Attendance management

The Attendance module provides enterprise-grade attendance tracking across your entire school. It covers daily marking, real-time statistics, intervention management, policy enforcement, and pattern analysis to help improve student attendance rates.

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Navigation path

Operations → Attendance (segment: operations/attendance)

Sub-section	Path	Description
Dashboard	operations/attendance	Overview and quick actions
Class Register	operations/attendance/register	Mark daily attendance
History	operations/attendance/history	View attendance records
Interventions	operations/attendance/interventions	At-risk student management
Reports	operations/attendance/reports	Analytics and reports

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Attendance architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                       Attendance Management System                       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                          │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐    │
│  │                      Class Register                              │    │
│  │                                                                   │    │
│  │   Teacher marks attendance → Drag & drop / Keyboard shortcuts     │    │
│  │   Auto-save → Real-time sync → Parent notifications               │    │
│  │                                                                   │    │
│  └────────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘    │
│                                   │                                      │
│              ┌────────────────────┼────────────────────┐                 │
│              │                    │                    │                 │
│              ▼                    ▼                    ▼                 │
│  ┌──────────────────┐  ┌──────────────────┐  ┌──────────────────────┐   │
│  │  Statistics      │  │   Interventions  │  │   Raw Events         │   │
│  │                  │  │                  │  │                      │   │
│  │  Daily/Weekly/   │  │  Chronic absence │  │  Biometric scans     │   │
│  │  Monthly rates   │  │  Pattern alerts  │  │  RFID/QR check-ins   │   │
│  │  Trends & flags  │  │  Action tracking │  │  App sign-ins        │   │
│  │                  │  │                  │  │                      │   │
│  └────────┬─────────┘  └────────┬─────────┘  └──────────┬───────────┘   │
│           │                     │                       │               │
│           └─────────────────────┼───────────────────────┘               │
│                                 │                                        │
│                                 ▼                                        │
│  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │                     Policy Engine                                 │   │
│  │                                                                   │   │
│  │  Thresholds → Auto-notifications → Intervention triggers          │   │
│  │  Rating categories → Compliance tracking                          │   │
│  │                                                                   │   │
│  └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                 │                                        │
│                                 ▼                                        │
│  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │                    Dashboard & Analytics                          │   │
│  │                                                                   │   │
│  │  School-wide rates • Grade breakdowns • Class comparisons         │   │
│  │  At-risk alerts • Trend charts • Day-of-week patterns             │   │
│  │                                                                   │   │
│  └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                                                          │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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Part 1: Attendance statuses

The system supports five core attendance statuses.

Status definitions

Status	Code	Description	Affects rate	Hotkey
Present	present	Student attended	✓ Positive	1
Absent	absent	Unexcused absence	✓ Negative	2
Late	late	Arrived after start	✓ Partial	3
Excused	excused	Documented absence	Neutral	4
Half Day	half_day	Partial attendance	✓ Partial	5

Status visual indicators

Status	Color	Icon	Badge style
Present	Emerald/green	✓ Check	bg-emerald-50
Absent	Red	✗ X	bg-red-50
Late	Amber/yellow	Clock	bg-amber-50
Excused	Blue	File check	bg-blue-50
Half Day	Purple	Alert triangle	bg-purple-50

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Part 2: Session types

Attendance can be tracked at different granularities.

Session type	Description	Use case
morning	AM session (before lunch)	Split-day tracking
afternoon	PM session (after lunch)	Split-day tracking
full_day	Entire school day	Standard daily attendance
period	Individual class period	Per-subject attendance

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Part 3: Marking methods

The system supports multiple ways to capture attendance.

Method	Description
manual	Teacher marks via UI
biometric	Fingerprint/face scan
rfid	Card tap at reader
qr	QR code scan
app	Mobile app check-in
import	Bulk CSV import

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Part 4: Dashboard

The attendance dashboard provides school-wide visibility.

