Evaluate the amount of time that you give students to move from one class to another. During a time when your halls are full of students, time how long it takes to move from one side of your school to a distant locker and then back to your original starting point. Group class location together based on grade level, decreasing student travel time. Raise the amount of time between classes to ensure that students have enough time to physically make it to their classes.
Establish a positive reinforcement system that rewards students for complying with your rules. For instance, you can require that all students attend 90 percent of their classes, on time, to earn the right to participate in extracurricular activities. Keep your language positive. Tell students that they can earn their right to participate, instead of suggesting that they cannot participate unless they meet attendance.
Get student groups involved. Speak to student organizations, clubs and sports. Ask them for their help and suggest that they can become leaders in your school. Tell them that they can lead by example by getting to their classes on time and lead by encouragement by encouraging other students to get to class on time.
Request that your teachers begin reinforcing the positive behavior of their students. Ask them to say something encouraging to their students when they arrive at class on time, such as "I'm proud to see you all here on time." Suggest that teachers can provide additional positive reinforcement by rewarding students in their own ways, such as making attendance a part of students' grades.
Inform your students that all teachers will lock their classroom doors when classes begin and that your school will provide an alternate learning environment for students who aren't on time. Move all students who are tardy at class time into another area of your school, where they can work on alternate projects while their classmates continue without disruption. Present this as an option for students. For instance, tell students who are tardy that the alternate educational program was their choice, made when they decided against going to class on time.