Attendance Policy

Last Revision:  July 2024

Next Revision: May 2027

1.  RATIONALE & PURPOSE

Regular school attendance is essential for student success. This policy outlines expectations and procedures to ensure students attend school regularly and punctually.

2. REGULATORY & STANDARDS REFERENCE

3. SCOPE

Applies to: all students of Amman Academy across the school, and to their parents or guardians in relation to reporting, excusing, and supporting attendance.

Does not apply to: absences during school-approved activities such as field trips and competitions, which are governed by a separate policy.

4. DEFINITIONS

• Excused Absence: An absence for an approved reason (such as personal illness, medical or dental appointment, family emergency, bereavement, religious observance, school-approved activity, pre-arranged parent field break, or school-recommended event) supported by required documentation provided prior to the absence or within 3 days of the student’s return.
• Unexcused Absence: An absence that does not meet the excused criteria and/or lacks proper documentation.
• Tardiness (Late): Arrival after the scheduled start time of Homeroom and/or each individual class.
• Early Dismissal: A student leaving before the end of the school day following a written request submitted in advance through Toddle or the Admin office.
• Parent Field Break: A pre-arranged absence approved only when arranged in advance with the homeroom teachers; excluded from the 95% attendance calculation.
• Long-Term Absent: A student who misses 10% of the school days in a year, regardless of reason.

5. POLICY STATEMENTS

5.1   Core Principle:  All students are expected to attend school daily and arrive on time. Junior School students are expected to be in the classroom by 07:45 AM (except afternoon EY1 class); Senior School students are expected by 07:45 AM. Students must be present for at least 95% of the academic school year, excluding approved parent field breaks. Absences due to a parent field break will be approved only if pre-arranged with the homeroom teachers.

5.2   Requirement:  The following requirements govern excused and unexcused absences, tardiness, early dismissals, reporting, make-up work, long-term absenteeism, and communication:

5.2.1   Excused Absences:  Absences may be excused for the following reasons:

• Personal illness (medical documentation required).
• Medical or dental appointments (with documentation required).
• Family emergencies (communicated with the Head of School or the relevant Principal).
• Death in the immediate family (as a conversation with Head of School or Principal).
• Religious observances (as a conversation with Head of School or Principal).
• School-approved activities (field trips, competitions, etc.); see separate policy regarding these activities.
• Pre-arranged parent field break.
• School-recommended events.

All documentation must be provided either prior to the absence or within 3 days of the student’s return to school.

5.2.2   Unexcused Absences:  An absence is considered unexcused if it does not meet the criteria above and/or lacks proper documentation. Once a student has reached repeated unexcused absences or less than 95% attendance in a year, this may result in:

• Parent/guardian contact and a restorative behaviour session with coordinator, principal, and student counselor.
• Loss of privileges, e.g. attending field trips, ASA, etc.
• Academic consequences, e.g. failure of tests and summative assessments, and further, may miss out on awards at end-of-year awards ceremonies.
• Potential application into the DP Programme in senior years may be rejected; or if currently undertaking DP, the student may be asked to enrol in the certificate course instead.

Leave from school to prepare or study for assessments is considered an ‘unfair advantage’ and is not acceptable, especially if this leave results in missed timetabled classes. During an assessment (examination) period, or on an assessment due date, students must provide a medical certificate as proof of legitimate absence. Also refer to the AA Assessment Policy.

5.2.3   Tardiness:  Students are considered late if they arrive after the scheduled start time of Homeroom and/or each individual class. Students who consistently arrive late to school are at greater risk of academic difficulties than students who arrive on time according to school expectations.

EY and PYP:

Any student in EY-PYP who accumulates 5 or more late arrivals in a 4-week period must take part in a parent meeting with the principal.

MYP and DP:

Students arriving late to school or class must receive a written pass from security. One copy will be left with Security, one copy will go to the admin department, and one copy will be given to the homeroom teacher. The homeroom teacher marks them ‘Late’ on Toddle, indicating the arrival time and reason.

5.2.4   Early Dismissals:  Early dismissal requires advance notice and sign-out:

• Parents/guardians must submit a written request through Toddle (Request Excusals) or call the school admin to enter the information onto Toddle. This needs to be done in advance for early dismissals.
• Students must be signed out of the Admin office using the Early Leavers Form by the relevant Principal, Year Advisor, and relevant Admin staff member, with the signed form to be presented to security staff.
• Early dismissals without valid reasons will be marked as an ‘unexcused absence’.

5.2.5   Reporting Absences:  Parents/guardians are required to:

• Create an ‘Excusal’ on Toddle before 7.30 AM on the day of the absence. If Toddle is not accessible, call the Admin office prior to 7.30 AM.
• Provide the student’s name, year level, reason for absence, and expected return date.

If parents do not provide a message to homeroom teachers before 7.30, administration staff will be flagged of any unapproved absences for each day and will then call home to ascertain where the student is. If students are marked unexcused, Toddle will send a message to parents notifying them that their student is not at school and has been marked absent (unexcused).

5.2.6   Make-Up Work:  Students with excused absences are allowed to make up missed work. The time frame to submit make-up assignments is typically equal to the number of days missed unless otherwise arranged with the teacher. Students with unexcused absences will not be given additional support by teachers (other than what is already uploaded onto the Toddle classroom stream).

5.2.7   Long Term Absenteeism:  A student is considered long-term absent if they miss 10% of the school days in a year, regardless of reason. The school will:

• Monitor attendance.
• Communicate concerns with parents.
• Refer to appropriate authorities if necessary.

In the PYP, parents are encouraged to refer to the learning experiences posted on Toddle to support student learning at home. Students may receive an IE on their report if they are absent during required assessments needed for reporting.

5.2.8   Communication:  The school will regularly inform parents/guardians of their child’s attendance record through:

• Toddle.
• Conferences.
• Report cards.
• Email alerts.

5.3   Compliance:  Repeated unexcused absences, attendance below 95%, or failure to provide required documentation within the stated windows trigger the consequences set out in 5.2.2, including parent contact and a restorative behaviour session, loss of privileges, academic consequences, and potential effects on DP eligibility. Long-term absenteeism (10% of school days) is monitored and may be referred to appropriate authorities.

6. ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

7. EXCEPTIONS & WAIVERS

Authority to grant exceptions:  Head of School or the relevant Principal, for excused absences such as family emergencies, bereavement, religious observances, pre-arranged parent field breaks, and school-recommended events.

Process:  Pre-arrangement with the homeroom teachers (field breaks) or communication with the Head of School or Principal (emergencies, bereavement, religious observances); supporting documentation provided prior to the absence or within 3 days of return.

Documentation:  Excusals and supporting documents recorded on Toddle; late passes and Early Leavers Forms filed by Security and Admin.

8. RELATED DOCUMENTS

• Refer to the AA Assessment Policy (absence during assessment or examination periods; reporting and IE marks).
• Refer to the Amman Academy Parent-Student Handbook (attendance expectations and Toddle procedures).
• Refer to the separate policy governing school-approved activities (field trips, competitions).
• Refer to the Student Well-Being Policy (support for students with attendance concerns).
• Refer to Toddle (Excusals, Request Excusals, attendance records) and the Early Leavers Form.

9. DOCUMENT CONTROL & HISTORY