Waivers, Attendance, Truancy, Instruction/Grading, Minutes of Instruction

Dear District Administrators,

This communication is to present a few reminders related to waivers, attendance data, truancy enforcement, instruction/grading, and minutes of instruction.

Waivers and Alternative Compliance:

• School Start Date - School districts may request an exemption from the September 1 start date requirement for extraordinary reasons such as forces of nature due to COVID-19. DPI has provided information on the requirements and process for seeking an exemption.
• Waivers of other laws and rules – Under Wisconsin statutes school districts may seek a waiver from many laws and rules governing school operations. School districts interested in pursuing a waiver may use a form that addresses the statutory and rule provisions in seeking a waiver from the department. Questions about waivers can also be addressed to waivers@dpi.wi.gov.

Attendance Data:

• Reporting Guidance - DPI’s 2021-22 COVID-19 Attendance Guidance includes considerations for various learning modalities and pandemic-related quarantine situations: DPI's Attendance: WISEdata Page.
• Flexible Family-driven Approach - DPI encourages working with students and families to understand barriers to attendance and to ensure attendance coding is appropriate to the situation. Communication is key. Update student handbooks and websites to reflect current attendance policies and procedures.
• Students in Quarantine or Unable to Attend In-person Instruction Due to Illness - When a student is home due to quarantine or illness and the student is engaged in work completion, as specified by local policy, the student may be marked present (in an alternate location).
• Special Education - If a student with a disability is frequently absent, the individualized education program (IEP) team must meet to review the student’s IEP and determine if there are additional supports and services required to address the absences so that the student can continue to receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE) and make progress toward their annual goals and in the general education curriculum. The IEP team, including input from the parent and student, should meet before the number of absences are reached, where the student is identified as habitually truant.

Truancy Enforcement:

• Continuum of Support - The most effective school-based truancy reduction strategies include activities implemented across a continuum of supports within an equitable Multi-Level System of Support (MLSS), with a strong focus on universal strategies and positive climate combined with proactive interagency collaboration.
• Collaborative Approach - Schools include students, families, schools, law enforcement, youth justice, child welfare, and the courts in protective meetings to set up and review truancy enforcement strategies.
• Habitual Truancy Process - Wisconsin statute allows, but does not require, schools to refer students who are habitually truant to juvenile court intake or municipal court only after satisfying the steps detailed in Wis. Stat. § 118.16(5).
• Family and Student Voice - School staff should develop attendance improvement plans that are led by student and parent perspectives, goals, and needs.
• Non-Punitive Approach - Attention should be paid to how responses to truancy increase a student’s relationships between adults and peers and contribute to a sense of belonging in the school community. Practices that further punish students should be avoided, so instead, practices reduce harm and increase connection.
• Youth Justice - Child welfare and youth justice systems act only as a “last resort” for a much smaller number of youth and families requiring more intensive support.
• Homeschool Program - It is important to note per Wis. Stat. § 118.15(4), homeschooling that meets specific criteria may be substituted for attendance at a public or private school. Under Wis. Stat. § 115.30(3), no school district can compel the submission of the PI-1206 form prior to October 15. If a parent communicates to their resident district their intent to homeschool their student(s), a district should consider that sufficient notice up to the October 15 deadline to submit a PI-1206 form.

Instruction and Grading:

• Innovative Instructional Design and learning modality options allowed under PI8 - Districts have flexibility under PI 8 to create flexible learning modality options for students for inclement health situations, weather, district professional learning, or planning needs. This option can be offered to the entire student body or to specific groups based on conditions, or opt-in programming. Find guidance and considerations at DPI's Virtual Learning Time for Public Schools Page.
• Alternatives to Concurrent Teaching - Concurrent teaching structures are not the most effective for remote or in-person students. Districts can consider using support staff, substitutes, or in-house instructor coverage for check-in sessions with remote students on a daily basis - assuming a large part of their day is completing instructional activities asynchronously. Districts also may consider using educators or staff that are quarantined but able to work to be assigned to check in, instruct, record on-demand content, create asynchronous learning pathways, as well as do small group instruction, formative checks, or attendance/wellness checks on a daily basis.
• Instruction - Instruction should be aligned to grade-level academic standards. Schools can address unfinished learning by valuing the knowledge and abilities each learner brings to the classroom; accelerating learning with scaffolds and supports; providing necessary instruction as needed in the context of or as part of grade-level instruction (rather than dedicating a certain amount of time to providing instruction in previous grade-level content). Find guidance and consideration for instruction in this current context at DPI's Return to School Post COVID-19: ELA, Literacy, and Mathematics Page.
• Grading - Decisions about grading practices are made at the local level. Standards-based grading in mathematics and ELA are likely best done at the cluster statement level. Districts have the flexibility under the DPI COVID guidance to determine how to proactively address health situations, rolling quarantines, and medical illness.
• Assessment - Utilize a variety of assessments, such as formative assessment, to Identify learner strengths and needs. This enables educators to design opportunities for students to apply and build on those strengths and informs access points and instructional goals. Find resources and sample formative assessment practices at DPI's Formative Assessment Page.

Minutes of Instruction:

• Minutes dedicated to mitigation strategies - Districts can count minutes dedicated to appropriate mitigation strategies, such as additional hand washing opportunities, within the instructional day to ensure continuity of learning.
• Minutes of instruction by content areas - Wisconsin state statute outlines requirements for instruction in reading, language arts, social studies, mathematics, science, health, physical education, art, and music. In grades K-8, it is specified as “regular” instruction, which is defined in the statute as “instruction each week through the entire school term in sufficient frequency and length to meet district curricular requirements” [Wis. Stat. § sec.121.02(1)(L)1 for elementary, and Wis. Stat. § sec.121.02(1)(L)2 for grades 5-8, as defined by rule in the 20 standards for public education in Wisconsin]. The statute further specifies foreign language, career planning, and other requirements. “Regular Instruction” is defined in standard K as instruction every week for the entire school term in sufficient frequency and length to achieve district curricular goals: Wis. Stat. § PI 8.01(2)(L)1 and Wis. Stat. § PI 8.01(2)(L)3.

When we believe that students want to do well and that unexcused absences are the symptoms of issues on various system levels, our approach to problem-solving will be collaborative, multi-faceted, and more effective.

If you have questions related to attendance during the pandemic, please contact COVID-19questions@dpi.wi.gov.

Sincerely,