1. This circular replaces Circular 0009/2008 in its entirety.

2. This policy comes into effect on 1 January 2011 and replaces any other provincial policy on learner attendance and the keeping of attendance records by public schools.

3. The Department of Basic Education has published a Policy on Learner Attendance and procedures for the keeping of attendance records in Government Gazette number 33150 dated 4 May 2010. An electronic (provincial) version of the policy is attached for your attention. An MS Word file containing all relevant registers with the WCED logo is also attached.

4. The purpose of this policy is to -

  1. promote punctuality and regular attendance at public schools; and
  2. provide public schools and the education department with standard procedures for recording, managing and monitoring learner attendance.
5. The responsibilities of parents, SGBs, principals, class teachers, teachers and the Western Cape Education Department are spelt out in the policy and it is of vital importance that all are informed of their responsibilities.

6. Two policy booklets have been posted to you.

7. Procedures for the submission of school attendance statistics have been revised and principals are required to follow the procedures as set out below in future.

7.1 CLASS REGISTER

  1. A record of the daily absences of boys and girls must be kept by the class teacher in separate pages of a register or a separate register book, for the daily attendance of learners. This register must be kept locked in the school office when not in use.

  2. These registers can, where practically possible, be kept electronically in the format as provided.

  3. Schools which are already using an electronic attendance register may continue doing so if it is able to produce an equivalent physical register for inspection and audit purposes and can produce the data required to populate the School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance. Consult your CTM on this matter.

  4. The compiling and marking of the class register must be done in the class registration period, which does not form part of the prescribed time allocated for curriculum purposes, on each school day.
7.2 PERIOD REGISTER

This register is teacher based and moves with the teacher, not with the class. The period register is an official document for internal school use.


7.3 SUMMARY REGISTER

  1. The summary register is a working document for internal use by the school only.

  2. Each class teacher must, at the end of each week, submit the total daily class attendance of boys and girls to the person assigned to the task of collating this information in the Summary Register for Learners per grade.

  3. The accompanying Summary Registers for Learners must be completed from information obtained from the Class Register on a weekly basis until the end of the quarter.

  4. The daily class attendance of each grade must be kept in separate pages of the summary register or in a separate register book for the summary of attendance of learners.
8. SCHOOL QUARTERLY RETURN ON LEARNER ATTENDANCE

A School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance must be completed from the information obtained from the Summary of Attendance Registers for Learners on the last day of each term.

  1. The School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance must be submitted via an online capture screen on CEMIS in the last week of every quarter.

  2. The School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance must be verified and signed off by the principal before school closes for the term.

  3. Data from the School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance will be saved to a database and reports will be made available to management and schools.

  4. A signed printout of the completed online School Quarterly Return on Learner Attendance must be filed at the school for record purposes and as evidence that the return has been completed and submitted online.
9. The samples of the afore-mentioned registers which are contained in the accompanying MS Word document can be duplicated by the school and bound to form register books.

10. It is important to note that these registers should be available at all times for inspection and verification by WCED officials.

11. The principal must keep the register for at least three years after the last entry has been made.

12. A pro forma policy for schools on Learner Attendance is attached.

13. Kindly bring the content of this circular to the attention of all personnel and school governing body members.

14. You are also reminded to acknowledge receipt of the policy booklets accompanying the hard copy of this circular by completing the attached form, Annexure A, and mailing or faxing it to the IMG Manager of your circuit at the Education District Office.


SIGNED: PA VINJEVOLD
HEAD: EDUCATION
DATE: 2010:08:24


The following compressed ('zip') MS WordŽ document relates to this circular:
 WCED Class Register  (a zip file of a Word document: size 613 KB)

The following MS WordŽ document relates to this circular:
Template (pro forma) for drafting a school policy on learner attendance  (size 59 KB)

Adobe Acrobat ReaderŽ is required to view / print the following documents.
Policy on learner attendance  (size: 59 KB)
WCED Class register  (size: 270 KB)  (as above, but in Acrobat format)
Annexure A: Acknowledgement of receipt  (size: 16 KB)