Parent-Mediated Consultation Using Proactive Prompting for Children with School Attendance Problems: Two Practical Case Studies

This study reports two practice-based case studies examining parent-mediated consultation using proactive prompting for children with school attendance problems in Japan’s compulsory education system. Initially, both families adopted a wait-and-see approach, expecting a spontaneous return to school. Parents were then guided to implement proactive prompting to promote reintegration. Following the intervention, both children achieved high attendance rates (92.8% and 94.2%). Although resistive behaviors emerged, these were managed through consistent parent-mediated prompting and did not result in dropout. These cases highlight limitations of wait-and-see practices and suggest that a behaviorally informed, proactive parent-mediated approach may support sustained attendance.