County high school students with multiple unexcused absences will have more chances to make up their coursework and pass their classes under a school system recommendation to reverse a long-standing practice under which the students failed the courses. Some county school board members say they still aren't sold on the school system's plans to change the so-called "loss of credit" practice, because it doesn't encourage students to attend school. The school system's current practice is to fail students in a class when they have five unexcused absences; the students are allowed to appeal the grade to the school's administrators.
Under the new regulation, slated to begin next academic year, students with five unexcused absences from a class will not automatically fail. Instead, the students would be required to undergo an intervention with school administrators to determine why they are missing the classes. If administrators find that the students had a good reason for missing the classes, they will be allowed to make up the coursework. However, if the students' absences were determined to be "unlawful" — skipping classes, for example — teachers then can fail the students, if administrators approve the action.
"The intent is not to punish the kids," said Henry R. Johnson, principal of Northwood High School in Silver Spring and a member of a school system project team that studied the possibility of changing the "loss of credit" regulation.
"The goal is to make sure the students continue to come to class. It provides us an opportunity to work with students with extenuating circumstances." School board member Laura V. Berthiaume (Dist. 2) of Rockville questioned whether the school system's new practice would lower expectations even further for students who already don't have the incentive to attend classes. SOURCE: Gazette
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