As a part of the work of the office of school physician, a study has been made of absences and their causes. Additional data are needed and it is hoped that other schools will publish their data and methods of recording.
The need for several such studies will appear to anyone who considers the length of the school year and the amount of absence. In the public schools of New York City the number of school days in a year is about 190. In private schools the number is about 165 days in the higher grades and about 155 days in the lower grades. With such a short school year it becomes increasingly important that each pupil shall lose as few days as possible.
Health is now considered the most important element in education. Other factors being equal, the attendance record of a school is bound to reflect the health