeism miss opportunities to learn the material that enables them to succeed later in school

5
and; fall behind their classmates in academic achievement. In this notion, previous studies has
revealed that student absenteeism is related academic failure and academic performance [13].

These are internal and external classroom factors and these factors strongly affect the
students’‘ performance. Internal classroom factors includes students competence in English,
class schedules, class size, English text books, class test results, learning facilities, homework,
environment of the class, complexity of the course material, teachers role in the class, technology
used in the class and exams systems. External classroom factors include extracurricular
activities, family problems, work and financial, social and other problems.

Research studies shows that students performance depends on many factors such as learning
facilities, gender and age differences, etc. that can affect student performance [3] found that the
most important factor with positive effect on students' performance is Parental Involvement.

Theoretical framework

This study is anchored by [17] according to their study school absenteeism is an alarming
problem for administrators, teachers, parents, society in general, and students in particular.

Teachers identified the effects of absenteeism on students as:

Academic under-achievement

Difficulty in making friends which could lead to boredom and loss of confidence

Prolonged absence can have deleterious effects for the students in later life.

Students who are absent from school are the greatest risk of dropping out of school early.

Socio-Demographic profile of
ConceptualRespondents
Framework

The study•Gender
consists of various concepts related to absenteeism.
Absenteeism among students
Dependent Variable
•Age Independent Variable
Factors on absenteeism
6
Location
Common Causes of
Absences
Figure 1. The Schematic Diagram of the Conceptual Framework.

Definition of terms

School it was use in the study to know the main reasons in this study to provide in
encouraging the students who always absent from class.

Absenteeism it was use in the study to identify those junior high school students who
always been absent from class and to know the impact in their studies.

Contributing factors causing distress or danger, or a difficulty, problem, condition, or

action contributing to such a situation.

Gender it was use in this study as the gender of the students in junior high school
students to male and female.

Age it was use in this study as the legal age of the students in junior high school from 12
to 16 years old.

Hypothesis of the study

If proper guidance is provided to the students, the problem will be solved.

7
 CHAPTER 3

Research Methodology

This chapter will cover all the research design, research locale, the respondents of the
study, and the sampling techniques use to collect the data. It also includes the validated research

8
instruments given the respondents the data collecting procedure, and the statistical treatment
used to determine the main factor of habitual absenteeism.

Research Design

This research design the researcher used the descriptive design of research concern
gathering data from a huge number of respondents. It was selected by the researchers because the
study comprises of a huge number of respondents. This method consist of using a questionnaire,
which had undergone a Series of test for validation and verification from several experts.

Local of the Study

The school has a complete junior high school program from grade 7 to grade 10 and senior high
school program that offers TVL and HUMSS. This study was conducted in Buayan National
High School. General Santos City in the school year 2018-2019

Research Respondents

The respondents of this study were selected student in junior high school .The number of
the respondents was determined based of the returned questionnaires. The researchers got 81
respondents from the most absence in class per-section.

Research Instrument

The selected students in junior high school asked to complete a questionnaire. They rated
various situations, reasons and cause for being Habitual absenteeism from school. The responses
were analyzed using a five point likert scale. It should be noted that questionnaire was given to
students in their native dialect to increase the chance of accurate responses. Figures were
rounded signify classification of responses. The measure of central tendency, specifically the
mean, was used to determine the average of the respondents.

5 – always
4 – very often
3 – sometimes
2 –rarely
9
1 – never

Data Gathering/ Statistical treatment

All the data was then organized, tallied, tabulated, and presented in a series of tables and
graphs. Frequency counts, percentage weight values and weighted mean were used in the
analysis and interpretation of data.

CHAPTER 4

Presentation, Analysis and Interpretation of Data

This chapter comprises the presentation Analysis, and Interpretation of Data about the
problems stated in chapter one. The solutions of the problems are found in this section.

10
 Table 1

Frequency Distribution on the Demographic profile of the respondents according to Sex and Age.

Sex Frequency Percentage

Male 51 62%

Female 30 36%

Total 81 100%

Age

11-12 20 24%

14-16 51 62%

17-19 10 12%

20-22 0 0%

Total 81 100%

Table 1. Shows the demographic profile of 81 respondents according to sex and age with
the corresponding percentage. There are 51 or 62 percent male while 30 or 36 percent female.
This indicates the majority of the respondents are Male.

Moreover, there are 20 or 24 percent respondents who belong to 11-13 years old, there
are 51 or 62 percent respondents who belong to 14-16 years old. There are 10 or 12 percent
respondents who belong to 17-19 years old. There are 0 percent or none respondents belong to
20-22 years old.

11
 Table 2

Frequency of distribution according to the Residence of the respondents

Residence Frequency Percentage

Purok 1 buayan 3 3%

Purok 2 buayan 5 7%

Purok Masagana buayan 10 12%

Purok Masunurin buayan 8 10%

Purok Masipag buayan 10 12%

Purok asinan buayan 8 10%

Purok Minanga buayan 16 19%

Baluntay Sar.province 10 12%

Lower bayan sar.province 6 8%

Upper bayan sar.province 5 7%

Total 81 100%

Table.2 the table shows the number of respondents according to their residence with the
corresponding percentage.

According to our survey the highest total of residence of the respondents is purok minanga
buayan, which is 19 percent. Then, there is 12 percent in purok masagana buayan and purok

12
baluntay sarangani province which is the second highest residence of the respondents of always
being absent.

