Massachusetts pioneered school attendance laws by being the first state to enact the mandatory education law in 1852. The law did away with education control by the church and put it under the direction of citizens Massachusetts Bay Colony. The law required parents and masters to ensure their children did not miss school. Prior to that, general school law was passed in 1647 which required towns in Massachusetts to establish schools. The law was famously known as the Old Deluder Satan Act for referring to Satan since people believed children had to learn religious teachings and the Bible to overcome Satan’s influence. Children under fifteen years were required by the law to have a minimum of three months of schooling in order to be employed. For many years, the issue of poor school attendance has raised concern. In recent years, however, new laws have been enacted which touch on illness, travel, immigration, and homeschooling aimed at enhancing school attendance. It is believed that the more students attend school, the better prepared they become hence, improvement in levels of achievement.
Residence laws
It is prudent that schools should provide equal education to all regardless of the place of residence or economic status. This, according to Dr. Kern Alexander, who also testifies that paying and training of teachers should be considered in all educational resources (Alexander & Alexander, p. 40 2012). Residence requirements based on geographical boundaries marked between school districts has been upheld as long as not discriminating to a specific group of students. Without a doubt, attendance zones have been upheld as a valid exercise where boundaries were marked for integration to be effective. Children with illegal alien parents, who are residents in the US are entitled to public education while those in the US whose parents reside in another country can be denied free public education since this means their parents are not legal residents. Most states require that students be residents of the school district they attend school. Also, school districts are allowed by law to challenge a student’s residence (Alexander & Alexander, p. 295 2012). It worth noting that a student may be denied attendance in a particular school for changing guardianship. The US Supreme Court has clearly define residence law as constitutionally valid, which it has uniformly applied. For the establishment of residence laws, one must be physically present and have intentions of remaining in that location. A child’s physical location is not used in determining residence. Also, a student changing his or her residence to take part in an athletic program may be denied by the athletic association rules without violating the property rights of the student. These are the residence laws that are applied throughout the United States. However, modifications can be made on the requirements in cases of homelessness since there are agreements that are accommodated by states and federal governments under the McKinney-Vento law (Alexander & Alexander, p. 296 2012)
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Immigration laws
The United States Supreme Court assurance that there is a balanced relationship to a public legal purpose in the classification of immigrants in the application of the Equal Protection Clause. Despite the status of a person under the immigration laws, an alien is a person and thus gives the person entitled protection under the Equal and Protection Clause. Despite the fact persuasive arguments supporting the view of the state withholding its beneficence from those whose presence in the US is as a result of their unlawful undoing (Shah & Cavanagh, 2012), these arguments do not apply with equal force to classifications of children of illegal immigrants. Education plays a crucial role in the sustenance of the political and cultural heritage of the United States, therefore, denying a child an opportunity to attend school because of being part of a separate group by itself poses a threat to the tenets of the Equal Protection Clause. This, therefore, presents obstacles to merit advancement based on individual merit. No state statute supports the withholding of local school district from state funds for allowing children who are illegally admitted into the United States. Research by (Alexander & Alexander, 2012) shows that one out of every five children enrolled in a public school in the United States speaks another language other than English at home. Most of them being born in other countries. With some of the children have had little education before coming into the United States (Stephens Jr & Yang, 2014). This also applies to students in middle and high school students who find it complex to comprehend (Landis & Reschly, 2011). While there are policies in place to address the situation, the United States is still to get effective ways to teach children enrolling to school with various linguistic and cultural challenges to such a diverse country (Cabus & De Witte, 2011). Canada consists of a few countries that immigrant students enjoy access to equal or better school conditions than native students.
