General attendance

The school expects 100% attendance from all students. We realize, however, that there are certain unavoidable circumstances (e.g. illness, death in the family, inclement weather conditions, public transport strike) that may prevent students from attending school. Families of students whose absentee rate is excessive will be contacted. In extreme circumstances, students may be required to repeat that year of school.

Children absent due to contagious diseases must be cleared by a doctor and a medical certificate must be submitted directly to the office before schooling can resume. Parents/guardians should contact the office as soon as possible to report a contagious disease as other children may have been exposed. Children will be marked absent if they are away from school due to a contagious disease.

Absences directly before or after a school vacation period due to overseas travel or returning to a home country are strongly discouraged. In particular, after the summer vacation, all families of continuing students are expected to return from the start of the school year in order to participate in important information sessions held at this time. It will not be possible to conduct separate sessions for families returning after the start of school. Families will be responsible for contacting individual teachers to receive any information necessary for the year. We will announce the starting date of the next school year as early as possible during the winter term so that families are able to make appropriate travel arrangements in advance.

Notification of absence

The school office must be notified directly for all absences in advance where possible. As indicated below, the type of notification required depends on the duration of the absence.

 For 1 or 2 days:

The absence must be reported directly to the school office before the start of school by telephone, fax or e-mail only, not through individual teachers or via the communication notebook. If calling the school before 8:00 a.m., please leave a message on the answering machine. Your child’s full name, class and a reason for the absence should be provided. Notification must be given by students’ parents/guardians only, not students themselves.

For 3 days to 1 month:

Submit an Application for Temporary Absence form directly to the office. Approval must be given by the school administration for all absences due to reasons other than illness.

-     The application form must be submitted to the office as far as possible in advance of the period of absence.

-     After receiving an application, a decision letter will be sent by e-mail to the address you provide on the form. In some cases, families will be contacted by administration staff to discuss issues of concern.

-     For absences of three days or more due to illness, a medical certificate must be attached to the form.

-     For sudden absences of three days or more, the school must be notified immediately by telephone or e-mail, followed by submission of the form (and medical certificate if appropriate) upon return to school.

For 1 month to 1 year:

Submit an Application for Extended Leave of Absence form directly to the office.

-     Applications must be made at least one month in advance of the proposed period of absence.

-     After receiving an application, it will be reviewed by the school administration to determine the appropriateness of the family’s provision for ongoing support for their child’s education during the period of absence. A decision may take up to two weeks.

-     Extended leaves of absence are valid only within individual programs (i.e. PYP, MYP, DP). They will not be granted across programs.

-     Applications for longer than one term will only be approved for reasonable “educational” reasons such as exchanges to an English-speaking country etc.

-     Extended leaves of absence will not be considered for students in Grades 11 and 12 due to the nature of the course of study.

-     There are two types of extended leaves of absence:

1.   Secured leave of absence: Families pay the required tuition fees for the period of absence. This guarantees that a place will be kept for the child until the end of the period of absence.

2.   Unsecured leave of absence: Families do not pay the required fees for the period of absence. A place will not be kept for the child. Enrolment will be dependent on class availability at the end of the period of absence.

-     Students will be required to sit for an ESL assessment test upon their return to determine whether any changes have occurred to their level of English during the period of absence. Depending on the result, it may be necessary for students to join or re-join the ESL program.

Further information and conditions regarding extended leaves of absence may be found on the application form.

Arriving late to school

Families are asked to cooperate in ensuring that children arrive at school on time. The school office must be notified by parents/guardians if students will arrive late. An excused late arrival is one when a student is late due to traffic conditions and proof of such is provided (e.g. certificate of train delay – chien shomeisho), or for others reasons (e.g. visiting an embassy to arrange visas) as approved by administration staff. Students who regularly arrive late to school without a valid excuse would be a cause of concern. Upon arrival at school, late students should follow the procedures outlined below.

• K1 to K3: Students may be taken directly to their classroom.
• Grade 1 – 5: Students must report to the school reception counter to fill out a pink late slip. This will be attached to their Communication Notebook (or Homework Diary for Grade 5) and should be shown to their class teacher when they reach their classroom. Students who do not report to the reception counter will be marked absent.
• Grade 6 – 12: Students must report to the school reception counter with their Homework Diary and fill out the relevant details. This must be taken immediately to the office to be signed by administration staff and then shown to the teacher of the first class they attend. Students who do not report to the reception counter will be marked absent.

Leaving school early

The school office must be notified directly by parents/guardians by telephone or e-mail as far as possible in advance if students need to leave school early. This includes students unable to attend after-school activities and ESL classes. A reason for leaving early should be provided. When leaving early, please follow the procedures outlined below.

• K1 – K3: Students must be picked up by a parent/guardian. Upon arrival, parents/guardians should sign their child out at the reception counter. After the reception attendant has notified the teacher, they should proceed directly to the classroom to pick up their child.
• Grade 1 – 12: Students may be picked up by a parent/guardian or they may go home alone. If being picked up, parents/guardians should sign out their child at the reception counter and wait for the child at reception. The reception attendant will notify the teacher. If going home alone, students must report to reception to sign out before they leave.