The American Enterprise Institute (AEI), Education Trust and Attendance Works have issued a call to action for states and school districts to put policies in place to decrease student chronic absenteeism by 50% in the next five years, according to an article in K-12 Dive.
Organization leaders and educators call the goal ambitious but necessary. High post-pandemic absenteeism rates are hurting student learning, teacher retention, school culture and postsecondary preparedness.
Strengthening home-school relationships, monitoring attendance data and using engaging instruction is critical as schools work to boost academic outcomes while adjusting to the end of federal COVID-19 emergency funds, according to the coalition.
Nationally, chronic absenteeism — defined as the percentage of students missing at least 10% of the school year, or about 18 days — mushroomed from 15% in 2018 to 28% in 2022, according to the Return 2 Learn Tracker from AEI.
“This… the most urgent issue facing schools today,” says Nat Malkus, deputy director of education policy studies at AEI
“As COVID dollars recede, folks are going to have to be even more clear, targeted and creative about how they’re going to ensure they have the resources to continue making a difference,” says Hedy Chang, executive director of Attendance Works Chang.
“This can’t be a “one-size-fits-all” approach, but there is “evidence of what works, and understanding both what students need and how to prioritize those needs is going to be really important,” says Denise Forte, president and CEO of Ed Trust.
K-12 Dive
