Out of the Box

Why school attendance is important

by Mr Michael Oaten, Assistant Principal

Going to school every day is an important part of your child’s education. Children and young people learn new things at school every day, connect with friends, have fun and develop good habits that help them to succeed. Attending and participating in school will help your child: 

  • develop important skills and knowledge to help them learn 

  • develop social and emotional skills such as good communication, resilience and team-work 

  • establish friendships with peers which help develop self-esteem and a sense of belonging. 

Attendance process at Box Hill High School 

As a parent/carer, you are legally required to ensure your child attends school every day, and if your child is absent, you must provide an explanation. Schools need to know when and why a student is absent, so you must let us know on the day of the absence and explain why your child can’t come to school. This can be done in the following ways: 

 

On a computer by clicking: 

 On the mobile app by selecting: 

  1.  ‘shortcuts’ 

  2.  Selecting ‘submit attendance note’ 

Via phone 

  1. Call (03) 9877 1177 

  2. Select: option ‘2’ - attendance 

  3. Select: option ‘1’ for Years 7/8, ‘2’ for Years 9/10, or ‘3’ for Years 11/12. 

We request that you regularly check your child/children’s attendance and add an attendance note for any outstanding unexplained absences. This can be entered by following the three steps:  

  1. Click on your child’s Profile 

  2. Click ‘Attendance’ tab 

  3. Click ‘Unexplained’ tab 

  4. Tick the relevant absent box and select ‘Explain with Attendance Note’. 

(Please note that this process cannot be completed via the mobile phone app). 

Process for late arrival and early departure 

If your child arrives late or is required to leave early, they must report to the relevant sub-school's Administration Officer to sign in / out. 

 

Prior to arriving to the sub-school, we ask that parents/carers enter the late arrival/early departure on Compass (via web or mobile app). In either instance, the student must still report to the sub-school Administration Officer to ensure the late arrival / early departure has been logged on Compass. 

 

If your child has frequent unexplained absences then we will work with you to implement appropriate supports to assist your child and ensure they attend school every day and remain at school during school hours.