Dashboard metrics

Metric	Description
Today Present	Students marked present today
Today Absent	Students marked absent today
Today Late	Students arriving late today
Today Excused	Excused absences today
Weekly Rate	Attendance % for current week
Weekly Trend	Up/down/stable vs last week
Monthly Rate	Attendance % for current month
At-Risk Students	Students below threshold
Pending Interventions	Open intervention cases

Attendance rate thresholds

Rating	Minimum %	Color indicator
Excellent	95%+	Emerald
Good	90-94%	Blue
Warning	80-89%	Amber
Critical	Below 80%	Red

Dashboard widgets

1. Hero Stats — Today's attendance counts with trend indicators
2. Rate Ring — Circular progress showing overall attendance rate
3. Quick Actions — Take attendance, view reports, manage interventions
4. Grade Level Breakdown — Attendance by grade with bar charts
5. Class Comparison — Side-by-side class performance
6. Day of Week Analysis — Pattern detection (e.g., "Mondays have 5% more absences")
7. Recent Activity — Live feed of attendance marks and alerts
8. At-Risk Students — Students requiring intervention

Quick actions

Action	Description
Take Attendance	Open class register
View Reports	Go to analytics
View At-Risk	Filter students below threshold
Manage Interventions	Open intervention list

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Part 5: Class register

The class register is the primary interface for marking daily attendance.

Class register features

Feature	Description
Drag and drop	Drag students to status zones
Keyboard shortcuts	Quick marking with 1-5 keys
Auto-save	Changes save every 30 seconds
Real-time sync	Multiple users see live updates
Bulk marking	Mark multiple students at once
Search	Filter students by name
Grid/List view	Toggle between card and table views
Fullscreen mode	Distraction-free marking

Class register workflow

Select Class
    │
    ▼
Select Date (default: today)
    │
    ▼
Select Session Type
    │
    ▼
Students appear in register
    │
    ├─── Drag student to status zone
    │         or
    ├─── Click student → Use hotkey (1-5)
    │         or
    └─── Bulk select → Mark all
    │
    ▼
Changes auto-save
    │
    ▼
Statistics update in real-time

Marking individual students

Method 1: Drag and drop

1. Find student card
2. Drag to status drop zone
3. Release to mark

Method 2: Click and hotkey

1. Click student card (selected)
2. Press hotkey:
   • 1 = Present
   • 2 = Absent
   • 3 = Late
   • 4 = Excused
   • 5 = Half Day

Method 3: Status selector

1. Click student card
2. Click status button in expanded view
3. Optional: Add arrival time for late students
4. Optional: Add notes

Bulk marking

1. Select multiple students:
   • Click checkboxes, or
   • Ctrl + A to select all, or
   • Click and drag to select range
2. Click Bulk Mark button
3. Choose target status
4. Optional: Add notes
5. Confirm marking

Keyboard shortcuts reference

Shortcut	Action
1	Mark present
2	Mark absent
3	Mark late
4	Mark excused
5	Mark half day
↑ / ↓	Navigate students
Space	Toggle selection
Ctrl + A	Select all
Escape	Clear selection
Ctrl + S	Force save
N	Open notes
T	Set arrival time

Status drop zones

The register displays drop zones for each status:

Zone	Accepts	Visual
Present	Student cards	Green border, check icon
Absent	Student cards	Red border, X icon
Late	Student cards	Amber border, clock icon
Excused	Student cards	Blue border, file icon
Half Day	Student cards	Purple border, triangle icon

Quick stats bar

While marking, a stats bar shows real-time counts:

Stat	Description
Total	Students in class
Present	Marked present
Absent	Marked absent
Late	Marked late
Excused	Marked excused
Unmarked	Not yet marked
Rate	Current % present

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Part 6: Attendance records

Each attendance record contains comprehensive data.

