Truancy

Truancy is an unexcused absence at school with/ without parents´ (legal tutors´) conscience. Truancy without parents´ conscience should be perceived as certain child´s response when the child isn´t able to solve any situation in other way but escaping the school education.

Truancy categories

True truancy

• Student doesn´t attend the school education and the parents are unaware of it
• Students pretending leaving home but returning back when the parents leave home to work, and stay at home 
• Students leaving home at morning but stay with friends either at their homes or outside
• Students staying at home since the parents leave home to work earlier  

Truancy incl. lying to parents

• Student convinces the parents that he feels sick
• Some parents are ascertained that their child is sick, unaware of lie  
• Some parents suppose that their child lies but don´t have enough strength to fight with him and silently agree

Truancy upon parents´ conscience

• Student doesn´t attend school education upon parents´ conscience
• Often the case is when the parent needs child at home to help him with some work.

Truancy causes

Truancy can result from adverse relation of a student wit school, from unfavorable family environment or other reasons.  

Family environment influence

Certain causes of truancy should be sought in the family. Unsettled family relations, insufficient parents´ interest in their child in the term of his school attendance and performance, lack of time, excessive care and too high demands – all these factors significantly affect truancy by student.

What to do? – recommendations to parents

- don´t underestimate the problem, don´t create an „alliance“ with your child against the school, don´t let your child to manipulate you and don´t leave him home during school hours without reasonable cause.   

- be interested and obtain information on your child attendance at school or regular and intensive basis (contact with the class master, school pedagogue, periodical parent´s visits and consultations at school...)

- be interested in the child´s emotional development, his position within the classmates, in the child´s social relations; and try to create a safe school environment for your child

- help your child to resolve current problems at school in a non-conflict way, clearly determining the rules to be observed

- don´t solve the problems through frequent school change; such strategy often only shifts the problem but actually resolves it

- when the problem grade up, seek the assistance of professionals (school pedagogues, the Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family SR, Center of Pedagogic- Psychological Consultations and Prevention, Department of Social-Legal Protection of Children and Social Tutorship)

Advisory psychologist or advisor- specialist of the Department of Advisory – Psychological Services can help the parents seeking new or more effective educational methods of problems solving with the child not attending school on regular basis. AS well, other / hidden causes of absence at school can be revealed during such consultations.

The list of Departments of Advisory – Psychological Services is available here.

Truancy and social allowances

If a child´s parent doesn´t care of proper attendance of school by his child, the school / educational facility headmaster shall report on it to competent state administration authority and to the municipality/ village of the child´s parent permanent address. Not carrying of the child´s proper attendance of school by parent refers to failed registration of the child for mandatory school education or unexcused absence at more than 15 classes per a month by the child. 

If the parent receives child´s allowance or additional payment to child´s allowance and the child doesn´t attend school on regular basis, the Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family, Department of the State Social Benefits will issue decision on assignment a special person – beneficiary of the child´s allowance or additional payment to child´s allowance. Special beneficiary shall refer to the municipality of the parent´s permanent address.  

If the parent is a recipient of the additional payment to child´s allowance and his child doesn´t properly attend school education according to the above-mentioned text, the parent will not be entitled to the additional payment to child´s allowance.

If the parent is a recipient of the destitute allowance and additional payments to the destitute allowance and the competent authority issues decision on assignment of special beneficiary of the child´s allowance resulting from failed school attendance by the child, the sum of the destitute allowance and additional payments to the destitute allowance shall not include the school allowance in amount Eur 17,20.

If the parent receives the parent benefit and his another child has failed to attend school for three consecutive calendar months, the parent´s benefit shall be reduced by 50% of the amount determined by the Parent Benefit Act for duration of three months.