Competence in schools to identify, investigate and follow up school absenteeism: a scoping review supplemented with interview data
Mapping review
|Published
The study aim was to explore what types of competence are sought after or have documented salience in efforts to identify, investigate, and follow up on school absenteeism.
Key message
School absenteeism is a complex problem, and effectively addressing it requires competence across several disciplines. The study aim was to explore what types of competence are sought after or have documented salience in efforts to identify, investigate, and follow up on school absenteeism.
We conducted a scoping review supplemented by interview data. We systematically searched and screened the literature, assessed study quality, and summarised the findings narratively. We gathered and included interview data from employees in the school and childhood/adolescence sector in Norway and analysed the interviews using thematic analysis. We included five systematic reviews and 30 primary studies, as well as data from 13 interviews with 27 informants. In the research literature, the following competence areas emerged as particularly important:
- relational and communication skills, and expertise in school absenteeism and students’ physical and mental health
- expertise in adapting the school day and pedagogical practice, classroom management, and cultural understanding
- collaborative competence, as well as a shared structure and systems understanding in the follow-up of students with absenteeism
The interview findings largely supported the patterns identified in the research literature but also showed that Norwegian school staff call for greater competence in legislation and more confidence in making legal assessments.
Overall, the findings suggest that addressing school absenteeism requires competence across several disciplines and levels, including relational, professional, and organisational competence. At the same time, more research is needed on which competence-building measures are most effective in preventing and reducing school absenteeism.
Summary
Introduction
School absenteeism is an increasing and complex problem with implications both for the individual student and for society. Although all children and young people have the right to education, recent figures show that absenteeism in both lower and upper secondary school has increased in recent years. Persistent absenteeism can have serious consequences, including reduced learning outcomes, psychosocial challenges, and an increased risk of marginalization. At the same time, Norway’s Education Act makes it clear that municipalities and county authorities have a duty to follow up on students’ absence from the very first day.
To prevent and address concerning school absenteeism, it is essential that school staff have relevant competence. This includes knowledge of the causes of absenteeism, skills in early identification and follow-up, and attitudes that promote understanding, inclusion, and collaboration. Research shows that school absenteeism should be addressed through a holistic and coordinated approach, and that a lack of professional’s competence may result in students not receiving the right support at the right time.
Aim and research questions
The aim of this study is to map and describe research on school staff competence, understood as knowledge, skills, and attitudes, that is requested by students, parents/guardians, and staff, or that has a documented association with efforts to detect, investigate, and follow up on school absenteeism in primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education. We addressed the following research questions:
- What research exists on the competence of school leaders, teachers, other school staff, the Educational and Psychological Counselling Service, and the school health service in detecting, investigating, and following up on school absenteeism?
- Which areas of competence are highlighted or requested?
- What are the experiences and perspectives of employees in the school and childhood/adolescence sector in a selection of Norwegian municipalities regarding the competence requested or considered important in detecting, investigating, and following up on school absenteeism?
Method
We conducted a scoping review of systematic reviews and primary studies in line with methodological principles outlined in relevant guidance. We carried out systematic searches in several databases. References were first screened by title and abstract, after which two researchers independently assessed relevant full texts. We used machine learning as a tool to make our title and abstract screening more efficient. Methodological quality was assessed using appropriate checklists for each study design, and the assessments were calibrated among the researchers. We did not conduct meta-syntheses or GRADE assessments. In addition, we used data from 13 qualitative interviews with 27 employees in the school and childhood/adolescence sector in Norway to examine which areas of competence they considered important in efforts to detect, investigate, and follow up on school absenteeism. The interviews were analysed using thematic analysis.
Results
We included 35 publications, of which five were systematic reviews and 30 were primary studies. Most studies used a qualitative design and were conducted in Europe, including several in the Nordic countries and Norway. The studies examined different forms of school absenteeism, such as school refusal, truancy, and medically justified absence. The findings from this scoping review and the qualitative interviews show that work on school absenteeism requires broad and complex competence.
Overall, the included studies point to a relatively clear and shared set of competences necessary for detecting, investigating, and following up on school absenteeism. The areas of competence considered important were relational competence, competence related to school absenteeism as a problem area, and competence regarding students’ mental and physical health needs, including how these may be associated with absenteeism. The studies also highlighted the need for competence in adapting the school day and pedagogical practice. Furthermore, the importance of collaborative competence was emphasised. This included planning and following up measures in line with school and municipal systems, interdisciplinary collaboration, role clarification and shared routines, as well as the sharing of knowledge and experience. Cultural competence and a supportive and inclusive approach to classroom management and teaching practice also emerged as important for preventing and addressing school absenteeism.
The findings from the interviews with employees in Norwegian municipalities appear largely to support the patterns identified in the research literature. The informants particularly highlighted relational competence, classroom management, mental health, systems understanding, and competence related to bullying, social dynamics, and behavioural challenges. The interviews also showed that Norwegian school staff call for increased competence in regulations and greater confidence in making legal assessments.
Discussion and conclusion
The results of the scoping review and the interviews indicate that work on school absenteeism requires broad competence, with relational competence, competence related to mental health and absenteeism, understanding of regulations, systematic follow-up, and interdisciplinary collaboration emerging as particularly important. The consistency between the findings from the research literature and the interview findings strengthens the results.
The scoping review has several strengths, including a systematic and comprehensive literature search, independent assessment of study relevance, and the inclusion of both qualitative and quantitative study designs. The assessment of methodological quality for all included studies contributes to increased transparency. The review also has some limitations. Relevant studies may have been missed if they used terms for competence or school absenteeism other than those included in the search strategy. It is also possible that relevant records identified in the search were not included because we ended the screening process early due to resource constraints. Other limitations include the lack of independent verification of data extraction, the absence of in-depth synthesis and assessment of confidence in the findings.
The qualitative interview study provides important insight into the Norwegian context, particularly in relation to regulations and systems understanding. At the same time, conducting the interviews digitally and using a relatively broad thematic focus may have limited the depth of some findings. Nevertheless, the quality of the data is strengthened by the use of both individual and group interviews, variation among informants, and a clear division of roles between researchers during data collection.
Regarding the implications of the findings for practice, they show that work on school absenteeism requires a broad and multifaceted competence base among staff. At the same time, both research and practice-based experiences suggest that competence cannot be understood as solely an individual responsibility. There is a need for systematic competence development anchored at the organisational level, with clear structures, routines, and forms of collaboration. However, the evidence base provides limited information about which measures are most effective for strengthening competence. Few studies examine competence explicitly or evaluate competence-enhancing measures, representing a clear knowledge gap.
Overall, the evidence base appears broad and relevant, but with important limitations. The fact that the same areas of competence are identified in both the literature and the interviews strengthens the impression that these are central in the field of practice. At the same time, this should be understood as an identification of requested competence needs, not as evidence of which forms of competence development produce the best outcomes. The research is largely dominated by qualitative studies, often from contexts with framework conditions that differ from those in Norway, which may limit transferability. Further research is needed, particularly in Norwegian and Nordic contexts, to examine how different forms of competence development and systematic work in schools can help prevent and reduce school absenteeism.