Record properties

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Unique identifier
tenantId	string	Tenant association
schoolId	string	School association
studentId	string	Student reference
classId	string	Class reference
academicYearId	string	Academic year
termId	string	Term reference
periodId	string	Period (if per-subject)
attendanceDate	date	Date of attendance
sessionType	enum	Morning/afternoon/full day/period
attendanceStatus	enum	Present/absent/late/excused/half day
markingMethod	enum	How recorded
arrivalTime	time	Actual arrival (if late)
departureTime	time	Early departure time
isTardy	boolean	Late flag
minutesLate	number	Minutes after start
isExcused	boolean	Excused flag
excuseReason	string	Reason for excuse
excuseDocumentUrl	string	Supporting document
notes	string	Additional notes
verifiedBy	string	Staff who verified
verifiedAt	datetime	Verification timestamp
parentNotifiedAt	datetime	When parent notified
notificationSentVia	string	SMS/email/app
createdAt	datetime	Record creation
updatedAt	datetime	Last update
createdBy	string	Who created
updatedBy	string	Who updated

Viewing attendance history

1. Navigate to Attendance → History
2. Use filters:
   • Date range
   • Class
   • Grade
   • Student
   • Status
   • Session type
3. View records in data table
4. Click record for details
5. Export to CSV

History table columns

Column	Description
Date	Attendance date
Student	Student name
Class	Class name
Status	Status badge
Arrival	Time if late
Notes	Any notes
Actions	View/Edit/Delete

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Part 7: Attendance statistics

Statistics are calculated and stored for reporting.

Statistics properties

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Stats record ID
studentId	string	Student reference
academicYearId	string	Academic year
termId	string	Term reference
periodType	enum	Daily/weekly/monthly/term/year
periodStart	date	Period start
periodEnd	date	Period end
totalDays	number	School days in period
presentDays	number	Days present
absentDays	number	Days absent
lateDays	number	Days late
excusedDays	number	Excused absences
unexcusedAbsences	number	Unexcused count
attendanceRate	number	% attendance
tardyRate	number	% tardy
trend	string	Improving/declining/stable
requiresIntervention	boolean	Below threshold
interventionReason	string	Why intervention needed
currentPresentStreak	number	Consecutive present days
longestPresentStreak	number	Best streak
currentAbsentStreak	number	Consecutive absences
absencePatternDetected	boolean	Pattern found
patternDescription	string	Pattern details

Period types

Period	Description
daily	Single day stats
weekly	Week aggregation
monthly	Month aggregation
term	Term aggregation
year	Annual aggregation

Recalculating statistics

Statistics auto-recalculate, but can be manually triggered:

1. Select student or class
2. Click Recalculate Stats
3. Choose period type
4. System recomputes

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Part 8: Interventions

Interventions track follow-up actions for attendance issues.

Intervention properties

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Intervention ID
studentId	string	Student reference
schoolId	string	School reference
academicYearId	string	Academic year
termId	string	Term reference
reasonCode	enum	Why triggered
severity	enum	Low/medium/high
status	enum	Open/in progress/closed
triggerMetric	string	What metric triggered
triggerValue	number	Threshold crossed
assignedTo	string	Staff assigned
dueDate	date	Action deadline
actionsPlanned	array	Planned actions
actionsTaken	array	Completed actions
outcome	string	Result of intervention
closedAt	datetime	When closed
closedBy	string	Who closed
notes	string	Notes

Intervention reason codes

Code	Description
chronic_absence	Extended pattern of absence
chronic_tardy	Pattern of lateness
sudden_drop	Sudden attendance decline
pattern_detected	Day-of-week or time pattern
manual	Manually created

Intervention severities

Severity	Description	Color
low	Monitor situation	Blue
medium	Active follow-up needed	Amber
high	Urgent attention required	Red

Intervention statuses

Status	Description
open	Newly created, awaiting action
in_progress	Actions being taken
closed	Resolved

Intervention workflow

Trigger detected (auto or manual)
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│      Open       │ ← Assigned to staff
└────────┬────────┘
         │
  Staff reviews student
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│   In Progress   │ ← Actions planned
└────────┬────────┘
         │
    ┌────┴────┐
    │         │
 Resolved  Escalate
    │         │
    ▼         ▼
 Closed    Higher severity

Creating an intervention

1. Navigate to Attendance → Interventions
2. Click New Intervention
3. Search and select student
4. Choose reason code
5. Set severity
6. Assign to staff member
7. Set due date
8. Plan actions:
   • Phone call
   • Email
   • Letter
   • Meeting
   • Home visit
   • Counseling
9. Add notes
10. Save intervention

