A quarter of school-aged children don鈥檛 think missing three weeks of the school year is a problem, according to a new survey.
The results come as districts enter a new school year determined to drive down chronic absenteeism rates that shot up as school buildings reopened after pandemic closures and have remained elevated. It鈥檚 a complex problem that鈥檚 difficult to tackle without buy-in from parents, families, and students themselves.
While it鈥檚 true that about 75% of the students surveyed did think missing so much class time was a problem, that a quarter didn鈥檛 is still 鈥渞eally concerning,鈥� said Melissa Kay Diliberti, an associate policy researcher at RAND who worked on the survey of about 1,300 students between March and May.
In their report, researchers estimated about 22% of students across the United States were chronically absent in the 2024-25 school year, an increase from the prior year, when they estimated about 19% of American students were chronically absent鈥攄efined as missing at least 10% of school days for excused or unexcused reasons. Those totals are significantly higher than the estimated 15% of students who were chronically absent prior to the pandemic.
The most common reason kids identified for missing school in the RAND survey was illness (67%). Other reasons included feeling down or anxious (10%), oversleeping (9%), and being uninterested in attending (7%). About 4% said they missed school to care for a family member, 3% lacked transportation to school, and 1% reported work conflicts.
Diliberti and her team at RAND offered three ways districts can engage with parents and students to communicate the importance of being in class as often as possible.
Make sure parents are on the same page about the importance of attending school
Much of districts鈥� work to communicate the importance of not missing school focuses on engaging parents and caregivers. And rightfully so, Diliberti said.
鈥淜ids probably adopt, to some degree, the attitudes that they are feeling from their parents or what they鈥檙e feeling at home,鈥� Diliberti said. 鈥淪o by convincing families the importance of being in school, you鈥檙e probably also convincing kids. You can attack the problem from multiple sides.鈥�
Some districts have found success in modifying absence notification systems (like automated text messages and emails) to use more 鈥減arent-friendly language鈥� and focusing more on how a student鈥檚 absences compare with their peers鈥�, rather than citing legal codes or possible punishments for additional absences, according to the report.
Some also said parents responded well when districts highlighted what students miss when they鈥檙e absent鈥攍ike interaction with their peers, live instruction, and the change to receive real-time help.
Create strong attendance habits early and give students a reason to attend
Students of different ages respond better to different approaches, the researchers said.
It鈥檚 important to create strong attendance habits for young students to avoid long-term problems, they said.
鈥淚f we let a kindergarten parent create bad habits for their child and think it鈥檚 all right for them not to come to school, then we鈥檙e going to be battling that forever,鈥� one unnamed district leader said in the report.
So, some districts have focused on making sure the families of their youngest students understand why being in school is so important and when it鈥檚 appropriate to keep kids home if they are sick. They鈥檝e also rewarded consistent attendance.
鈥淭he idea is, if you can get parent buy-in early and attack the problem at its base, you鈥檙e hopefully setting kids up for long-term success,鈥� Diliberti said. You鈥檙e banking on the fact that鈥檚 going to carry through as your kid gets older.鈥�
Older students might respond better to approaches that make their classes feel more relevant to their future goals, the researchers said.
Some district leaders they interviewed added career-connected learning opportunities and extracurricular activities. Some discussed developing a work-based learning program to give students opportunities in school to pursue their post-high school career plans. That gave kids a reason to attend school, they said.
鈥淎s kids get older and maybe have more choice about whether or not they themselves want to come to school, then it鈥檚 really about engagement and making kids feel like school is relevant for them and for their lives, and that they need to be here to set themselves up for their futures,鈥� Diliberti said.
Partner with community organizations so families can get help they need
Sometimes, kids and families need more help than what schools themselves can provide. That鈥檚 where community organizations come in, Diliberti said.
Some district leaders found that partnering with local nonprofits, health care providers, universities, and government agencies to connect students with mental health care, medical services, and support to find housing helped address some of the challenges families have cited when explaining why their kids can鈥檛 always get to class, the report said.
