The pandemic seems to have permanently increased truancy
For most of the past century, attendance grew. Then the covid-19 pandemic happened. For the best part of two years, children were forced to learn at home, staring at laptops. As they start the 2023-24 school year, a terrifying proportion still seem barely to be back.
Explaining this is tricky. Students skip school for many reasons: lack of transport, poverty, the weather. But these are unlikely to have worsened of late. A more plausible explanation for the lasting rise is that, having experienced remote learning, some students—and perhaps their parents—no longer think it essential or even worthwhile to sit in a classroom. “It’s the same thing as in the workplace,” says a teacher in New Orleans.
Attending school in person is important. Studies show that even after adjusting for poverty levels and race, children who skip more school get significantly worse grades. One published by the Institute of Labour Economics, a German think-tank, by three American academics, found that missing ten maths classes reduced the chance of a high school student graduating on time by 8%. Schools also connect pupils to important services.
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