European Systems
The public school's’ systems in the United States is federalist, which is different from most European systems. All American states have unique beginnings and thereby providing perspectives that add strength and vitality to the education system. The European Convention on Human Rights proclaimed that education is a right, which no one should be denied (Alexander & Alexander, 2012). Unlike the European system, children in the US start school relatively late. Pre-Kindergarten is not universal, thus explaining why children from immigrant groups are less likely to be in preschool compared to middle-class American children (Shah & Cavanagh, 2012). Pre-kindergarten in France is universal. By the age of three, all children are enrolled in school playing with other kids and being supervised by an adult while speaking in French (Shah & Cavanagh, 2012). This is because learning the native language constitutes the foundation for academic success. In a bid to improve its education standards, Germany integrates immigrants, allowing naturalized citizenship to most immigrants and emphasizing educating of language.
Home Schooling
The government has an interest in educating all its citizen. The constitution bars parents from controlling their children’s educational aspects, as this is ousting the authority of the state. AA school district’s policy does barring part-time attendance at public schools does not violate the rights of a homeschooled student to free exercise of religion where the policy’s application is neutral (Ray, 2015). Likewise, parents from homeschooling students are not prohibited by a school district’s policy because of their religion and are not coerced to do anything that contradicts their beliefs. Although parents are entitled to send their children to institutions other than public schools, they are prohibited from being completely unfettered by government regulations as to the quality of education being offered. Parents may be barred from homeschooling if they do not abide by the state laws, which may also lead to criminal penalties (Ray, 2015). It is vital to understand that “Denial of a homeschooled youth participation in a public school interscholastic athletic program does not violate the Equal Protection Clause.” (Alexander & Alexander, p. 333 2012)
Travel
Excused absence from school must be regulated and often allows for a certain number of days of nonattendance for travel. Violating such riles may lead to action against the parents for failure to see their children attending school. A parent may be found culpable of violating the law by insisting on taking his or her child out of school for no authorized reason and may be convicted under the attendance laws. Students cannot be punished for missing school because of travel trips “if the state law only imposes penalties against parents.” (Alexander & Alexander, p. 324 2012)
Provisions for Illness
A Valid medical proof is needed for parents who claim their child is sick and cannot attend school. For instance, (Alexander & Alexander, 2012) give an example of a case in Illinois that shows how an illness claim can turn into a truancy charge. Under Illinois law, a child who lacks a valid cause of absence is considered to be truant. This case involves a child who had missed school for 339 days in two years. Testimony from the student’s doctor showed that the child had allergies, but was not magnificent to cause school absence. The conviction of the child’s parents was upheld because they lacked the proof to justify their noncompliance with the law.
Conclusion
School Attendance Laws have existed for many years to regulate the quality of education and minimize the rate of school absenteeism. In regards to schools attendance, data shows that elaborate measures should be taken in the fight against school absenteeism. After an investigation of truancy, it is fair to say schools make a difference to a child’ life; thus, no need for school absenteeism without a valid reason. Homeschooling is also regulated under school attendance laws. If a parent decides to homeschool his or her child, the setting should meet the standards required by the law whereby they risk closure if they fail to meet the standards. Traveling laws are stipulated, and parents should abide by the laws provided by respective school districts or risk conviction. There exist provisions for illness whereby a parent is spared conviction after a valid proof of illness on the child. Despite the strict regulations of school attendance laws, it is prudent to acknowledge they have ensured the progress of education standards in the United States.
References
Alexander, K., & Alexander, M. D. (2012). American public school law. Cengage Learning. Cabus, S. J., & De Witte, K. (2011). Does school time matter?—On the impact of compulsory education age on school dropout. Economics of Education Review, 30(6), 1384-1398. Landis, R. N., & Reschly, A. L. (2011). An examination of compulsory school attendance ages and high school dropout and completion. Educational Policy, 25(5), 719-761. Ray, B. D. (2015). Research Facts on Homeschooling. National home education research institute. Shah, N., & Cavanagh, S. (2012). Educating immigrant students: A challenge for US and others. Education Week, 31(16), 24-28. Stephens Jr, M., & Yang, D. Y. (2014). Compulsory education and the benefits of schooling. American Economic Review, 104(6), 1777-92.
