Dashboard Metrics
Average Daily Attendance
Background
Because attendance is a leading indicator of student performance, virtually every performance management dashboard should include a measure of student attendance. This need was echoed in focus groups conducted with over 2,600 Texas educators, in which student attendance was consistently named as one of three top data needs. Average Daily Attendance is one such measure.
Primary Metric
- Average Daily Attendance: the average of daily attendance for all students with membership on campus during the current grading period and year to date.
User Interface
Dashboard Example
Figure 1 shows the Average Daily Attendance metric as seen on the district dashboard.
Figure 1 TSDS Average Daily Attendance Metric
Status Definition
The status indicator is determined by district goals which are set at the district level. The default goal is 90%.
Table 2 Lists the status indicators and trend comparisons for Average Daily Attendance as seen on the district dashboard.
Metric Indicator | Comparisons | |||
Metric Name | Sub-metric Name | Metric Status Indicator | Trend | Campus Attainment |
Average Daily Attendance | Last Four Weeks | Red (Percentage) = if calculated Average Daily Attendance is less than district goal. Green (Percentage) = if calculated Average Daily Attendance is greater than or equal to the district goal. | Current four weeks and prior four weeks period | The number of campuses meeting their campus goal |
Year to Date | Red (Percentage) = if calculated Average Daily Attendance is less than the district goal Green (Percentage) = if calculated Average Daily Attendance is greater than or equal to the district goal. | Current time period compared to the same time period in prior year | The number of campuses meeting their campus goal | |
(a) The value column displays the average daily attendance represented by total students in membership in the district.
Trends
Currently the dashboards do not support trends for this district-level metric.
Delta Definition
The delta (difference from goal) appears only in the campus list and displays the metric value for the individual campus as compared to the goal for the campus, rather than as a comparison to the district goal.
Delta Indicators: Objective is to indicate Average Daily Attendance | |||
Metric Name | Sub-Metric Name | Campus Goal | Delta |
Daily Attendance Rate | Last Four Weeks | Set Campus Goal | Red (Percentage) = if the calculated delta is less than the campus goal Black (Percentage) = if the calculated delta is equal to or greater than the campus goal |
Year to Date | Set Campus Goal | Red (Percentage) = if the calculated delta is less than the campus goal Black (Percentage) = if the calculated delta is equal to or greater than the campus goal | |
Periodicity
Recommended Load Characteristics | |
Calendar | Throughout the school year |
Frequency of data load | Daily, Weekly, Monthly |
Latency | Grading Period |
Interchange schema | InterchangeStudentAttendanceExtension.xsd |
Tooltips
The standard tool tips for the metric definition, column headers, and help functions display for this metric.
The following are tooltips specific to the Average Daily Attendance metric:
- Green metric status: OK
- Red metric status: LOW
- 'More' indicates drill down to view the Campus List.
is ‘No change from the prior period'
is ‘Getting worse from the prior period’
is 'Getting better from the prior period'
Business Rules
The average daily attendance (ADA) is the total days of student attendance divided by the number of instructional days for the specified time period. For example, a student attending every day would equal one ADA. ADA is not the same as enrollment, which is the number of students enrolled in a campus on a given day. ADA is usually lower than enrollment due to factors such as students moving, dropping out, or staying home due to illness. Students included in this metric are those considered to be in membership on a campus. Per the Texas Education Agency PEIMS definition, membership is defined as the following: sum of daily attendance rate values for each student currently enrolled divided by the total number of students currently enrolled.
The Average Daily Attendance metric displays the average daily attendance for the following time frames:
- Current Grading Period
- Year to Date
Middle and high schools typically designate a specific time frame or class period on which to base daily attendance. This daily attendance metric is computed based upon a campus-specific business rule to interpret class (section) attendance data.
When calculating this metric, the following additional rules apply:
- Both excused and unexcused absences are counted as an absence.
- A tardy or early release (if captured) is not counted as an absence.
- Days on which a student is not enrolled must be adjusted in the computation.
- The length of the time frame is configurable and is defined by the district.
Data Assumptions
- Campus must record student absences for each time frame.
- The class or period when daily attendance is counted is specified.
- Student absences are categorized (e.g., excused, unexcused).
- District sets the value that drives the campus status threshold.
Computed Values
Table 6 defines how values are calculated for each time frame. The result of the calculation displays in the Status column on the campus dashboard.
Metric Values | ||
Average Daily Attendance | Current Grading Period | sum of each student's average daily attendance rate (# of days present / # of days in the current grading period) for those students with membership on all campuses in the district / total number of students currently enrolled |
Year to Date | sum of each student's average daily attendance rate (# of days present / # instructional days in the year as of current date) for those students with membership on the campus / total number of students currently enrolled | |
Calculation Notes
- A day of attendance is computed from attendance in a specified class (section), homeroom, or period.
- Both excused and unexcused absences are subtracted from total days.
- A tardy or early release (if captured) is not counted as an absence.
- Days on which the student is not enrolled is subtracted from total days.
- Length of the time frame may differ between elementary, middle, and high school since it is configurable and defined by district.
- The campus must define the campus goal each year. The TSDS default for both time frames is 95%.
Implementation Considerations
Designation of Campus Rule for Daily Attendance
Campuses typically designate a specific class (e.g., homeroom), or a time or class period on which to base daily attendance. The studentGPS® Dashboards use student attendance in this designated class period to calculate this attendance metric. If this period is not designated, the metrics will not appear.
Late Enrollment
The Dashboards do not currently adjust attendance rate metrics for late enrollment students. Attendance metrics may appear artificially low for these students.
Classification of Days as Non-Instructional Days
The number of instructional days in a designated period is derived from the campus calendar.
Frequency of Uploading Data
The metric computation implementation may vary depending on the periodicity of loading the data. For example, a daily refresh requires that you load data for only a single day (i.e., the last instructional day). Less frequent uploads require that you load data for each day since the date of the last load.
Length of Time Frames
The decision to show attendance metric values for specific time frames (e.g., Last Four Weeks) was based on educator input. However, these time frames are currently set at the system level and not configurable by a district.
Metric Status Indicator and Delta
The campus metric status threshold has been set at 90%, while the District Goal default threshold is 95%. Therefore, this 5% difference allows for Districts to have a green metric status indicator and a red calculated Delta percentage. Both of these default thresholds may be changed by the district. Districts are encouraged to set their own campus and district goals if they are not aligned to default.
Date of Refresh
Best practice is for the date of last data refresh to appear next the metric in the following format:
- (Through April 22, 2010)
Drill Downs
Drill Down Views
The dashboards include the option to drill down and see more detail that is associated with a metric. Table 7 lists the drill down views that are recommended for this metric.
| Campus List | List of campuses and whether or not they meet their campus goal for the Average Daily Attendance metric for the "specified timeframe" (default = students in attendance less than 95% of the time) |