Understanding family perspectives of school attendance in remote communities: evaluation of the Remote School Attendance Strategy

The broad goals of this report are to gain a better understanding of parents’ and carers’ behavioural motivation in relation to education, and to what extent attitudes and beliefs impact on school attendance in remote Indigenous Communities. It also aims to identify how individual families engage with and respond to the Remote School Attendance Strategy (RSAS). This will provide insights into how RSAS and services can better tailor support for people in different contexts, or at different times in their lives.

RSAS does not operate in isolation. It works alongside schools, other services and communities. These in turn all interact with families and influence their choices about school attendance. Every community is different and each have their own programs, government policies, schools and services all influencing education outcomes. This report focuses on parents’ and carers’ perspectives of the factors and drivers that influence choices about education.

This work builds on the Remote School Attendance Strategy – Interim Progress Report (2015) and Case Study Research for the Remote School Attendance Strategy (2016). As such, it did not include interviews with school staff and other service providers (including RSAS), which was the focus of previous research.