Chronic Absenteeism: From Pandemic to Present and How to Bring Students Back

When schools shut their doors during the COVID-19 pandemic, life as we knew it was upended. Suddenly, students and families were thrust into an unprecedented experiment in remote learning.

While the downsides of the pandemic were massive, the time spent at home also led many people to rethink their priorities. Life slowed down, routines changed, and from this all-encompassing hiatus emerged new perspectives. For some, the old pattern of spending most of our waking hours at work or school began to feel less like a necessity and more like an outdated expectation.

Chronic Absenteeism in Numbers

Chronic absenteeism in schools skyrocketed during the pandemic and has not recovered since. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% or more of school from excused or unexcused absences or suspensions.

According to data from the U.S. Department of Education, the percentage of chronically absent students has increased dramatically. The numbers jumped from 16% before the pandemic to over 30% in the 2021/2022 school year. They moved slightly down to 26% in the 2022/2023 school year.

Approximately 6.5 million students are missing significant chunks of their education. FutureEd reports that in 36 states, 20% of students were still chronically absent in 2022/2023.

Chronic absenteeism has hit particularly hard in at-risk communities, where economic and social challenges are already steep.

The Pandemic’s Wake-Up Call

The 2020/2021 school year was a fiasco for just about everyone. Districts and administrators faced a logistical nightmare and scrambled to make plans to keep schools operating. Teachers had to navigate new technology, convert their curriculum, and learn to do their jobs in a completely new way on the fly. Students struggled to stay engaged amid isolation and a lack of structure. Parents juggled more responsibility as their school-aged kids were stuck at home, battling emotional strife.

For many families I worked with, the pandemic brought financial strain and hard choices. Some students were pulled away from academics to work and support their households. Others may have questioned the long-term value of a high school diploma. The traditional promise of “graduate high school, get your degree, find a good job, and thrive” doesn’t seem to resonate with Gen Z, and maybe for good reason.

A global study reported that nearly 40% of Gen Z don’t believe college degrees are necessary. The combination of technological advancements, remote work, and freelance opportunities, a 5-10x increase in college tuition over the past few decades, and a century-old education system that hasn’t caught up to our new reality have led many to question the value of education as we know it.

The Effects of Chronic Absenteeism

While these concerns by Gen Z are valid as we contemplate new directions within education, the fact remains that missing out on a K-12 education can have profound and far-reaching negative effects on individuals and communities.

Chronically absent students are less likely to read by third grade and/or read at grade level throughout their education and more likely to drop out. They may face limited career opportunities, especially in specialized fields.

Absenteeism also has social effects, as missing school can isolate students, weaken their sense of belonging, and stunt social skills development.

According to a 2024 report by the Center on Reinventing Public Education, the average American student is “less than halfway to a full academic recovery” from the effects of the pandemic. The impact of lower literacy rates, social skills, and basic proficiency across core subjects like math, English, and history among America’s youth is significant. Consequences ranging from diminished employment opportunities, lower civic engagement, worse mental and physical health outcomes, and even lower GDP, require a remedy.

The Shift in Mindset and Needs Among Parents and Students

The pandemic fundamentally shifted how many people view education. Once seen as a temporary solution, remote learning became a preferred option for some families. It offered flexibility and relief from the rigid Monday-to-Friday, early-morning-to-afternoon grind of traditional schooling. After the pandemic, when schools were re-opening, many families chose to keep their students in remote and hybrid arrangements when given the option. Parents and students began to question whether in-person attendance was essential or whether excelling in school still guaranteed a pathway to success.

At the same time, students’ needs have changed dramatically. Major disruptions in learning during and post-pandemic have resulted in millions of students with significant academic gaps that require additional educational support. For some, the stress and struggle of closing these gaps makes school feel overwhelming, creating a cycle of disengagement. Emotional and social challenges have also escalated—reports of anxiety, depression, and bullying are at an all-time high. Many students feel safer at home.

A recent Education Week article highlights that parents are often unaware of how many days their children are missing or don’t necessarily see their child’s absences as a serious issue. This disconnect underscores the need for schools to address the academic and emotional barriers affecting students and communicate more effectively with parents.

Building the Case to Come Back

As an educator, I see the gaps and outdated practices in our current system. Despite many shortcomings and a need for reinvention, school still matters–a lot. Education is an invaluable institution that must be preserved and continuously improved. I firmly maintain that this should include in-person learning. You know, where students gather around a table to solve a problem, play together at recess, build shoe box dioramas, watch in awe as a chemical reaction bubbles over a beaker, or perform a play in front of their classmates.

While chronic absenteeism is a symptom of unprecedented global events and deep systemic challenges—some beyond our control—there are actionable changes within our reach. To bring students back, schools need to make it worth their time in a way that resonates with the world they live in now, address academic gaps, provide mental health support, and team up with parents.

Here are a Few Potential Strategies

Emphasize Relevance and Real-World Skills

• Curriculums emphasizing career readiness, interpersonal interaction, and real-world applications may resonate more with today’s students.
• Introduce programs that connect people, teach real-world skills, and offer resume-building opportunities, such as financial literacy classes, leadership training, culinary arts, internships, certification courses, and trade skills.

Close Academic Gaps

• Offer tutoring programs to help students catch up through paid opportunities for staff to work extra hours or unpaid internships for university or high-performing students as peer tutors.
• Utilize AI to quickly personalize and differentiate assignments to meet students where they are (e.g., use LLMs to adjust the reading level on assignments).

Connect with Families

• Keep families informed with real-time updates on student progress and absences using tools like automatic notification systems or regular teacher messages.
• Share infographics that highlight the connection between attendance and outcomes and emphasize the benefits of attending in person can be a way to help parents make more informed decisions.

Invest in Mental Health Support

There are many ways to integrate more mental health support into schools:

• Have staff complete trauma-informed training,
• Incorporate social-emotional learning (SEL) in the curriculum,
• Create a mental health support team,
• Use multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS),
• Communicate via posters and brochures information to students about mental health support resources such as crisis hotlines, and
• Consider community partnerships with counselors and therapists.

At this critical juncture, we must focus on re-engaging students and families, modernizing education, and preparing our kids not only for the world they live in today but also to lead in the world they will shape tomorrow.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education Chronic Absenteeism

Many Gen Zers don’t believe they need a college degree for a successful career. They might be right. Fortune Magazine, March 15, 2023. Link

The Scary Truth About How Far Behind American Kids Have Fallen, Harvard University, September 20, 2024. Link

The State of the American Student: Fall 2024. Link

Chronic Absenteeism is a Crisis. Do Parents Get It? EducationWeek, March 29, 2024. Link

2024 Gen Z and Millennial Survey: Living and working with purpose in a transforming world. Deloitte. Link