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PSS posts all-time high student attendance
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Posted on Dec 22 2011
The daily attendance of students in public schools is at an all-time high despite a slight drop in enrollment in the first quarter of the fiscal year, according to Education Commissioner Rita A. Sablan yesterday.
In her report to the Board of Education, Sablan said that two elementary schools have an overwhelming attendance record of 99 percent: San Vicente Elementary School and Tinian Elementary School.
Most public schools had student attendance records that ranged from 94 to 98 percent in the first quarter of the fiscal year.
The all-time high record is also evident in the attendance of school staff and personnel, according to Sablan.
The school system is home to nearly 11,000 students and about a thousand employees.
The Public School System, she said, is currently working with a few schools that need support in the areas of attendance and absenteeism. School principals have agreed to collaborate with the board’s school reform committee and the parent advisory panel to improve their data.
Board chair Marylou S. Ada emphasized yesterday the importance of achieving high attendance in schools. “This attendance record tells us that our students are very enthusiastic in coming to schools. This is an indication that we’re doing the right thing for them. We have to remember that if attendance is low, this means we’re not doing our duties and responsibilities because they lack the motivation and encouragement to learn,” she told Saipan Tribune.
Ada said the all-time high record also means that students are not dropping out of schools.
She believes the good data is the students’ positive feedback to what they’re getting from the school system.
Meantime, Sablan disclosed that PSS showed a 1.8 percent decline in its enrollment since classes opened in September. She said official student population as of Nov. 10 is 10,812.
