Chronic absence is missing 10% of school
Why does school attendance matter so much?
Because the opposite – being absent – wrecks learning. That’s why 91Ƭ is highlighting Attendance Awareness Month throughout September.
There is no way for students to keep up with school if they’re not there. And it doesn’t take a lot of absences to add up to big problems. In fact, missing just 10% of the school year qualifies as “chronic absence.” That means missing just two-three days a month.
Missing just two-three days a month might not sound like a big deal, but it equates to poor performance, like lower reading proficiency, lower math scores and lower graduation rates. The bottom line – it means students don’t learn what they need to know, and that can negatively affect their entire lives.
School attendance is a powerful predictor of how students perform. When students are consistently in class, they have direct and immediate access to learning, which supports their acquisition of skills and keeps them engaged throughout their educational journey.
It Starts Early
A child’s educational foundation starts early, and the skills and knowledge they learn in kindergarten and first grade can impact the rest of their schooling – and their entire lives.
shows that chronic absentees in kindergarten go on to have the lowest performance in first grade. Already behind in first grade, these student’s academic problems only snowball as they grow older.
Chronic absence in early grades correlates to difficulty reading in third grade and low achievement in middle school or junior high. By sixth grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school ().
Act Now
According to , chronic absence has more than doubled since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic with about 16 million students nationwide. It’s nothing short of a national crisis, but it doesn’t have to be. The school year has just started, and there is still time to get kids in school. If everyone – parents, teachers, students and all community members pitch in and do what they can – millions of lives can be impacted for the better.
So, now is the time to act, to make sure your students make it to school. It’s not always easy for everyone to get to school, but the long-term benefits of going – and the long-term effects of not going – make the effort more than worthwhile.
Learn more about the importance of school attendance and what you can do to help at .