Introduction to how to calculate weekly class percentage attendance
This post describes in simple terms how to calculate weekly class percentage attendance. Weekly percentage attendance is the percentage ratio of the actual turnout of the learners in a particular class to the expected turnout for a given period of time that school opens.
In an earlier post (click to read), I discussed the importance of daily attendance register. The daily marking of the register itself provides data which serves as input. However, working out the percentage makes generalization of data possible which in turn enhances some of the importance I discussed earlier.
A particular need for working out the weekly class percentage attendance is that it serves as a tool for identifying general study behavior/attendance curve. This in turn aid supervising body/bodies to quickly arrest and dealt with any ugly trend. Teachers, administrators and education supervisors also use the weekly class percentage attendance to forecast and/or explain academic performances.
Wrong Way: How to Calculate Weekly Class Percentage Attendance
Before I discuss the correct way to calculate weekly class percentage attendance, let me quickly set aside the wrong way that most (new) teachers do it.
Consider the two (sample) weekly attendance register sheets below. I will use both for this illustration and also to explain the correct way to calculate weekly class percentage attendance.
Sample Register Sheet 1 Sample Register Sheet 2
NOTE: I discussed how to mark attendance register in an earlier post. Click here to quickly read the post.
First Wrong Method: Total attendance divide by total number of students
In my over 10 years as a school administrator, one of the wrong ways that new teachers calculate weekly class percentage attendance is this: to divide the total weekly attendance by the total number of students on roll.
Take for instance, in figure one above, the total attendance for the week is 71 + 70 = 141. And the total number on roll is number of boys (9) + number of girls (6) = 15. Hence, new and unsuspecting teachers will simply but erroneously calculate the class percentage attendance for week as . Thus getting 9.4 as the class percentage attendance for the week.
Now, notice the closeness of that answer (9.4) to the correct answer (94%) as I have shown in the diagram. Despite this nearness, please understand that both the method and the final method are wrong.
Obviously, 9.4 is too insignificant to be a correct value for class percentage attendance for the week. In fact, I should stress that any weekly class percentage attendance below 50% is an indication of a great anomaly. The administrator or supervisor of such a class/school must take drastic action to turn things around. For one, it could mean that the class teacher is doing some serious wrong. Then that may also mean abysmally poor academic activities (rock bottom standard). For the worst part, such insignificant weekly class percentage attendance could mean permanent loss of students to the school.
Sighting Error at a glance
Therefore, now that I have brought your attention to the forgoing, you should know that both the method and final value are wrong ways for calculating weekly class percentage attendance. And additional tip here is that once can tell wrong weekly class percentage attendance by simply glancing at the percentage value. At no time should the percentage should be as low as a single digit nor as high as over 100.
Second Wrong Method: Total attendance times 10 divide by total number on roll
If you carefully inspect the first wrong method above, you will realize that “smart” but unwary teachers can attain the correct answer by simply multiplying the total attendance by 10 then dividing by total number on roll.
Take for example, in figure one above; the total attendance for the week is 141. And the total number on roll is 15. Therefore, teacher that adopts this wrong method will calculate their weekly class attendance as . Although this method gives the correct answer of 94%; it is not absolutely correct. It is only correct if school opens for the complete 10 times in a week.
However, if there is any public holiday within the week; then this second will not give the correct value.
Consider figure 2 above for example. There was IDL KABIR BREAK on Thursday of that week. Hence, school opened for 8 instead of the 10 times in a week.
If we go by this method, then we could have calculated our class percentage attendance for the week as As you know, this will give the percentage value as 76%.
This is different from the correct answer that I have indicated in the sample sheet. Hence, though this method may yield correct answer every week of no holiday; it is not correct.
Notwithstanding, it is safe to say that if the teacher intends and is sure to remember to use this method only for weeks that school will open for the complete 10 times per week; then such teacher may use this method.
Regardless, the safer and better thing to do is to use the correct method – the method that will yield correct answer at all times. This is the correct way to calculate weekly class percentage attendance.
Correct Way: How to Calculate Weekly Class Percentage Attendance
Now that we have discussed the ways that (new) teachers wrongly calculate weekly class percentage attendance; let us look at the correct way to do it.
Please refer to the two (sample) weekly attendance register sheets above when necessary.
There are six simple ways to calculate weekly class percentage attendance. These include:
- Calculate total attendance for the week
- Calculate the total number of students on roll
- Note the number of times school opened for the week
- Multiply the total number of students on roll by the number of times school opened for the week
- Divide the total attendance for the week in step 1 by the answer you obtained in step 4
- Multiply the final answer in step 5 by 100
This method works and yield correct answer at all times.
Examples of How to Calculate Weekly Class Percentage Attendance
Consider the first sample weekly attendance register sheet above.
1. Calculate the total attendance for the week
Total attendance for week = Mornings Total + Afternoons Total.