Intervention actions

Action type	Description	Icon
phone_call	Call parent/guardian	Phone
email	Send email	Mail
letter	Send letter home	File
meeting	Schedule meeting	Users
home_visit	Visit student's home	Home
counseling	Counseling session	Message
other	Other action	More

Managing interventions

Update status:

1. Open intervention
2. Click Update Status
3. Select new status
4. Add notes about progress

Record action taken:

1. Open intervention
2. Click Add Action
3. Select action type
4. Add details and date
5. Save

Close intervention:

1. Open intervention
2. Click Close
3. Enter outcome
4. Document final actions
5. Confirm closure

Auto-intervention triggers

The policy engine can auto-create interventions when:

Condition	Default threshold
Attendance rate below critical	70%
Consecutive unexcused absences	3+ days
Tardies in window period	5+ in 2 weeks
Sudden drop in attendance	15%+ decline

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Part 9: Policies

Attendance policies define thresholds and automation rules.

Policy properties

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Policy ID
schoolId	string	School (or tenant-wide)
academicYearId	string	Year-specific
termId	string	Term-specific
policyName	string	Policy name
excellentMinPct	number	Excellent threshold (%)
goodMinPct	number	Good threshold (%)
concerningMinPct	number	Concerning threshold (%)
criticalMaxPct	number	Critical threshold (%)
windowDays	number	Evaluation window
maxUnexcusedDays	number	Max unexcused before alert
tardyThresholdMinutes	number	Minutes late = tardy
tardyWindowDays	number	Window for tardy counting
autoNotifyParents	boolean	Auto-send notifications
autoCreateIntervention	boolean	Auto-create interventions
isActive	boolean	Policy active

Default thresholds

Rating	Threshold
Excellent	≥95%
Good	≥90%
Concerning	≥80%
Critical	<80%

Policy evaluation

When policy evaluates a student:

{
  studentId: "...",
  schoolId: "...",
  policyId: "...",
  attendanceRate: 85.5,
  rating: "concerning",
  requiresIntervention: false,
  reason: "Attendance below good threshold"
}

Creating a policy

1. Navigate to Settings → Attendance Policies
2. Click New Policy
3. Set name
4. Configure thresholds:
   • Excellent minimum %
   • Good minimum %
   • Concerning minimum %
   • Critical maximum %
5. Set windows:
   • Evaluation window (days)
   • Tardy window (days)
6. Configure automation:
   • Auto-notify parents ✓/✗
   • Auto-create interventions ✓/✗
7. Set tardy threshold (minutes)
8. Set max unexcused days
9. Activate and save

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Part 10: Raw events

Raw events capture attendance data from external sources.

Event properties

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Event ID
studentId	string	Student (if applicable)
staffId	string	Staff (if applicable)
contextType	enum	Where recorded
contextId	string	Class/transport/dorm ID
eventDirection	enum	In/out/mark
eventTime	datetime	Timestamp
source	string	Device/system source
deviceId	string	Device identifier
location	string	Physical location
rawPayload	object	Original data
processed	boolean	Converted to record
processedAt	datetime	When processed
attendanceRecordId	string	Linked record

Context types

Context	Description
class	Classroom attendance
transport	School bus/van
dorm	Dormitory/boarding
meal	Meal attendance
event	School event
staff_work	Staff work hours

Event directions

Direction	Description
in	Checked in
out	Checked out
mark	Status marked

Processing raw events

Raw events from biometric/RFID systems are processed into attendance records:

1. Events collected throughout day
2. End-of-day processing runs
3. Events matched to students
4. Records created automatically
5. Statistics updated
6. Interventions triggered if needed

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Part 11: Pattern analysis

The system analyzes attendance patterns to identify issues.

Pattern types detected

Pattern	Description
Day-of-week	"Student absent every Monday"
Time-of-day	"Student late in morning sessions"
Frequency	"3+ absences per month"
Seasonal	"Absences increase in winter"
Subject-specific	"Absent for math classes"

Pattern analysis output

{
  studentId: "...",
  patterns: [
    {
      type: "day_of_week",
      description: "Absent on Mondays (80% of Monday absences)",
      frequency: 4,
      dayOfWeek: 1
    }
  ],
  recommendations: [
    "Schedule parent meeting to discuss Monday absences",
    "Consider counseling referral"
  ]
}

---

Part 12: Notifications

The system sends attendance notifications automatically.

