Attendance Tracking Method Question

[pendunca]

Hello,
I am a Senior Sister missionary serving in Fiji. I have never seen the computerized attendance reporting system. I have heard two different versions of how to take attendance. The methods would result in very different numbers.
First method I heard was just a count of numbers in attendance.
The second was marking individuals. I know the attendance sheets list each member and each date for Sunday Schhol and Relief Society.
I vaguely remember attendance being recorded monthly long ago in RS.
If a member attended once a month, it counted.
Since the members attending change weekly. Using an average of the number of people attending Sacrament Meeting would result in a much lower number than counting the number of members attending one or more times each month.
I am working blindly here and would love to help our Fijian ward to increase attendance as they have very little budget for anything with an aversge attendance in the 20's. I do not know the number of ward members but there are nearly 300 Relief Society Sisters, so our activity must be under 5%. If recorded individually, it could double or triple as attendance is quite sporadic.
Thank You,
Sister Duncan
Fiji Suva Mission
I would love clarification.

[russellhltn]

Attendance reports are described in Handbook 33.5.1.1.

Sacrament meetings is by the number of people present.

Sunday Quorum and Organization Meetings is also by attendance, but I thought that was track by member to see who has stopped coming out.

The main driver of budget is the average sacrament meeting attendance.

[jdlessley]

I have heard two different versions of how to take attendance. The methods would result in very different numbers.
First method I heard was just a count of numbers in attendance.
The second was marking individuals. I know the attendance sheets list each member and each date for Sunday Schhol and Relief Society.

Based on your description I am guessing your are describing second hour class and quorum attendance.

The sacrament meeting attendance is taken each Sunday as a count of all persons present during the meeting, including members and visitors, and recorded using either Leader and Clerk Resources (LCR) > Reports > Sacrament Meeting Attendance or Member Tools > Sacrament Attendance. Only those leaders with membership edit permissions (bishop, clerk, asst clerk, asst clerk - membership) can record this attendance. Typically either the ward clerk or membership clerk takes and records this attendance each Sunday.

There is only one "version" to take attendance for second hour class and quorum meetings. Any variation from this is indubitably locally generated. The second block meeting attendance for classes and quorums is required to be taken each Sunday. The attendance is taken and record by individual, or rather by name, with the exception for visitors who are recorded only as a number for each meeting at the 'Visitors' tab in both LCR and Member Tools. Attendance can be entered directly into the system during the meeting using Member Tools > Class Attendance. Alternatively, attendance can be taken manually using a paper roster and then entered into LCR > Reports > Class and Quorum Attendance or into Member Tools. Attendance can be recorded in the system only by organization presidency members, organization secretaries, clerks with membership edit permissions, executive secretaries, and bishopric members.

To get all the benefits of recording attendance it should be entered as the attendance is taken or shortly thereafter. If done this way, organization and ward leaders can use this to identify members and/or households that may need attention or assistance. As a minimum, the attendance needs to be recorded before the quarterly report is submitted.

If a member attended once a month, it counted.

By "counted" I am guess you are referring to figuring into the quarterly class and quorum attendance for the quarterly report. Attendance for a member "counts" when their attendance is recorded for at least one meeting during the quarter. Unlike a few years ago where attendance was based on the last month of the quarter it is now over the entire quarter. There is no averaging. Note that members with callings in, and attending, Primary, Young Women, Sunday School, or Aaronic Priesthood meetings are counted as attending their respective Relief Society or Elders Quorum meetings. It is the responsibility of the Primary, Young Women, Sunday School, and Aaronic Priesthood secretaries to coordinate with the RS and EQ secretaries the attendance of those members with those callings.

Since the members attending change weekly. Using an average of the number of people attending Sacrament Meeting would result in a much lower number than counting the number of members attending one or more times each month.

See my description above. Sacrament meeting attendance is merely a count of individuals attending the meeting. The count includes every body present irrespective as to whether they are members of the Church, members of the ward, infants, visitors, or guests. This attendance each Sunday is averaged over the entire quarter and is done automatically by the system using the attendance number recorded for each Sunday as described previously. Those Sundays when there is no meeting do not count in the quarterly average.