Go-Learn-Grow: A New Toolkit for Improving Attendance in Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten

Chronic absenteeism is particularly high in the early grades, compared with elementary and middle school. For a young child to succeed and develop a strong foundation for learning, he or she must attend school regularly. REL Mid-Atlantic partnered with the New Jersey Department of Education to support a new NJDOE initiative called Go-Learn-Grow: Improving the School Attendance of New Jersey’s Youngest Learners. Through this webinar we explore the initiative and highlight a user-friendly toolkit with resources for district and school leaders, early childhood providers, educators, and families that is available to download. The webinar seeks to motivate district and school leaders to (1) share available resources with their networks, (2) collect and use data to understand absenteeism in the early grades, (3) identify and implement evidence-based strategies to reduce chronic absenteeism, and (4) rigorously assess the effectiveness of the intervention or interventions they employ.

The presenters in this video are:
-Martha Bleeker, Senior Survey Researcher, REL Mid-Atlantic
-Wendi Webster-O’Dell, Coordinator for Parent and Family Engagement, New Jersey Department of Education, Division of Early Childhood Education
-Jaimie Grazi, Survey Analyst, REL Mid-Atlantic
-Felicia Hurwitz, Survey Analyst, REL Mid-Atlantic
IES Disclaimer: This video was prepared under Contract ED-IES-17-C-0006 by Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, administered by Mathematica Policy Research. The content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of IES or the U.S. Department of Education, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.