Dear Parents, Please Send Your Students to School

05Feb
by Chelsea Culbert

If kids aren’t in school, they aren’t learning. The push in education is to analyze data in order to create an intervention plan to improve learning. Improved learning results in better test scores, which makes all stakeholders happier. It is so hard as a teacher to implement these interventions if students are continuously absent. With school, consistency is key. Students need to be consistently in school in order to obtain a complete education. If students are continuously absent, there are gaps in their education and they can begin to fall further and further behind. With numerous absences, it comes into question whether or not they have fulfilled the time and requirements for that particular course.

Skipping school is against the law. California Legislature defines ‘truant’ as a student missing more than 30 minutes of instruction without an excuse three times during the school year. A student who is chronically absent is defined as missing fifteen or more days per semester. Bottom line, students need to be in school and skipping school without a valid excuse is punishable by law.

But what else does attending school on a daily basis teach students? From kindergarten to twelfth grade, a student’s job is to attend school. Attending school, on time, and on a daily basis is every student’s responsibility. It is expected that students are at school on time every day. Just like a job, you can’t show up late or miss days without a valid excuse. Regularly attending school teaches students responsibility and prepares them for what is expected of them after graduation when they have the responsibility of a full-time job. It is imperative to teach students starting at a young age the importance of responsibility and accountability.

As teachers, our main goal is to teach students and prepare them to be productive members of society. We want them to excel and achieve all of their future aspirations. In order to do this, it starts with attending school and receiving a complete education. With this, we need your help to work together with us as a team. We want the best for your students. Parents, please help us by sending your student to school on a daily basis.

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Chelsea Culbert

Chelsea Culbert

Chelsea Culbert is a proud product of New York public schools where she graduated with her International Baccalaureate diploma. She went off to attain her B.A. in Chemistry with concentrations in Public Health and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies at NYU. While at NYU, she started the chapter of “Strive for College,” a non-profit organization that connects college students as mentors to assist high schoolers throughout the college application and financial aid processes. Immediately after graduation, Chelsea pursued her teaching career with Teach for America Los Angeles. While teaching, Chelsea completed her Master’s degree in Urban Education at Loyola Marymount University. Chelsea is currently teaching at her Teach for America placement school in Lincoln Heights where she serves as Department Instructional Lead, Instructional Leadership Team member, and coaches Varsity soccer.

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