Notification triggers

Trigger	Notification
Absent marked	"Your child was marked absent today"
Late marked	"Your child arrived late at {time}"
Low attendance	"Attendance rate has fallen to {rate}%"
Intervention created	"An attendance intervention has been opened"
Pattern detected	"We've noticed an attendance pattern"

Notification channels

Channel	Description
SMS	Text message to parent
Email	Email notification
Push	Mobile app notification
In-app	Portal notification

Notification settings

Per student or policy:

• Enable/disable auto-notifications
• Choose notification channels
• Set quiet hours
• Language preference

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Part 13: Reports

Generate comprehensive attendance reports.

Report types

Report	Description
Daily Summary	Today's attendance by class
Weekly Report	Week-over-week comparison
Monthly Report	Monthly trends and patterns
Student Report	Individual student history
Class Report	Class-level analysis
Grade Report	Grade-level comparison
Intervention Report	Open/closed interventions
Trend Analysis	Long-term trend visualization

Report filters

Filter	Options
Date range	Custom, week, month, term, year
Grade level	Single or multiple
Class	Single or multiple
Status	Filter by attendance status
Session type	Morning, afternoon, full day

Export formats

Format	Description
PDF	Formatted report document
Excel	Spreadsheet with data
CSV	Raw data export

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Permissions required

Action	Required permission
View dashboard	attendance.view
View records	attendance.records.view or attendance.view
Mark attendance	attendance.records.create or attendance.create
Edit attendance	attendance.records.update or attendance.update
Delete attendance	attendance.records.delete or attendance.delete
Bulk mark	attendance.records.create or attendance.create
View stats	attendance.stats.view or attendance.view
View interventions	attendance.interventions.view or attendance.view
Create intervention	attendance.interventions.create or attendance.create
Manage intervention	attendance.interventions.update or attendance.update
Close intervention	attendance.interventions.update or attendance.update
View policies	attendance.policies.view or attendance.view
Manage policies	attendance.policies.update or attendance.update
Export reports	attendance.reports.export or attendance.view

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Best practices

Daily marking

• Mark attendance at the same time each day
• Use the class register for efficiency
• Record arrival times for late students
• Add notes for unusual circumstances
• Verify substitutes mark attendance

Interventions

• Review at-risk list daily
• Assign interventions promptly
• Document all actions taken
• Follow up within due dates
• Close interventions with outcomes

Policies

• Set realistic thresholds
• Review policies each term
• Enable auto-notifications for absences
• Configure intervention triggers
• Communicate policies to parents

Data quality

• Review unprocessed raw events
• Correct errors same day
• Verify biometric/RFID syncs
• Audit records weekly
• Recalculate stats if discrepancies found

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Troubleshooting

Attendance not saving

Causes:

• Network connectivity issue
• Session expired
• Conflicting updates

Fix:

1. Check network connection
2. Refresh page and retry
3. Clear browser cache
4. Force save with Ctrl+S

Statistics incorrect

Causes:

• Records modified after calculation
• Missing days in date range
• Duplicate records

Fix:

1. Navigate to student stats
2. Click Recalculate
3. Verify source records
4. Check for duplicates

Intervention not auto-created

Causes:

• Policy not active
• Auto-create disabled
• Student exempt
• Threshold not crossed

Fix:

1. Verify policy settings
2. Check auto-create enabled
3. Review student exemptions
4. Manually create if needed

Biometric events not processing

Causes:

• Device offline
• Student not enrolled
• Processing job failed

Fix:

1. Check device connectivity
2. Verify student biometric enrollment
3. Manually trigger processing
4. Contact IT if recurring

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Related documentation

• Students — Student records
• Classes and academics — Class rosters
• Communications — Parent notifications
• Reports — Attendance reports
• Dashboard — School-wide metrics