Nearly Half of Teachers Had Students Who Never Showed Up to Class Last Year
Categories: US Education News
Nearly half of public school teachers in the U.S. reported at least one student during the 2020-21 school year who was enrolled but never showed up for class, according to new federal data that provides one of the first glimpses from the national level of the major challenges that sidelined student learning and the types of schools they left behind.High school teachers were the most affected, with roughly two-thirds, or 65%, having at least one student who never showed up, compared to less than half of teachers in kindergarten to grade eight. In addition, teachers in urban schools were significantly more likely to report having students who never showed up compared to those in rural and suburban schools – 65% compared to 45% and 44%, respectively – as were teachers who taught in schools where the majority of students enrolled are students of color, 56%, compared to those who taught in majority-white schools, 45%. For older students especially, competing demands on time – including providing care to a family member or work commitments that interfered with school – were common reasons for their absence. Nearly half of teachers in grades three through eight and grades nine through 12 said that providing care to a family member was “somewhat” or a “significant” factor for students, compared to about one-quarter of teachers in kindergarten to grade two. And among teachers in grades nine through 12, 57% said work commitments interfered with school – though just 17% of teachers in grades three to eight named work commitments as a reason. “The high levels of chronic absences means positive conditions for learning are being eroded at a systemic level,” says Hedy Nai-Lin Chang, executive director and vice president of Attendance Works, a nonprofit organization that tracks absenteeism and its effects.“The problem with the ‘20-21 data is that so much of it was remote and our attendance-taking practices during remote varied hugely and a lot of times we weren’t very stringent,” she says. “So you do see some increases, but my sense is that it’s probably, in most states, much higher.” “A doubling of chronic absenteeism is not at all uncommon right now,” Nai-Lin Chang says. “The 40% level is not that uncommon, which is incredibly problematic and distressing. And it means that we really are going to have to double down on engagement and support.”Researchers at Attendance Works estimated that the high levels of absenteeism reported in the McKinsey survey could translate into an additional 1.7 million to 3.3 million students in grades eight to 12 dropping out of school, if historical correlations between chronic absence and high school graduation remain steady.“The building blocks have been eroded for a lot of kids,” Nai-Lin Chang says. “And we’re going to have to reinvest.”