The total attendance of the class for the week is the sum of all Mornings total and Afternoons Total. Mornings total means the total count of present on Monday through Friday mornings of the week. Similarly, Afternoons total means the total count of present on Monday through Friday afternoons of the week.
Example (Sheet) 1
Mornings Total
Looking at the sample register sheet 1, you will observe that 15 were present on Monday morning; 14 were present on Tuesday morning; 14 on Wednesday morning; 14 on Thursday morning; and 14 on Friday morning. Adding all of these gives us 71 as Mornings total.
Afternoons Total
In the same vein, looking at the same sample register sheet 1, you will also observe that 15 were present on Monday afternoon; 14 were present on Tuesday afternoon; 14 were present on Wednesday afternoon; 13 were present on Thursday afternoon; and 14 were present on Friday afternoon. Adding these will gives us 70 as Afternoons total.
Total Attendance for week is Mornings Total (71) + Afternoons Total (70) = 141.
Write this answer down and proceed to step 2.
Example (Sheet) 2
Mornings Total
As for example sheet 2, you will observe that 15 were present on Monday morning; 14 were present on Tuesday morning; 14 on Wednesday morning; Thursday was public holiday so no data; and 14 on Friday morning. Adding all of these gives us 57 as Mornings total.
Afternoons Total
The afternoons total for sample sheet 2 is the same as the mornings total. Therefore, Afternoon Totals for sheet 2 is also 57.
Correspondingly, Total Attendance for week is Mornings Total (57) + Afternoons Total (57) = 114.
Write this answer down and proceed to step 2.
NOTE: I explained the concept of morning and afternoon in an earlier post. Click here to read the post.
2. Calculate the total number of students on roll
The next step after getting the total attendance for the week is to determine the total number of students on roll. This is simple. Simply add the number of boys and the number of girls.
Looking at the sample register sheet 1, you will observe that there are 9 boys and 6 girls on the register. Therefore, the total number of students on roll is Similarly, the total number of students on roll for sample sheet 2 is 15.
Worthy of note under number of students on roll is that if a student has already been transferred from the class; s/he must be excluded from the number on roll though his or her name may remain on the register until the end of the term.
3. Note the number of times school opened for the week
Next, note the number of times school opened for the week. This is pretty simple. For standard two continuous sessions a day; the school opens twice per day. But for schools that run two separate sessions a day, school opens once per day.
Therefore, in a week (i.e. Monday through Friday); school opens 10 times for standard two continuous sessions per day. Equally, school opens 5 times for schools that run two separate sessions per day. Majority of schools (public and private) in southern and north central Nigeria runs standard two continuous sessions. Conversely, majority of schools (public) in north-eastern and north-western Nigeria run two separate sessions per day.
One-day public holiday or break in schools that run standard two continuous sessions a day means the number of times school opened for the week will be reduced by 2 – because school opens twice a day (Morning and afternoon).
Take for instance, in the second sample sheet above; there was IDL KABIR break on Thursday of the week. That means school opened for 8 times – 10 -2.
So, now going back to our examples;
Number of times school opened for sheet 1 = 10; and
Number of times school opened for sheet 2 = 8.
4. Multiply the total number of students on roll by the number of times school opened for the week
The next step is to multiply number of students on roll in step 2 by the number of times school opened for the week in step 3:
For sample sheet 1: Total number of students on roll = 15; and number of times school opened for the week is 10. Therefore, the product is
Likewise, for sample sheet 2: Total students on roll = 15; and number of times school opened for the week is 8. Thus, the product is
With these values, we are ready to proceed to step 5.
5. Divide the total attendance for the week in step 1 by the answer you obtained in step 4
We are almost there!
The second to the last step to calculate weekly class percentage attendance is to divide the total attendance for the week in step 1 by the answer we obtained in step 4 earlier. Easy!
For sample sheet 1: the total attendance for the week which we obtained in step 1 is 141; while the answer we obtained in step 4 for the same sample 1 is 150. Thus, the answer is .
Correspondingly for sample sheet 2: the total attendance for the week which we obtained in step 1 is 114; while the answer we obtained in step 4 for the same sample 2 is 120. So, the answer is .
And that is it! All that is left is for us to take the final answer to percentage as I have shown in step 6 below.
6. Multiply the final answer in step 5 by 100
The last step to calculate weekly class percentage attendance is to multiply by ratio by 100%.
As for example 1, this gives us Therefore, the class percentage attendance for the week is 94%.
Equally, example 2 gives us Therefore, the class percentage for the week is 95%.
Conclusion on how to calculate weekly class percentage attendance
This post is one of the guides in our Teachers’ Induction Training. The Teachers’ Induction Training (TIT) part and parcel of our Instructor-Led Training (ILT). All our Instructor-Led Training is both a mind reorientation and skills impartation session for teachers. It aligns their minds to the vision and mission of their school, draw out their untapped potentials and motivates them towards helping schools attain her goals and unlock unexploited growth channels. The training also incorporates educational marketing expos. This further helps the school to continuously take advantage of the strongest marketing agents – her teachers.
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