There are 10 percent of residence who belong in purok masunurin buayan and purok
asinan buayan. And the 8 percent and 7 percent is included in lower and upper bayan sarangani
province same in purok 2 buayan. The lowest percentage is purok 1 buayan which is 3 percent.

Table 3

Frequency distribution on the weighted means of t he school absenteeism among students:

Contributing factors.

Statements Weighted Mean Interpretation

A. Physical Factor

1. Our house is too far from 3.135 Sometimes

school

2. It is unsafe to go to school 2.432 Rarely

3. Nobody accompanies me 2.814 Rarely

in going to school since its
far

B. Health

1. I have a toothache 2.432 Rarely

2. My stomach hurts 2.530 Rarely

3. I have a headache 2.740 Rarely

13
4. I'm down with fever/flu 2.641 Rarely

5. I have other diseases like 2.382 Rarely

diarrhea, etc.

C. Personal attitude

1. I am not interested in my 2.814 Rarely

studies

2. I feel lazy 2.987 Rarely

3. My friends influence me 3.543 Sometimes

to absent from my classes

4. I can't concentrate in my 2.481 Rarely

studies

5. I did not study i make my 2.160 Rarely

assignments the night before

6. I didn't wake up early 2.209 Rarely

7. I got fond of playing 2.925 Rarely

computer games.

D. Teacher related

1. My teacher scolded me 2.358 Rarely

14
2. I can't understand my 2.444 Rarely
teacher's lesson

3. I don't like my teacher 2.395 Rarely

E Classroom atmosphere

1. Our classroom is hot and 2.506 Rarely

uncomfortable

2. It's noisy inside our 2.481 Rarely

classroom

3. A classmate/classmates 2.259 Rarely

bully me

4. I have no friends in our 2.049 Rarely

class

F. Home- related

1. My parents ask me to be 2.419 Rarely

absent from class

2. My parents quarreld 2.024 Rarely

3.My parents don't care 2.012 Rarely

about my studies

4. I'm too pre-occupied with 3.839 Sometimes

15
household chores

5. I have no money to buy 4.016 Very often

snacks in school

6. We have no food 2.037 Rarely

Table 3. Shows the weighted mean of contributing factors.

A. Physical Factors

Among the items cited, the main reason why students do not come to school is because
their house is far from the school which has the mean of 3.135 meaning sometimes.

B. Health

Headache is the most common reason of students for being absent. It has the highest
response average or, a mean of 2.740 followed by fever/flu with an average response 2.641. The
least common reason for them for being absent is other disease like diarrhea, with 2.382
averages, or mean.

C. Personal Attitude

That the student doesn't wake up early enough is the most common reason why he/she is
absent. This account for 3.209 mean. Another reason commonly cited is they feel lazy with 2.987
averages.

D. Teacher- Related

When the students don't like the teacher, tends to make them be absent from their classes
with average response 2.395 followed by students are scolded for their bad behavior by the
teacher, close behind with 2.358 average.

16
F. Home- Related

The students not having money to spend for snacks and other small expenses in school
have the highest response average among to all factor is 4.016 followed by household chores
come second with a response average 3.839.

Table 4

The propose school activity for the students who always absent

1. Guidance on punctuality and regularity of each student is take care by teachers.

2. Value education should include in syllabus to avoid absenteeism among students.

3. Teaching methods should improve by the teachers, so that students feel interested.

4. Canteen facilities should improve. Nutritious food should be provided.

5. Library atmosphere should be improved and the arrangement of books.

6. There should be system of conveying the message to the parents of the students, if any
students absent for 7 to 10 days without any prior intimation.

7. There should be award for the regular students.

8. Activities should be arrange by making the groups of students who are friends as group
discussion, competitions etc.

9. There should be seminars or guest lectures to boost the confidence of the students.

10. Parents should be understand the value of the study and they should not pamper their children
for attending in high school.

17
The Table 4. Shows the propose school activity to make the junior high school students avoid in
absenteeism.

CHAPTER 5

Summary of Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations

Summary of Findings
18
 This study was designed to examine the relationship between physical factor, health,
personal attitude, teacher related, classroom atmosphere and home-related. The findings of study
noticed that students are more likely to have school absenteeism.

Findings also showed that students, whose parents have low educational level and low
income, are more likely to have a high level of school absenteeism. In other words, the lower
educational levels of parents may evaluate as a risk factor for students school absenteeism.

Conclusion

Among all the causes presented, home related is the primary reason why students are
absent from their classes. Not having to buy snacks and other small expenses in school is the
leading culprit in this category, household chores is the second reason among the cited reasons
cited by the responding students.

Physical factor, Health, Teacher related and classroom atmosphere reasons follow in that
order the least reason they give is related to their physical environment

Recommendations

In order to limit or eliminate absenteeism, it is recommended that educator.

Inform parents about the benefit of keeping their children in school. Emphasize to them
that if they keep on asking their children to be absent, this will set a bad example to the child. If
the parents themselves are keeping the child away from school they must that household chores
concerns are more important than their education. Emphasize that academic success is very much
dependent on student attitude towards in school. Motivate them so they will be looking forward
to attending their classes regularly. For those who wake up late, encourage them to get an alarm
clock.

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