You've heard it all before - technology is disrupting education, AI will replace teachers, we need to completely reinvent how we teach kids.
But what if I told you that one of the biggest threats to student learning has nothing to do with the latest edtech trends? Chronic student absenteeism, often overlooked and underestimated, is quietly undermining our children's futures.
Since AI became mainstream, we have poured all our attention into how it will change education, often neglecting bigger issues such as chronic absenteeism. And this isn’t a rant against AI.
I don’t even hate AI, at least not as much as Eliezer Yudkowsky. I’m an ed-tech consultant; it’s my job to help educational stakeholders effectively adopt technologies like AI in education.
I just think chronic absenteeism deserves as much attention, if not more, as AI is getting.
At first glance, a few missed days may not seem like a big deal. But the reality is that chronic absenteeism can cripple a child's ability to learn and achieve.
Students who are chronically absent in kindergarten have lower academic performance in first grade. By middle school, it becomes one of the leading indicators that a student will drop out of high school.
The effects are profoundly cumulative and destructive.
So, why is chronic absenteeism such a persistent problem? And how do we solve it? To understand the severity of this issue, we need to explore its root causes and the profound impact it has on education.
Only then can we begin to see why addressing absenteeism should be our top priority, even in the age of AI.
The Sobering Reality of Chronic Absenteeism
Chronic absenteeism – when students miss at least 10% of the school year – has become an epidemic in schools worldwide.
Although educators and advocates hoped attendance would improve following the instability of the pandemic, in many cases, it has become more pervasive and intractable.
From 2018 to 2023, the rate of chronic absenteeism nearly doubled, increasing from 15% to 26% in America alone. This surge underscores the severity of the issue, which has significantly contributed to lower performance even among students who aren’t chronically absent.
The issue, which has led to decreased performance even for students who attend regularly, emerged as one of the most urgent challenges this past school year. It's a global phenomenon, affecting countries like Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and others.
The American Enterprise Institute has bluntly labeled it as “the biggest problem facing schools right now.” Moreover, it’s not just low-income kids who are missing class time: Students across the socioeconomic spectrum are skipping school at record-high rates.
According to this study, students who are habitually truant face higher risks of substance abuse, gang involvement, and brushes with the juvenile justice system.
Some states like Texas have gotten so fed up that they punish chronic absenteeism with heavy fines, driver's license suspensions, and even jail time for unpaid penalties.
The pervasiveness of chronic absenteeism calls for a shift in our focus. It is not merely a matter of enforcing attendance but understanding and addressing the underlying causes.
But what are these causes? Why exactly does the problem persist?
1. The Boredom Factor
One of the primary reasons chronic absenteeism persists is that many students consider school boring. This issue of disengagement is starkly highlighted by recent statistics.
A nationally representative poll found that nearly 2 in 3 teens say school is boring. Only 41% of the roughly 1,000 respondents said they liked going to school, and almost a third said going to school is a waste of time.
These feelings of disengagement and disinterest lead to increased absences, as students see little value in attending classes that fail to capture their interest or seem relevant to their lives.
When asked about school in general, 64% of teens agreed that school is boring. Perhaps even more troubling, only 41% of teens reported that they like going to school, while 30% said that school is a waste of time.
This perception is not just isolated to individual students; it reflects a broader sentiment among their peers. Nearly three in four teens said their classmates are bored in class, and 15% of teens mentioned that none of their classmates want to be in school.
This disengagement can stem from various factors, including a curriculum that fails to connect with students' interests, teaching methods that do not foster interactive and dynamic learning experiences, and a lack of real-world application in lessons.
When students do not see the value in what they are learning, they are more likely to skip school, leading to a vicious cycle of absenteeism and falling behind academically.
Moreover, the strategies schools often employ to handle absenteeism can sometimes exacerbate the problem rather than solve it. For example, imposing fines for truancy can place additional stress on students and their families without addressing the underlying reasons for absenteeism.
These punitive measures can create a hostile environment, making students feel even more alienated from the school system. Instead of fostering a supportive atmosphere that encourages attendance, such approaches can push students further away, compounding the issue.
Addressing boredom in school is not just about making lessons more entertaining but about making them more meaningful and relevant.
It is crucial to rethink how education is delivered. Engaging students means creating a curriculum that resonates with their interests and experiences.
