This rather alarming headline caught my eye at the weekend when I was browsing the various on-line news stories. (Full story at: Evening News) Regardless of what one thinks of using custodial sentences to punish those who offend against society, I welcome the fact that Edinburgh Council is prepared to support children by taking such a tough line with those who are neglecting their responsibilities as parents. I sincerely hope that this 'last resort', won't be necessary. Based on my 30 years experience of working in a variety of schools, pupils, whose attendance is poor, invariably struggle to secure a positive outcome on leaving school. Performance in Maths is particularly adversely affected when attendance is poor. We also need to bear in mind that erratic or poor attendance has a disruptive impact on other pupils. In an increasingly competitive world all of our young people need and deserve the best possible education. Whether that education takes place in school or in an alternative setting doesn't matter as long as pupils turn up on time each day with a desire to learn and better themselves. At Gillespie's the attendance target for all pupils is 100%.
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