At the risk of stating what you already know, chronic absenteeism is one of the most serious challenges to superintendents' efforts to get all students back on track.
“Whether it's instruction, enrichment activities, social opportunities, access to free or reduced-price lunches or adequate nutrition, we provide benefits to our children. Anything you want to give, you almost always have to be present,” Headey says. Mr. Chan, executive director and president of Attendance Works, speaks on this week's episode. district administration A podcast to talk about outside of school.
Chronic absenteeism has “significantly increased” compared to before the pandemic, doubling from about 16% of students, or about 8 million students, to 30%, or 14.7 million students, in the 2021-22 school year. ing. National absenteeism rates for the 2022-23 school year have not yet been released, but Chan cautioned that state statistics show a slight improvement from the ravages of the coronavirus.
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“The challenge is not only that almost one in three children are chronically absent, but also that two in three children now attend schools where more than 20% of children are chronically absent. “It's the fact that there is,” she explains. “The disruption that's happening in classrooms is impacting everyone right now. It's impacting teachers' ability to teach, teachers' ability to set classroom norms, and children's ability to learn.”
The deep-rooted causes of absenteeism are “barriers, aversion, apathy, and misunderstandings.” One of the most impactful solutions is for governments to bring together all educators, not just those focused on attendance, to create more welcoming and healthy school environments. For example, high school career and technical education programs have higher attendance rates than other courses, Chan explains.
“In places that have been successful in getting kids back to school, it feels different when you step on campus,” she argues. “It’s a place you want to be, a place where you feel welcome and a place where you have faith that you’re going to learn something that will take you to a better place in life.”
In the podcast, Chan also explains why students continue to miss school and details how some school districts are tackling the issue. He will also outline the resources and guidance available from the organization.
You can listen to this episode anytime on Apple, Spotify, Podbean, or by clicking below.