2. The Mental Health Crisis
Another major contributor to chronic absenteeism is the mental health struggles many students face. These challenges have intensified in recent years, especially among adolescents. In 2021, over 40% of teens reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless.
Anxiety and depression are particularly prevalent among students. A study in Los Angeles found these conditions to be the leading health-related causes of missed classes.
For students dealing with such issues, the idea of attending school can be overwhelming, leading to school avoidance. This issue, where children refuse to attend or find it difficult to stay in school for the whole day, is becoming increasingly common
The persistent feelings of sadness, anxiety, and hopelessness that many students experience can make the school environment seem daunting.
The pressures of academic performance, social interactions, and other stressors can exacerbate their mental health issues, making them feel unable to cope with the demands of school.
This results in increased absenteeism as students seek to avoid the environments that they perceive as contributing to their distress.
Many schools have already been doing a lot to address this issue, although more needs to be done. I think the people who really need to step up are parents. You need to be your child’s first counsellor and best friend.
Let them be able to safely open up to you about their worries and you should respond with empathy and appropriate support. You would be surprised by the number of kids who don’t open up to their parents for fear of judgement. Keep an open mind and listen to your kids.
3. Troubles Outside School
The third major reason behind chronic absenteeism is the myriad of troubles students face outside school, such as poverty and family hardships. These external challenges disrupt students' lives and make regular school attendance difficult, if not impossible.
Housing insecurity and poverty continue to be significant barriers for low-income students. Families struggling to make ends meet may prioritize immediate survival over daily school attendance.
When students are unsure where they will sleep at night or where their next meal will come from, attending school can fall to the bottom of their list of priorities. This disruption in routine can lead to frequent absences as students and their families navigate these pressing issues.
Nat Malkus from the American Enterprise Institute highlights another dimension to this problem, suggesting that there may be a "culture problem" regarding how some families perceive the importance of daily attendance relative to other challenges in their lives.
For families facing significant hardships, ensuring that their children attend school every day may seem less critical compared to addressing immediate and pressing needs.
This cultural perspective can perpetuate a cycle of absenteeism, where education is not seen as a priority amidst the chaos of daily survival.
A Way Forward
Given the varying and complex reasons why students are absent from school, there’s no universal solution to solving the problem. Like many challenges in education, it is what Horst Rittel called a "wicked problem" – multifaceted and deeply interconnected with broader societal issues.
There is, however, a promising starting point: responding to absenteeism with compassion rather than punishment. This approach recognizes that punitive measures alone are often ineffective and can exacerbate the underlying issues driving absenteeism.
Sharon Bradley, in charge of helping students, families, and communities in the Plano school district in Texas, did this so well.
In 2020, she started a new program for when students miss too many days of school without an excuse. Instead of sending these students straight to truancy court, she created an "attendance review board."
This group meets with any student who has missed 10-12 days of school without a valid reason - before they get sent to court. The smart part is that the board talks with the students and families to understand why they are missing school.
Together, they make a plan to help that student start coming to class again.
A few weeks later, the board meets again to see if the student's attendance has improved with the new plan.
If not, then the district can send the student to truancy court. But most of the time, the understanding approach works - the students start coming back to school.
Having an attendance review board is not a brand-new idea. Way back in 1974, California made these boards to keep students out of the juvenile justice system.
Moving forward, schools and communities must adopt similar compassionate approaches to address chronic absenteeism. This means investing in support services that address the root causes of absenteeism, such as mental health counseling, family support programs, and initiatives to alleviate poverty-related challenges.
It also involves creating inclusive and supportive school environments where students feel valued, safe, and motivated to attend regularly.
Thank you so much for reading.
I’m sorry for not posting in over 4 months. I had surgery to remove the mass in my vocal cords which was causing me to have a hoarse voice. So I’ve been focusing on my healing.
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Bechem Ayuk - The Value Junction
Welcome back, you were missed. Hope your mending is on track. Great article. The points raised start to underscore the potentials of AI and home schooling. Why? Because both can provide a learning environment tailored to each student’s needs and learning styles, can minimize disruptions to the learning process, provide for the most direct transfer of knowledge from “teacher” to student, and provide a real time feedback loop.
Your article also hints at the lack of accountability throughput the learning process—parent-student-teacher-administration-unions-government.
You’re providing a valuable service to countless kids whose futures can be much brighter. Keep informing and stimulating those who can make change happen.