Absenteeism Rates See Big Jump in Post-COVID Era
The costs and impacts of chronic absenteeism are significant, with both short- and long-term implications for the student as well as for the family, school, and community.[1] Research suggests that chronic school absenteeism at the elementary school level reduces math and reading achievement, educational engagement, four-year graduation rates or any high school completion, and social engagement for the absent child as well as for other children in the classroom.[2] Research aimed at discovering the causes of chronic absenteeism point to poor physical, mental and oral health, ACEs (adverse childhood experiences), and poor school climate.[3] This indicator measures the trend in chronic absenteeism over time and by race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and school district in San Bernardino County.
Chronic Absenteeism Defined
Chronic absenteeism is variably defined as being absent for 10% to 15% or more days of the school year. In California, the threshold is 10% or more of the number of days a student is enrolled in school. For students enrolled for a full school year, this equates to 18 out of California’s state-mandated 180 days in a full school year. Additionally, the chronic absenteeism data in this indicator is sourced from the California Department of Education’s DataQuest which includes all grades. This differs slightly from data published by the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, which uses data sourced from California Department of Education’s California School Dashboard, where the published chronic absenteeism data only includes grades TK-8.
TREND
With five years of available data – excluding data for the 2019/20 school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic – a significant increase in the rate of chronic absenteeism at both the county and state level is emerging. Between 2016/17 and 2021/22, the percentage of students who were chronically absent increased more than twenty percentage points, from 12.1% to 34.9%. While the California average rate of absenteeism (30.0%) was lower than San Bernardino County’s in 2021/22 (34.9%) the state and county had a similar rate of increase since 2016/17. This large increase is likely attributable to the lingering impacts of COVID-19.
CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM SEES LARGE INCREASE IN 2021/22
Percentage of Students Who Are Chronically Absent in San Bernardino County and California, 2016/17-2021/22
RACE/ETHNICITY DETAIL
Chronic absenteeism rates vary by racial and ethnic identification. Pacific Islander students have the highest rate of chronic absenteeism (46.9%), followed by Black students (43.5%) and Native American students (40.7%). At the other end of the continuum, Asian and Filipino students have the lowest rates of chronic absenteeism (11.9% and 14.1%, respectively). This dramatic disparity contributes to an Equity Gap Score of 3.9 for chronic absenteeism. This means that the rate for the group with the highest rate of absenteeism (Pacific Islander students) is nearly four times as high as the rate of the group with the lowest rate of absenteeism (Asian students).
WIDE DISPARITIES REMAIN IN CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM BY RACE/ETHNICITY
Percentage of Students Who Are Chronically Absent by Race/Ethnicity in San Bernardino County, 2021/22
| Race/Ethnicity | Percent Chronically Absent |
|---|---|
| Asian | 11.9% |
| Filipino | 14.1% |
| White | 29.1% |
| Two+ | 31.2% |
| Average | 34.9% |
| Latino | 37.0% |
| Native American | 40.7% |
| Black | 43.5% |
| Pacific Islander | 46.9% |
Source: California Department of Education, DataQuest; data is for all schools (charter and non-charter)
SOCIOECONOMIC DETAIL
The rate of chronic absenteeism among students who are socioeconomically disadvantaged is higher than that of students who are not socioeconomically disadvantaged (39.3% vs. 22.8%).
STUDENTS WHO ARE SOCIOECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE CHRONICALLY ABSENT
Percentage of Students Who Are Chronically Absent by Socioeconomic Status in San Bernardino County, 2021/22
A Note Regarding Chronic Absenteeism Data
The long-lasting impacts of COVID-19 are still visible and apparent in educational outcomes across the nation. Despite “distance learning” programs and policies implemented during the depths of the pandemic to keep students on track, a large number of students fell behind. Additionally, with the passing of AB130 in California, which temporarily suspended the reporting of state accountability measures, including chronic absenteeism and statewide testing, many school districts reported local data and tested students using locally determined measures. These issues impacted not only San Bernardino County, but the state and nation, as well. As such, comparisons of student performance or absenteeism rates pre- and post-COVID as well as between the county and state should be interpreted with caution.
[1] Maynard, B. R., McCrea, K. T., Pigott, T. D., & Kelly, M. S. (2012). Indicated Truancy Interventions: Effects on School Attendance Among Chronic Truant Students. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 10.
[2] Gottfried, M. A. (2019). Chronic Absenteeism in the Classroom Context: Effects on Achievement. Urban Education, 54(1), 3-34.
Smerillo, N. E., Reynolds, A. J., Temple, J. A., & Ou, S. R. (2018). Chronic Absence, Eighth-grade Achievement, and High School Attainment in the Chicago Longitudinal Study. Journal of School Psychology, 67, 163-178.
Gottfried, M. A. (2014). Chronic Absenteeism and its Effects on Students’ Academic and Socioemotional Outcomes. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk (JESPAR), 19(2), 53-75.
Cook, P. J., Dodge, K. A., Gifford, E. J., & Shulting, A. B. (2017). A New Program to Prevent Primary School Absenteeism: Results of a Pilot Study in Five Schools. Children and Youth Services Review, 82, 262-270.
[3] Stempel, H., Cox-Martin, M., Bronsert, M., Dickinson, L. M., & Allison, M. A. (2017). Chronic school absenteeism and the role of adverse childhood experiences. Academic pediatrics, 17(8), 837-843.
Van Eck, K., Johnson, S. R., Bettencourt, A., & Johnson, S. L. (2017). How School Climate Relates to Chronic Absence: A Multi-Level Latent Profile Analysis. Journal of School Psychology, 61, 89-102.
Pourat N., & Nicholson G. (2009). Affordability of Needed Dental Care is Linked to Frequent School Absences (pre-publication manuscript), UCLA Center for Health Policy Research