As students head back to school, chronic absence rates remain much higher than they were before COVID: Nearly 1 in 4 students nationwide miss more than 10% of school days. Low scores on the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress underscore that high levels of absenteeism continue to contribute to the decline in student performance, and an analysis of past NAEP results shows that students who miss more school scored far lower than their peers who do not.
As an education researcher in longstanding partnership with public schools and the founder and executive director of a nonprofit organization focused specifically on attendance, we’re hearing questions from educators, district leaders, families and policymakers about whether the old standards for attendance are still reasonable. Do students still need to go to school every day? Is it fair to ask educators to work on improving attendance when so many barriers exist outside of school?