Absenteeism pummels schools

According to CTV News - Published Jan. 24, 2022 7:03 a.m. EST

More than 300 Ontario schools reported staff and student absences of more than 30 per cent by the end of last week, after students returned for in-person learning following the latest pandemic-related shutdown.

But the data includes all absences, not just those that might be related to COVID-19, making it tough to gauge the impact of the Omicron variant on Ontario's school system now that the province is no longer publicly reporting cases in schools.

Some schools reported high absences due to the weather or technical errors. Data was also missing for about 1,400 of the province's 4,844 schools.

Data published Monday show 337 schools had hit the 30 per cent mark as of Friday and 111 schools reported absences higher than 50 per cent of all staff and students.

Absence information was made available for 3,451 of the province's schools.

The province has said schools will have to report absences of more than 30 per cent to local public health units. It's up to public health and the school board to discuss what should happen next, including if or when families will be notified.

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According to Axios PM by Mike Allen on April 06, 2022

Student absenteeism has surged during the pandemic, creating another hurdle for teachers trying to get students caught up.

The big picture: Chronic absenteeism — categorized as students missing at least 10% of the academic year — can haunt students' academic outcomes for years, Axios' Erin Doherty reports.

In Los Angeles, 46% of students in Los Angeles Unified have been chronically absent this year or have missed at least 9% of the academic year, according to the L.A. Times.

In New York City, the rate of chronic absenteeism soared to 40% — up from 26% during the 2018-2019 school year, according to the New York Post.

In Ohio, the statewide chronic absenteeism rate rose to 24% in 2020-2021, the most recent school year for which there is data, up from 11% in 2019-2020.

Between the lines: Chronic absenteeism is disproportionately affecting vulnerable student groups.

In Los Angeles, the chronic absentee rate for Black students is nearly 57% and the rate for Latino students is 49%.