It doesn’t matter if it’s in a school in America or in a learning institution in another part of the world, the negative impact poverty has on school attendance is a reality for many families. Let’s take a look at what the research says.

An article in the Jamaican-Gleaner newspaper reported on a study by a university in the West Indies that looked at 100 elementary schools over an 18-month period. It found that more than 20 percent of the schools had attendance rates below, if not well below, the standard. Low literacy levels among the parents, unemployment, little value placed on education and child labor were cited as the main reasons children were missing school.

Similar attendance, or shall we say low attendance, statistics can also be found in the US. A study by the Center for NYC Affairs, for instance, determined that one in five kids in NYC, which added up to more than 90,000 students, were missing a month or more of school every year. The most alarming figure of all, according to the report, was that about 40 percent of kids from low-income families were chronically absent.

Not surprisingly, child poverty has profound implications in school achievement states an article on First Focus, a website dedicated to giving children a voice. Kids from poverty-stricken homes often face much bigger obstacles, and don’t always get the same opportunities as their more well-to-do white peers. The website said they’re less likely, for example, to go to pre-K, to have adequate school supplies and to get the proper nutrition. US schools spend about $330 less on minority students compared to white students, it added.

It’s not just these studies but actually the bulk of the research out there indicates that in order to close achievement gaps and increase school attendance, more attention needs to be given to children of color. Finding educational programs that support ELL students’ first language, such as The Latino Family Literacy Project, can make an enormous difference on their overall academic and language acquisition success. Teachers who attend our workshops will learn how to effectively reach out to Hispanic parents for strong attendance in parent involvement programs.